Research project: I-VISION: Immersive Semantics-based Virtual Environments for the Design and Validation of Human-centred Aircraft Cockpits

The i-VISION project aims to support the design and validation of aircraft cockpits, through the exploitation of knowledge-based immersive virtual reality technologies. During the development of the i-VISION platform, it would be of primary focus to facilitate the knowledge existing in several individual components of the cockpit, using a semantic approach for developing the virtual environment. A range of simulation issues will be addressed including:

• Analyse connections between elements of the cockpit in respect to various operating conditions and procedures.
• Visualize operator’s workflows. Help analyse the frequency and allocation of tasks within the cockpit.
• Augment virtual cockpit with semantic annotations. Add intelligence and knowledge to the VR-based simulation of cockpit operations.
• Virtual objects should be more than a set of faces and vertices. Need to go beyond the current state of scene-graphs, where only geometries exist and no knowledge.
• Create a virtual scene-graph as a knowledge data-base. Currently no logical or functional knowledge exists behind virtual objects.
• Investigate the potential added value from the incorporation of mixed reality technologies, such as use of real objects (props) together with AR systems (e.g. tablet PCs), in the simulation of cockpit operations and user interactions.
• Consider the special simulation requirements of different operation conditions (e.g. landing, extreme weather, and increased air-traffic).

The project working cycle would be based on a closed loop between the human pilot, the modern virtual aircraft cockpit interfaces and the operating conditions.

http://www.ivision-project.eu/