Pilot-Virtual Assistant Integration

This chapter presents MOHICAN (MOnitoring of Human-machine performance via trust and Collaboration Analysis), an human–system integration (HSI) project for the assessment of human–machine teaming (HMT) performance in a combat aircraft cockpit equipped with a virtual assistant (VA). This project enhanced HSI through the assessment of trust and collaboration between a fighter pilot and the VA, concurrently with operational performance measurements. It involves human-in-the-loop simulation (HITLS) using a VA prototype incrementally enhanced using an agile development process based on formative evaluations. These evaluations are based on mutually inclusive assessments of high-level metrics (i.e., trust and collaboration), meaningful criteria (e.g., operational performance, situation awareness), and low-level measurements (e.g., heart rate, eye tracking). MOHICAN benefited from strong expertise and experience in human factors, ergonomics (HFE), and air combat. The number of pilots was small, but their air-combat skills and integration into the systems engineering field were very high. MOHICAN used a scenario-based approach based on the PRODEC method, consisting of a procedural task analysis and a declarative analysis of the structures and functions implemented and/or implemented within the VA. We improved the method over five iterations by evaluating intermediate criteria and combining them to assess degrees of trust and collaboration. Examples are given.