Development of the HUMS Interface System (HINTS) for Helicopters

CHI Systems proposes to develop a Man-Machine Interface for a Health and Usage Monitoring System (HUMS), a collection of mechanical diagnostic technologies that are being introduced in helicopter platforms and which offer opportunities for real-time crew analysis of mechanical subsystem states framed in a mission context. Our proposed system, HINTS, is designed to use HUMS diagnostic outcomes and mission-based cognitive modeling to derive coherent crew options and recommendations for action. Our technology will build on ONR's Air Vehicle Diagnostic System program successes and provide the crew with timely, meaningful data and proposed problem solutions. HINTS will present alerts of impending mechanical system problems on a helmet-mounted display (HMD). The alerts will be triggered by intelligent algorithms derived from the AVDS program, employing neural network and expert system technologies. HINTS will enable the aircrew to obtain data on intermediate analyses and sensor data summaries in order to aid in the verification and interpretation of the original alerts. This ability to obtain elaborating data will also be extendedto provide electronic technical manual and embedded training components. In order to enable the aircrew to interact with the HMD, HINTS will incorporate a control channel for which both voice and manual control options will be investigated.