N142-083 TITLE: Development of an HSI Module and Material-Design Software to Support Concurrent Design Concept Exploration

TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Human Systems

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: Framework for Assessing Cost and Technology (FACT) Program

OBJECTIVE: Develop a Human Systems Integration (HSI) module and the associated material-design software capable of providing a Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) environment that will permit concurrent engineering for the conduct of an analysis of alternatives (AoA). Successful development would enable a real-time heuristic assessment of platform design choices such as human performance elements, including ergonomics (human factors engineering (HFE)), system safety, health hazards, manpower, personnel and training (MP&T), personnel survivability, and habitability, with enough flexibility to apply the HSI domain models most applicable to the system under evaluation and their potential life-cycle impact on acquisition concerns.

DESCRIPTION: Organizations sometimes overlook the inclusion of HSI activities in their systems engineering processes. Thus, "...there has been a continuing concern that, in each phase of development, the human element is not sufficiently considered along with hardware and software elements" (Ref. 1). Over time, this has led the DoD to provide more guidelines mandating or instructing the use of HSI (Ref. 2, 3). Present modeling capabilities are done in a stove-piped fashion when addressing performance, cost, human systems integration and reliability. Each engineering discipline independently assesses the impact of a proposed design change on a system and then passes the impact in a sequential fashion to the next engineering competency to evaluate. This process is time consuming, manpower intensive, and extremely costly. Currently, the acquisition process does not have the capability to assess models for the various engineering disciplines in a concurrent fashion so that collaborative engineering can be conducted. Presently, there are no commercially available technologies that could be directly applied to solve this challenge.

Developing an HSI module and associated material-design software that enables real-time heuristic assessments of HSI design concerns in a concurrent fashion with cost, performance, and reliability achieves a major step forward in streamlining the engineering efforts associated with acquisition and would provide a tool to complement concept exploration (Ref. 4). This effort is unique in that, if successfully developed, it would provide a human systems software tool focused on collaborative engineering, interoperability and data sharing with the emphasis centered on meta-data. This innovative tool does not presently exist and would enable acquisition personnel and associated performers to account for human performance considerations much earlier in the system life-cycle. This, in turn, would reduce the risk of life-cycle system failure, reduce total ownership costs, and potentially enhance systems� operational performance at the human-machine interface. As an example, engineers working on the Survivability Key Performance Parameter (KPP) for a ground tactical vehicle understand that there are second order effects to the design parameters they select for vehicle armor. However, in the conventional process used today, they do not see the tradespace in other KPPs that is impacted by design parameters assigned to meet the Survivability KPP. It is intuitive that adding armor thickness has consequences in terms of the vehicle�s interior and exterior dimensions, operator field of view, equipment placement, weight, acceleration, maximum climbing grade, righting moment, and fuel consumption. Similarly, design changes to accommodate human concerns may impact other aspects of the design and overall system performance. To see the corresponding impact on the system as a whole as a result of a design change and make informed, data-driven trade space decisions, the design team needs a federation of engineering, HSI and cost models that communicate using data tagged with precise metadata definitions.

This topic seeks to explore the development of an HSI module and the associated material-design software within the Framework for Assessing Cost and Technology (FACT) Program that would facilitate top-down analysis of HSI system designs through the ability to instantiate many system models (dozens, hundreds, thousands, etc.) by combining the various subsystems and components identified in the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) of a system. Beginning with the system KPPs (generally threshold and objective performance, although not limited to) and budgetary constraints for procurement and sustainment, this software tool would support an engineering federation that will compare a virtually unlimited number of potential system designs and then provide mechanisms to filter those instantiations based on user-specified criteria. Perhaps the most direct benefit of using this approach is for concurrent exploration of the design trade-space early in the conceptual design phase in a synthetic environment and to, in real-time, see the effect(s) of design decisions on manufacturing considerations, human concerns, and acquisition factors. This, in turn, would enable the user to eliminate from consideration those system designs that have little or no potential for success. This HSI module and associated material-design software will not seek to replace existing, fine-grained human performance analysis tools, such as IMPRINT or MIDAS, which are used to perform detailed simulation-based analysis of more mature designs in the latter stages of development. Proposed concepts will need to be web-based and accessible from common computer workstations. Open architecture design principles are encouraged to enable maximum flexibility with the need to be able to interface with multiple models and other software design tools.

