DIA, 2010: estudo do AAWSAP imagina a cabine de uma nave que controlaria a gravidade e voaria mais rápido que a luz

Cockpits in the Era of Breakthrough Flight. The Defense Intelligence Reference Document provides non-substantive but authoritative reference information related to intelligence topics or methodologies. Prepared by: Technology Warning Division (DWO-4) Defense Warning Office Directorate for Analysis Defense Intelligence Agency. Author: [AAP Person 82]. Administrative Notes: (U) COPYRIGHT WARNING: Further dissemination of the photographs in this publication is not authorized. This product is one in a series of advanced technology reports produced in FY 2009 under the Defense Intelligence Agency, Defense Warning Office's Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications (AAWSA) Program. Comments or questions pertaining to this document should be addressed to [AAP Person 1], AAWSA Program Manager, Defense Intelligence Agency, ATTN: [redacted] DI/DWO-3, [redacted], Washington, DC 20340-5100.

Cockpits in the Era of Breakthrough Flight. Introduction. Responding to the request to explore forefront science relevant to future cockpits for any form of aerospace craft and/or deep-space craft that is propelled by any unspecified advanced or breakthrough propulsion physics, this report offers a provisional cockpit design that employs the following: • Predictions of propulsion physics breakthroughs. • Lessons of human-machine interface. • Emerging technology for displays and controls. This study discusses the implications of breakthrough propulsion, including the mastery over gravitational and inertial forces and the prospect for faster-than-light spaceflight. The main reference used to predict these possibilities is the book Frontiers of Propulsion Science [Millis & Davis, 2009]. Although the breakthroughs discussed in this book are not imminent, enough progress has been made to allow for thoughtful speculation about their characteristics and possible implementations. How these advances may affect future cockpits is described, and this is the central message of this study. The most significant differences from legacy cockpits are identified and then used to set the baseline design requirements. Additionally, substantial lessons about human-machine interfaces are reviewed and applied to this notional cockpit. Most of this progress relies on better accommodating the norms and limitations of human perception—lessons that do not change even when vehicle characteristics change. Recent advancements in the use of hand gestures for commands are also included, as well as advancements in brain-machine interfaces. In this conceptual study of far-future possibilities, these technologies are assumed to have reached full maturity, with one exception: in order to focus this study on future cockpits, the options for brain implants and for transhumanism—where humans are reengineered to adapt to new requirements—are not considered. Next-step investigations are suggested to refine the ideas presented herein. A caveat is that advances in cockpits for breakthrough flight might be further advanced by taking advantage of the gaming industry techniques or through science fiction speculation. Note: All projections in this report are based on public domain information.

Chapter 1: Predicting Implications of Propulsion Breakthroughs. MARCH OF PROGRESS: REVOLUTIONARY PROPULSION PHYSICS. Breakthroughs in propulsion physics (such as the control over gravitational or inertial forces, propellant-less space drives, and even faster-than-light travel) are not imminent; however, enough progress has been made to allow for thoughtful speculation about their nature and implications. As a preview, the implications to cockpit design include added degrees of motion, combination of operational regimes (near ground, orbit, and beyond), greater range of speed (from zero-speed hover to beyond light speed), and loss of familiar motion cues (pilot's inertia and visual cues) resulting from the separation of external and internal environments. The primary reference used to predict these possibilities is the book Frontiers of Propulsion Science [Millis & Davis, 2009], particularly chapters 3, 4, and 15. This book may be the first-ever scholarly compilation of science pertaining to breakthrough flight—methods sufficiently advanced to enable human voyages to other star systems. The book examines a wide range of works, offering introductory explanations and comparisons between approaches and identifying high-priority unknowns needing deeper study. References to specific ideas and issues cite that book and other original works. Setting Ideal Performance as Design Target. This report focuses on the most significant likely differences between contemporary cockpits and cockpits in the era of breakthrough flight. Possibilities that imply the most demanding changes are considered first, and explanations of the correlations between the propulsion characteristics and resulting cockpit features are provided. Looking to the far future, this study evaluates the impact of having achieved the following breakthrough advancements: • Control over gravitational and inertial forces: – The craft is propelled by interacting with the properties of the space-time and/or inertial frames surrounding the craft—and can accelerate at g levels beyond human endurance. – The environment inside a craft can be sustained anywhere between 0 g and 1 g (minimum range) without regard for either the motion of the craft or its outside gravitational environment. • Faster-than-light (FTL) speeds are possible by having mastered control over those aspects of nature that impose the light-speed limit. However, due to reasonable relativistic projections of the energy required for propulsion coupled with the limits of the human lifespan, it is reasonable to expect that travels will be limited to within our galaxy. For the sake of bracketing the scope of coverage, this study assumes that practical star flight will be limited to a 100-light-year radius around our Sun. Even with this constraint, thousands of star systems are within that range.

