Collaborative Knowledge Management for Net-Centric Systems: Integrated Digital Operational Log (OpLog) for the Surface Electronic Warfare (EW) Display

In Naval surface electronic warfare (EW), visual displays form critical bridges between warfighters and the complex operational radio-frequency (RF) spectrum they must monitor and interpret. Surface EW operators and supervisors must monitor and interact with multiple, stove-piped display systems in order to perform their work. Further, the visual displays they employ are not designed to account for critical perceptual and cognitive requirements of their human end users. The combined result of an increasingly complex operational RF spectrum and too many difficult to use and interpret visual displays is that the workload of EW operators and supervisors is excessive and unsustainable, with significant potential for error. The Navy currently lacks systematic, scientifically-based display design processes to address these shortcomings. In this SBIR project, Pacific Science & Engineering, a leader in human factors and evidence-based design of display systems, will develop and storyboard initial concepts for visual display artefacts and associated work processes to be incorporated into a digital operational log for the Surface EW Display Suite. The human-machine interface (HMI) concepts developed by PSE will enable the Navy to develop the functionality required for the Surface EW Display Suite HMI to support the logging and reporting tasks performed by EW personnel.