Training and E-Learning for Maintenance-tasks using a Modern Platform for Operational-efficiencies (TEMM-PO)

The Marine Corps has taken an initiative towards advancing Maintenance Training from the Industrial age into the Information age. However, traditional classroom training techniques with student handouts and presentations, coupled with stove-piped legacy material, results in training being out-of-date with system operations. This learning techniques are inefficient and limit the capability to deliver and sustain improved readiness of Naval platforms. As more complex systems are fielded, not only will maintaining them be more challenging, but keeping training up to date will be even more difficult. Hence, there is a need for digital-twin driven adaptive and immersive maintenance training techniques that provide up-to-date knowledge and expertise to successfully maintain systems. During recent conversations with PM TRASYS stakeholders, QSI learnt that the main challenge in creating immersive content is lack of ready 3D models in the schoolhouses. This necessitates development of a content creation pipeline that is able to generate 3D models from common means such as available 2D pictures, or taking new pictures using common cellphone cameras and photogrammetry techniques. Qualtech Systems, Inc. (QSI), in collaboration with Charles River Analytics (Charles River) and Aptima Inc. (Aptima) (the QSI team) proposes an enterprise training platform, “Training and E-Learning for Maintenance using a Modern Platform for Operational-efficiencies (TEMM-PO)”, leveraging its combined expertise in photogrammetry and machine learning (ML) applied  to computer vision, to provide a continuously improvable immersive content authoring pipeline that provides just-in-time and just-in-place maintenance training with a varied set of immersive experiences. The content creation pipeline will use open-source tools to convert legacy training content into interactive and immersive 3D content. The proposed effort will result in a novel immersive content creation pipeline that sources legacy 2D images and 3D-scanning techniques and generates ready 3D models for use in the web-based AR/VR immersive scene designer. The proposed capabilities for converting legacy material to immersive content can accelerate the Marine Corps’ strategic goal of training technicians to be efficient maintainers.