• The energy supply for these features resides on the vehicle and is considered to have a dynamic interplay with the motion of the vehicle. The energy can be transferred to and from the environment surrounding the craft as a consequence of the propulsive maneuvers. Sanity Check on Predictions. Objectively, the propulsion physics predictions offered in this report should be interpreted as informed conjectures or, at best, well-reasoned speculations. Absent of verified theories and engineering implementations, it is premature to consider this first study as the last word on this topic. Further progress will likely reduce the span of options and provide greater insight into implementation details. It must also be stressed that these interpretive predictions and cockpit implications are solely generated by the author and, thus, have not yet been published or debated with other scientists and engineers. Therefore, the reader should consider these predictions to be an initial step into the process. VEHICLE AND COCKPIT IMPLICATIONS. Ideally, it is desirable to have a vehicle that can move in any direction, at any speed, in both air and space, without limitations. These features imply the need to have technological mastery over the forces of gravity and inertia and mastery over those aspects of nature that impose the light-speed limit. Based on projections of the underlying physics, such abilities would have secondary characteristics that affect how such motions are monitored and controlled. Degrees of Freedom. Unlike an aircraft, whose motion consists basically of deviations from constant forward motion, or a helicopter, whose motion is dominated by the dynamics of its main rotors, a breakthrough propulsion vehicle would allow the full six degrees of freedom, including the ability to remain fixed relative to a desired reference. For example, if we start with the situation of a vehicle hovering over the ground, the breakthrough vehicle should be able to change its orientation (yaw, pitch, or roll) without affecting its altitude or lateral position. Similarly, it should be able move up/down or laterally without the need to induce pitch or roll maneuvers (Figure 1). Such novel motion leads to two major differences from legacy cockpits: • Independent control inputs are needed for the full six degrees of freedom (yaw, pitch, and roll; and laterally, x [fore-aft], y [left-right], and z [up-down]). • New display methods are required to convey position, orientation, and motion for all those degrees of freedom. The control methods need not copy legacy methods from airplanes or helicopters—methods that are based on the mechanisms of their origin (Figure 2). Instead, future cockpit designs are now free to use control methods tailored to the natural action/reaction of pilots, while the vehicle's interfaces perform the function of converting pilot inputs to drive the vehicle's motion. Whether such a system consists of

Figure 1. Six Independent Degrees of Freedom. [Graphic: A. Szames] Note: the vehicle shown is strictly hypothetical and is a combination of three 1960s science fiction vehicles: Seaview submarine, Galileo shuttle, and Amtronic car. / Figure 3. Necessary Distinction Between External and Internal Force Environments. [Graphic: A. Szames] Labels: Coordinate system of the external environment; Crew cabin where inertial and gravitational forces are maintained at normal, safe conditions; Outer shell whose propulsion interacts with external environment; Inner shell whose devices provides a safe internal force environment. / Figure 13. Provisional Breakthrough-Era Cockpit. The spherical zone around the cockpit center represents the virtual surround display onto which images of the environment outside the vehicle are displayed. Keeping with lessons of prior human interfaces, a minimal set of physical displays are also provided, with the most important ones located deliberately in the “tunnel vision” zone in front of the pilot. [Graphic: A. Szames with background image through M. Cherfi]