PHASE I: Develop concepts for an HSI module and associated material-design software within FACT to enable a heuristic assessment of platform design choices and their potential life-cycle impact on acquisition concerns, such as life-cycle costs, and human performance elements, including ergonomics ("HFE"), system safety, health hazards, manpower, personnel and training (MP&T), personnel survivability, and habitability. The company will demonstrate the feasibility of the add-on software tool in meeting Marine Corps needs and will establish that the concepts can be developed into a useful product for the Marine Corps. Feasibility will be established by analytical modeling, as appropriate. The small business will provide a Phase II development plan with performance goals and key technical milestones, and that will address technical risk reduction.

PHASE II: Based on the results of Phase I and the Phase II development plan, the small business will develop a scaled prototype for evaluation using the HMMWV program or another program as specified by the sponsor for initial application. The prototype will be evaluated to determine its capability in meeting the performance goals defined in the Phase II development plan and the Marine Corps requirements as referenced in the description. System performance will be demonstrated through prototype evaluation and modeling or analytical methods over the required range of parameters. Evaluation results will be used to refine the prototype into an initial design that will meet Marine Corps requirements. The company will prepare a Phase III development plan to transition the technology to Marine Corps use as well as identifying the way forward for user training of the existing HSI module and development of HSI module add-ons which addresses other HSI domains that may not have been incorporated into the Phase I concept.

PHASE III: If Phase II is successful, the company will be expected to provide support in transitioning the technology for Marine Corps use. In accordance with the Phase III development plan, the company will extend the limited scope solution to a wider range of platforms, i.e., design and development of HSI module(s) and associated material-design software for concurrent engineering for the conduct of an AoA. Additional HSI add-ons to the HSI module and the associated material-design will need developing to include HSI domains (i.e., HFE, system safety, health hazards, manpower, personnel and training (MP&T), personnel survivability, and habitability) that were not addressed in the Phase I concept design. The company will provide support for test and validation and qualify the system for Marine Corps use. The company will transition a software package to the Marine Corps that supports generalizable, human-performance concept exploration and provides for user training of this HSI module.

PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL/DUAL-USE APPLICATIONS: Applications for this technology would be the aviation and automobile industry. HSI saves time and money. Published case studies repeatedly show high Return On In-vestment (ROI) from HSI efforts. For instance, a review by Harold Booher lists an Air Force program that had a 50:1 ROI (i.e., a savings of $50 for every $1 initially spent on HSI), as well as two different Army helicopter programs that had 44:1 and 22:1 ROIs, each (Booher, 2003; see also Commonwealth of Australia, 2010; Liu et al. 2010). HSI processes applied during the acquisition process also mitigate the risk of system underuse, reduced operational performance, or systems failure (e.g., Pew, Mavor, et al., 2007).

REFERENCES:
1. Pew, R. W., Mavor, A. S., and Committee on Human-System Design Support for Changing Technology. (2007). Human-System Integration in the System Development Process: A New Look. National Academies Press: Washington, D.C.

2. Office of the Secretary of Defense. (2009). FY09 Department of Defense Human Systems Integration Management Plan, Version 1.0. Washington, DC: ODUSD(A&T), ODUSD(S&T) Director of Biological Systems. http://www.acq.osd.mil/se/docs/FY09-DoD-HSI-Management-Plan.pdf.

3. Naval Human Systems Integration Management Plan www.acq.osd.mil/se/docs/2009-Navy-HSI-Management-Plan-v2-2-1.pdf.

4. Liu, K. K., Valerdi, R., Rhodes, D. H., Kimm, L., and Headen, A. (2010, April). The F119 Engine: A Success Story of Human Systems Integration in Acquisition. Defense Acquisition University. http://www.dau.mil/pubscats/PubsCats/AR%20Journal/arj54/Liu%2054.pdf.

KEYWORDS: MBSE; HSI; acquisition tool; analysis tool; human performance; HFE; federated model

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