Aerospace Applications of Image Development Language

The Avionics Concept Evaluation Simulator (ACES) Laboratory has developed a rapidly reconfigurable real-time avionics simulation package that can be customized to specific research and development requirements. An essential component of the simulation is a unique graphics model named Image Development Language (IDL). IDL is a Lockheed proprietary, Fortran-based, graphics-imaging language that enables the human factors engineer or designer to create interactive real-time graphics and images in a short time, with relative ease, and with little or no programming expertise. Applications of IDL in human factors research and development in the aerospace community are discussed.