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The Ocular Attention-Sensing Interface System (OASIS) is an innovative human-computer interface which utilizes eye movement and voice commands to communicate messages between the operator and the system. This report initially describes some technical issues relevant to the development of such an interface. The results of preliminary experiments which evaluate alternative eye processing algorithms and feedback techniques are presented. Candidate interface applications are also discussed.

This effort was conducted to redesign and improve the user interface for the Distributed Fact Base (DFB) component of the Army's Smart Weapon System / Information Distribution System (SWWDS), which is being initially developed to support battlefield fire control for fighting echelons up to the brigade level. The SWS/IDS consists of multiple clusters of powerful workstations that are networked together over low-speed radio links. The IDS manages the efficient updating and interrogating of nodes of the DFB so as to maximize system performance within communication channel capacity limits, thereby minimizing the amount of information exchange among battlefield units. The user interfaces address the distributed character of both the information and the decision processes as well as the essential complexity of the knowledge domain. Interface design is being accomplished using a general design methodology for distributed intelligent systems that entails systematic consideration of system and user objectives, cognitive capabilities and limitations of the user, and available technology options. An object-oriented approach was used for developing an enhanced interface for map, chart, and list applications using newly devised interface design tools known as Object-Action Specification Tables (OASTs) and an Object-Action Specification Language (OASL).The OASTs are tables that indicate which actions can be performed on which display and control objects and which control objects can perform which actions on other objects. Wherever an object-action combination is feasible, an entry in OASL indicates how the action is accomplished (e.g., by selection of pull-right menu item; mouse-button click with mouse cursor on screen icon; etc.).

The central concern of human factors engineering (HFE) is facilitating a productive relationship between man and machine. A new generation of man-machine systems has arisen in which the machine acts in a relatively intelligent manner to enhance the operator's decision-making capabilities in real-time multi-tasking situations. These systems have been termed “distributed intelligence systems” (DIS) because intelligence is distributed among all system entities, whether they are human or computer. The ability of these systems to aid humans in a flexible, interactive fashion depends on the capability of the machine to predict the human's information needs in a given decision-making situation. Thus, the DIS must incorporate a model that reflects the operator's information processing requirements for the tasks necessary to operate the system. To construct this model, it is necessary to develop a DIS testbed where experimental investigations can occur. The mission environment chosen for simulation is the Naval Air Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) mission, whose objectives to search for, find, and attack the enemy submarine involve complex tactical decisions in a real-time multi-tasking environment. In the Air ASW mission, most significant tactical decisions are made by the Tactical Coordinator (TACCO), the main operator of the system. The aspects of the testbed discussed in this paper include those elements of the simulation and responsibilities of the TACCO needed to illustrate the types of information processing tasks involved in the ASW mission. Also, the data collection capabilities of the testbed and how this data will be applied to operator model development will be discussed.