Team Performance Metrics for Command and Control of Unmanned Systems Navy SBIR FY2012.2 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2012.2 Topic No.: N122-137 Topic Title: Team Performance Metrics for Command and Control of Unmanned Systems Proposal No.: N122-137-0413 Firm: SA Technologies, Inc. 3750 Palladian Village Drive Building 600 Marietta, Georgia 30066 Contact: Laura Strater Phone: (972) 636-8312 Web Site: www.satechnologies.com Abstract: The increase in unmanned systems, also known as UxVs, on the battlefield creates the need for coordinated activity among multiple UxVs that work effectively in collaboration with the Warfighters who must be able to rapidly and easily command their operations, insure their compliance with intent in a highly unpredictable world, and receive needed situation awareness (SA) from their sensors. In order to move toward a lower, more efficient UxV to operator ratio, it is critical that we develop a better understanding of real time hybrid human-UxV team performance, so that key decision makers can assess transaction efficiencies given autonomy and control parameters. Unfortunately, little has been done to develop robust and valid metrics of hybrid human-UxV team performance. A key to improving the performance of human-UxV teams, then, lies in developing these metrics so that decision makers can assess performance in real time through intuitive visualizations. To meet this need, SA Technologies proposes to use both their performance measurement assessment system developed in past research and their cutting edge, principled situation awareness-oriented design process (SAOD) to develop a theoretically-derived Actionable Performance Evaluation Index (APEX) analysis and visualization tool. APEX will facilitate peak performance for hybrid human-UxV teams. Benefits: APEX will provide real-time feedback to operators in a hybrid team of humans and UxVs to identify degradations in team performance. Overall, APEX represents a unique approach to the problem space by generating visual representations that effectively and concisely present the operators with the results of a variety of performance parameters that are currently only obtained post hoc. This real-time presentation of succinct, actionable results derived from APEX's team performance metrics will support UxV teams in successfully achieving mission objectives. Our objective is to commercialize APEX within the Navy, as well as across DoD, other Federal agencies, and industry. Transition to a Navy Program of Record will be the initial focus of our commercialization strategy. APEX will be applicable to any domain in which hybrid teams must work cohesively under extreme conditions characterized by high cognitive workload, risky conditions, time pressure, noisy/ intermittent network communications, and distributed team operations. Operators must be able to adequately control one or more remote vehicles, coordinate across disparate team members, and successfully accomplish mission goals. The U.S. DoD plans to continue to expand their inventory of unmanned systems, and these planned increases highlight the need and demand for a tool like APEX. Return