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Voice Marshalling Trainer
voice marshalling trainerVirtalis's Defence Subsidiary, VP Defence, has just delivered the second phase of a Virtual Reality Helicopter Voice Marshalling Trainer to the RAF.
 
The two bases responsible for helicopter training within the RAF, the Central Flying School (Helicopters) and Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury and the Search and Rescue Training Unit at RAF Valley are both operating the system.

Squadron Leader Chris Seviour of RAF Innsworth project managed both phases of the project to develop and implement the trainer.  He commented: "This second phase of the project has seen the creation of a coastal flying module in an amazing virtual island that is half mystical and half recognisably Anglesey, with its 200 foot high cliffs.  It also enables VR training with an under slung load, challenging rear crew to talk the pilot through a pick up or drop in a confined area packed with obstacles."
The Voice Marshalling (VM) skill performed by rear aircrew plays a vital role in both search and rescue missions and in the delivery of military and survival resources to remote areas.  Located in the rear cabin of the RAF's Griffin helicopters, harnessed VM aircrew monitor the landscape through the open cabin door and verbally relay flight commands to the pilot in order to guarantee an accurate and safe approach to the helicopter's landing site or target object.
 
The first phase of the VR VM Trainer was delivered last year.  A 3km x 4km area around RAF Shawbury was accurately recreated virtually along with a dynamic seascape simulation.  Both utilise Virtalis's real-time rendering engine, kRender.  This allows the student to see a seascape animated right to the horizon.  Such details are important because aircrew are trained to use surface physical details to help gauge distances for the pilot.  At sea, even foam patterns are used, so Virtalis developed a subtle technique to endow the wave effects of different sea states with accurate material finishes.

The Flight Commander in charge of rear crew training at RAF Valley, SARTU Flight Lieutenant Sam McDonagh, said: "Both phases of the VM trainer have exceeded all our expectations.  Aircrew have so much information to process and deliver simultaneously, it can be very difficult for them to juggle it all.  Remembering to use the prescribed phrases can prove to be an especial challenge.  Since phase one of the trainer was delivered, we have had several through the course who probably would not have passed without it."
 
He continued: "The graphics on the system are superb and, as a result, we are now delivering the kind of ground based and remedial training we had never thought possible.  This has led us to consider even more ambitious formats.  Perhaps the ultimate would be to develop a method of providing a VR view for pilots, enabling the crew to train together as a team."
 
Like the other Virtalis training systems, the VR VM trainer employs the Instructor's Scenario Control Interface, which provides the instructor with a repeat of the student's 3D view.  It is a user friendly, multi window, point-and-click display subsystem that allows instructors to pre-program, run, save and replay VM scenarios.  It is even possible to configure the virtual environment for weather and time of day effects.  The instructor also controls the student's helicopter with a joystick, responding to the VM commands given.  For debrief, the system has a virtual play back mode that can store 20-minute missions.  These include:
 
- Own aircraft course and position
- Position of other craft and targets
- Exact environmental conditions, including continuous sea-state and wave height
- Audio recordings of student voice commands
- Exercise Controller replies and background sounds
 
Virtalis chose a Kaiser ProView XL-50 headset for this simulation.  These do not fully enclose the wearer's eye orbits, so are semi-immersive, affording some degree of peripheral vision.  The tracking system used is FASTRAK from Polhemus.  The affordability of the VR VM trainer is partly linked to the fact that the system is run from an ordinary PC equipped with two graphics cards.  The student aircrew train in a wooden recreation of a door of a Griffin and are harnessed throughout.  The system can be made to create a starboard or port door by the click of a button.
 
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