Digital Flight Gloves

ABSTRACT: SA Photonics has developed an innovative Digital Flight Glove system that has the following advantages over data glove technologies: Multi user Smart Glove mesh networks that can share gesture and sensor information wirelessly with each other, multiple sensor technologies including flexion, pressure, and Electromyography (EMG) for increased gesture and tracking ability, GPS along with MEMs based accelerometer/gyroscope for tracking, wireless communication, and tactile feedback for gesture and status feedback. This Digital Smart Glove system will also allow advanced features such as: Information sharing between users in an operating environment, auto Login of a user to a system through personally keyed data flight gloves, uploading/downloading of mission data, and remote login of gloves to another user display or HMD. The SA Photonics Digital Smart Glove system will reduce the need for annunicator panel switches and buttons as well as alarm status feedback in warfighters. The sensor suite will allow accurate gesture recognition needed for complex tasks such as virtual typing. Response times and user reactions can also be monitored in case studies. The SA Photonics Digital Smart Glove System will be the digital flight glove system for the warfighter of the future. BENEFIT: There are multiple benefits to the Air Force in having a Digital Flight Glove system. These benefits include: 1) Decreased reaction times of pilots due to status/alarm conditions being physically interfaced to the users hands. 2) Decreased reaction times due to less physical movement involved when activating switches and buttons on annunicator panels. 3) Improved portability when needing to write reports. 4) Increased ground to air communication with geo-tagging of mission critical information showing friend/foe targets. 5) Increased focus on activities happening outside of the cockpit. 6)Analysis possible of reaction times and pilot hand/finger movement during training and mission flights. 7) Better pilot performance through"pre-cueing". In the commercial sector, the digital glove system could be used to study reaction times of users engaging in complex tasks, physical therapy, or gaming applications. A digital glove would also be beneficial for sign language training and translation and could be used in high end simulation systems as well.