Using a Community of Intelligent Synthetic Entities to Support Operational Team Training

Abstract

A strong need exists for a simulation-based means to provide individuals in deployed settings teamwork and cross-platform coordination skills training in realistic, mission-oriented scenarios. This need can be met by using advanced human behavioral representation technology to provide synthetic teammates and collateral entities operating within a sophisticated synthetic battlespace. When combined with a full range of automated, intelligent agent-based instructional support capabilities including real-time performance measurement, diagnosis and feedback along with menu-driven scenario generation and replay capability for debriefing purposes the result is a system called Synthetic Cognition for Operational Team Training (SCOTT). An initial SCOTT system is being developed to provide training in cross-platform coordination skills for members of the Navy E-2C Hawkeye tactical crew. The architecture and behavioral representation issues in E-2C SCOTT are discussed.

Design, Delivery, and Evaluation of Training Systems

“…The development of DMT programs in the military has resulted in two training platforms that utilize simulated training scenarios and virtual teammates, or cognitive agents, and actual military personnel: Synthetic Cognition for Operational Team Training (SCOTT) (Zachary et al, 2001) and Synthetic Teammates for Realtime Anywhere Training and Assessment (STRATA) (Bell, 2003). Users are able to log in to a secure network using a user name and password from anywhere in the world and are placed into a training scenario that will develop the knowledge and skills that are needed according to their training profile.…”

“…During each of the simulated exercises, the DSS could aid the trainee in the decision-making process and provide feedback for each decision that is made. This strategy has been implemented most recently in the military with the development of Synthetic Cognition for Operational Team Training (SCOTT) (Zachary et al, 2001) and Synthetic Teammates for Realtime Anywhere Training and Assessment (STRATA) (Bell, 2003). These distributed-based training programs offer real-time strategy training and feedback via DSS in a secure networked training environment.…”

Effects of Voice-Based Synthetic Assistant on Performance of Emergency Care Provider in Training

“…Existing studies proved that the replacement of humans with intelligent synthetic agents to train aviation teams would not attribute any loss in training efficiency (Demir et al, 2015;Zachary, Santarelli, Lyons, Bergondy, & Johnston, 2001). In a generic sense, a synthetic agent or intelligent software agent is defined as "Complex software entities that carry out some set of operations on behalf of a user with some degree of autonomy" (Franklin & Graesser, 1997).…”

“…A voice-based SA (VBSA) uses voice interaction as the primary communication mode. Many SA techniques that are task-specific are being implemented by different organizations (Ball et al, 2010;Zachary et al, 2001). Indeed, the developed VBSA is also a task-specific SA.…”

The synthetic teammate project

“…Previous research has shown the benefits of developing synthetic agents to support team training (Jones et al 1999;Tambe et al 1995;Zachary et al 2001) and for evaluation of computer interfaces (Byrne et al 1994;Ritter et al 2002). The main objective of the Synthetic Teammate project is to develop synthetic agents capable of being integrated into team training simulations.…”