Chapter 3: Provisional Cockpit for Breakthrough Flight. Applying the strategy of using the most demanding situations to guide designs, the provisional cockpit presented here assumes a single pilot. Without any crew amongst whom to disburse the workload, such a cockpit must be more efficient and effective. The “design for stress” approach is also applied, which drives the design to have actual physical displays and controls that are concentrated in a “tunnel vision” zone. The elements on these physical panels are predictably fixed, owing to lessons of human factors. Newer technology such as virtual reality displays with augmented reality and gesture-based inputs are also included, along with voice and thought commands. Based on lessons from adaptive display errors, and considering the limits of human concentration, limits are imposed on the use of voice and thought commands. The overall configuration is shown in Figure 13 and consists of a modest set of physical panels surrounding a seated pilot, along with a large virtual display surrounding the entire area. The most critical displays and controls are condensed into the forwardmost panels. FLIGHT MODES. The most fundamental flight mode is the full manual mode. Each subsequent flight mode offers increasing levels of automated assistance, up to and including a fully autonomous control mode that can operate even when the pilot is incapacitated. A provisional set of flight modes (whose buttons and indicators are presented across the central flight mode panel from left to right) include the following: • Full manual. • Manual w/safe assist. • Interactive assist. • Fully autonomous (keyed to emergency responses). Full Manual. As the name suggests, this is where the pilot has full control over the motion of the vehicle through joysticks, switches, gestures, voice, and thought. This is the most difficult flight mode for the pilot, and accordingly provides the best situation from which to design the guidance displays and to set the requirements for the various control inputs. In subsequent studies, this would be the flight mode to specify when addressing the challenges of guiding the pilot for entry into orbits and navigating in difficult situations.

Chapter 4: Future Work. Given the incomplete body of knowledge concerning futuristic propulsion and maintaining cognizance of ongoing human-factors research, it is probably premature to engage in specific research on cockpits for propulsion physics. Instead, more insights are likely to be gained from relevant physics research. A caveat is that advances in cockpits for breakthrough flight might be further advanced by taking advantage of the gaming industry or through science fiction speculation. Without the actual technology for breakthrough flight, a game simulation or detailed science fiction show/movie could be used as the context around which to explore such options. A concern with this approach, however, is that the underlying stories serve the primary function of entertainment as opposed to user efficiency. It is conceivable to encounter a guidance system more intended to create dramatic tension (“wow effect”) than ease of use. MULTIPLE FLIGHT REGIME GUIDANCE CONVENTIONS. The breakthrough vehicle will operate in regimes for which guidance standards do not yet exist, specifically orbit insertion and deep-space (interstellar) travel. Although motion near the surface of a gravitating body can copy the standards of aircraft flight (primary flight display and terrestrial navigation standards), further work is required to explore and select the best options for orbit and deep-space flight. Although it is expected that orbit insertion maneuvers would be handled by an automated system, the more demanding condition to use as a design target is to have a display system that can guide a pilot to manually enter a stable orbit. Choosing the convention for the primary axis of deep-space motion will require a trade study to determine if the natural human instinct for forward-dominated motion offers a better human-machine interface than the propulsion-dominant option for upward-dominated motion. Such an assessment must also consider how well the convention works when transitioning from deep-space flight into an orbit, then landing, and then back again to deep-space flight. Once any convention is set into place, it will be difficult to change later. VECTOR MOTION DISPLAY. Once the development of those guidance conventions is further along, a method to clearly display those conventions for the pilot would have to be developed. A complication that these future displays will encounter is the need for a seamless transition between these three conventions: flight above a gravitating body, orbit insertion, and deep-space flight beyond our solar system. VECTOR MOTION CONTROL. Adding three linear axes (plus yaw) to the classic two-rotational degree-of-freedom joystick is a significant change. Although six-degree joysticks are available commercially, they are oriented toward computer interfaces rather than commanding the motion of a vehicle. To determine the optimum configuration for an actual six-degree vehicle control, simulations would likely be required. Perhaps one venue is to [p. 49] explore the vehicle controls for exploration submarines that also have the full six degrees of freedom. Another critical detail to be resolved with commanding a breakthrough vehicle is how best to accommodate the “throttle.” Should each linear axis have the same speed capability, or should only the primary motion axis have the full span of zero to maximum speed? With that characteristic specified, it will also be necessary to determine how best to provide adjustments to cover the speed ranges of each axis. OPTIMUM MIX OF CONTROL METHODS. A variety of methods have been considered for commanding the breakthrough-era vehicle. What is not known is the degree and in what combinations they should be used, and whether constraints should be placed on some of them. The potential use of confirmation feedback for both voice and thought commands is suggested, but future research will need to determine whether (and how) such functions should be employed.