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With advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and cognitive modelling, unmanned aircraft are expected to actas human-like wingmen in the near future. For fluent and effective manned–unmanned teaming, synthetic wingmen must beable to account for and adapt to their partners’ intent with little or no communication. To enable such abilities, it becomescrucial to identify the requirements that makes intent explainable to synthetic wingmen, necessitating approaches to describeand analyse intent from a human-centric perspective. To address this issue, this paper reports on findings from using WorkDomain Analysis to design and analyse models of situated intent with six levels of cognitive control (frames, effects, values,generic, implementations, and physical). Through a literature review and seven subject matter expert interviews, a synthesizedmodel was designed to represent fighter pilots’ intent in a manned–unmanned teaming scenario. Using the synthesized modelas the context, a transfer of control and a link loss situation were further described and analysed. Experiences show that WorkDomain Analysis can provide a practical and applicable means to model situated intent, particularly since designed modelscan be re-utilised to model intent in similar situations. Furthermore, the model analyses show the importance of accountingfor fighter pilots’ adopted frames since small variations of the framing of the situations can propagate throughout the modelresulting in conflicting or inconsistent intent. The paper concludes that synthetic wingmen must be able to reason about all six levels of cognitive control, requiring a more holistic approach to make intent explainable., Funding: VINNOVA; Swedish Defence Material Administration [2017-04884,2017-04884,2017-04884,2017-04884]; NFFP (National Aviation Research Programme) - VINNOVA (Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems); Swedish Armed Forces, The Swedish Defence Material Administration and NFFP (National Aviation Research Pro- gramme), which is funded by VINNOVA (Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems, 2017-04884,2017-04884,2017- 04884,2017-04884), the Swedish Armed Forces, and the Swedish Defence Material Administration.

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) have the potential to provide cost effective solutions to many problems, but their control systems need to be safe and trustworthy in order to realize this potential. In this paper we show how behavior trees (BTs), created using backward chaining and using a particular way of labelling subtrees, can be used to meet the requirements of trustworthy autonomy described in a US air force (USAF) report. Behavior Trees represent a modular, reactive and transparent way of structuring a control system that is receiving increasing interest in the UAS community. While their safety and efficiency have been investigated in prior research, their connection to trustworthy autonomy has not been explored. A set of guidelines for trustworthy autonomy, taken from a USAF report, include items such as: being similar to how humans parse problems, being able to explain its reasoning in a concise way, and being able to be visualized at different levels of resolution. We propose a new way of deriving explanations that conform to these guidelines, using a particular labeling of subtrees in the BT combined with a structured design methodology called backward chaining. The proposed approach is illustrated in a detailed example., Part of ISBN 9798350310375QC 20230831

A team of fighter pilots in a distributed environment with limited access to information rely on technology to pursue teamwork. In order to design systems that support distributed teamwork, it is, therefore, necessary to understand how access to information affects the team members. Certain factors, such as mutual performance monitoring, shared mental models, adaptability, and backup behavior are considered essential for effective teamwork. We investigate these factors in this work, focusing on how visually communicated information affects fighter pilots’ perception of these factors. For that, a questionnaire including the teamwork factors in relation to certain defined scenarios that contain various levels of information was distributed to fighter pilots. We show that the studied factors are affected by the level of information available to the pilots. Especially, mutual performance monitoring increases with the degree of available information.

Swarms of autonomous and coordinating Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are rapidly being developed to enable simultaneous control of multiple UAVs. In the field of Human-Swarm Interaction (HSI), researchers develop and study swarm algorithms and various means of control and evaluate their cognitive and task performance. There is, however, a lack of research describing how UAV swarms will fit into future real-world domain contexts. To remedy this, this paper describes a case study conducted within the community of firefighters, more precisely two Swedish fire departments that regularly deploy UAVs in fire responses. Based on an initial description of how their UAVs are used in a forest firefighting context, participating UAV operators and unit commanders envisioned a scenario that showed how the swarm and its capabilities could be utilized given the constraints and requirements of a forest firefighting mission. Based on this swarm scenario description we developed a swarm interaction model that describes how the operators’ interaction traverses multiple levels ranging from the entire swarm, via subswarms and individual UAVs, to specific sensors and equipment carried by the UAVs. The results suggest that human-in-the-loop simulation studies need to enable interaction across multiple swarm levels as this interaction may exert additional cognitive strain on the human operator.

