Operational Based Vision Assessment @ NASA Ames

The Operational Based Vision Assessment (OBVA) simulator was designed and built by NASA and the United States Air Force (USAF) to provide the Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine (USAFSAM) with a scientific testing laboratory to study human vision and testing standards in an operationally relevant environment. This paper describes the general design objectives and implementation characteristics of the simulator visual system being created to meet these requirements.

A key design objective for the OBVA research simulator is to develop a real-time computer image generator (IG) and display subsystem that can display and update at 120 frames per second (design target), or at a minimum, 60 frames per second, with minimal transport delay using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) technology.

There are three key parts of the OBVA simulator that are described in this paper:

i) the real-time computer image generator,
ii) the various COTS technology used to construct the simulator,
iii) the spherical dome display and real-time distortion correction subsystem

We describe the various issues, possible COTS solutions, and remaining problem areas identified by NASA and the USAF while designing and building the simulator for future vision research. We also describe the critically important relationship of the physical display components including distortion correction for the dome consistent the dome is also described. Various recommendations for possible future implementations shall also be discussed.