The execution of teamwork varies widely depending on the domain and task in question. Despite the considerable diversity of teams and their operation, researchers tend to aim for unified theories and models regardless of field. However, we argue that there is a need for translation and adaptation of the theoretical models to each specific domain. To this end, a case study was carried out on fighter pilots and it was investigated how teamwork is performed in this specialised and challenging environment, with a specific focus on the dependence on technology for these teams. The collaboration between the fighter pilots is described and analysed using a generic theoretical model for effective teamwork from the literature. The results show that domain-specific application and modification is needed in order for the model to capture fighter pilot's teamwork. The study provides deeper understanding of the working conditions for teams of pilots and gives design implications for how tactical support systems can enhance teamwork in the domain. Practitioner summary: This article presents a qualitative interview study with fighter pilots based on a generic theoretical teamwork model applied to the fighter domain. The purpose is to understand the conditions under which teams of fighter pilots work and to provide guidance for the design of future technological aids.

Fighter pilots performing air missions rely heavily on teamwork for successful outcomes. Designing systems that support such teamwork in highly dynamic missions is a challenging task, and to the best of our knowledge, current teamwork models are not specifically adapted for this domain. This paper presents a model of task performance for military fighter pilots based on the teamwork model “Big Five” proposed by Salas, Sims, and Burke [1]. The “Big Five” model consists of eight teamwork elements that are essential for successful team performance. In-depth interviews were performed with fighter pilots to explore and describe the teamwork elements for the fighter aircraft domain. The findings from these interviews are used to suggest where in the task cycle of mission performance each teamwork element comes in to play.

Research on decision support systems for fighter aircraft has to regard future manned and unmanned cooperating aircraft. This paper highlights system characteristics and contextual constraints to guide research as well as system development. Long term trends have been identified for the domain that has to be coped with, including the transformation of the fighter pilot from pilot to tactical decision maker. Automation strategies have to be developed to support manned and unmanned aircraft in a joint cognitive system. For instance, for intelligent fighter pilot support, for distributed unmanned and manned decision making, function allocation has to be concerned. For function allocation it is important not only to regard which agent is best at performing a task but also to regard the risk/cost of performing a task in this kind of potentially hazardous context.

In the current study, interaction using gaze control was compared to computer mouse using the MATB-II (Multi-Attribute Task Battery) environment. The study had two aims; the first was to explore the utility of low-cost technologies in a rapid prototyping and testing environment for aviation. The second aim was to use such an environment to compare a novel interaction device (a low-cost gaze control device) to a familiar interaction device (computer mouse). Method: Thirty participants performed two scenarios with each interaction device. The software MATB-II provided simulated flight tasks and recorded performance. Mental workload was assessed by the NASA Task Load Index (TLX) questionnaire after each scenario. Results: The results showed that gaze control resulted in significantly higher overall mental workload than computer mouse. Performance was better with mouse in two of the four tasks. Conclusions: Concerning the first aim, the study demonstrated the value of low-cost technology for initial user testing before using more expensive high-fidelity environments. Concerning the second aim, the computer mouse resulted in better performance and lower mental workload. This may either be due to higher user familiarity with computer mouse interaction or to limitations of the gaze control equipment and insufficient adjustments of the interface design to optimize for gaze control.

This chapter highlights important aspects of an intelligent fighter pilot support for distributed unmanned and manned decision making. First the background is described including current trends within the domain, and characteristics of a decision support system are discussed. After that a scenario and example situations are presented. The chapter also includes reflections of an intelligent fighter pilot support for distributed unmanned and manned decision making from the joint cognitive systems view, regarding human interoperability, and function allocation.

The long term vision of presenting the "Big picture" to the pilot as Eugene Adams envisaged in the 80´s is about to become true. Today we have the technical solutions to be able to collect and present the information on one large display in a structured and beneficial way. Saab Aeronautics has studied possibilities for a large area display (LAD) and its potential use in a future manned fighter aircraft context. This paper addresses what could be gained by introducing a large area display and why this is a desirable way forward. A LAD is essential for helping the pilot to achieve an improved Situation Awareness. Collected information from different sensors is fused together and presented in one view. A LAD offers the possibility to have one overview of the situation and one zoomed-in detailed picture at the same time on the same display. The pilot can easily pan the view and select interesting areas to zoom in to. The area on a LAD has the benefit of providing a homogeneous display area. Also, information that is dynamically presented to various places, such as dynamic symbols or cursors etcetera is easier to follow, and has a continuous motion, in the homogeneous display area of a LAD. By arranging information in close proximity in a LAD pair-wise comparisons can be made better than when the perceptual task is divided between displays.The tactical overview is often complex and requires many layers and icons to provide a clear and dynamic visual presentation to the aircrew. A LAD makes it easier to visualize the different zones to fly in and to give a good overview of the whole mission. With a LAD it will also be possible to expand and enlarge pictures and video inputs using a pilot selectable display section. Pictures and video can be displayed in the most optimal format for the situation and managed in a flexible manner. Using new cuing solutions such as touch control and innovative command options will enable the designer to utilize new display feedback capabiliti