NAVAIR Orlando TSD and the University of Central Florida, Office
of Research, have announced the signing of a Cooperative Research
and Development Agreement, or CRADA, which is expected to enhance
mutual understanding of operator performance under stress.
Shown at CRADA signing ceremony are (front) TSD Commanding
Officer Capt. Andy Mohler (left) and UCF Vice President for
Research Dr. M.J. Soileau;
(back row, left to
right) Dr. Jim Szalma, IST research associate; Ron Wolff, TSD;
Dr. Peter Hancock, UCF/IST principal investigator and
director, MURI/OPUS laboratory; Paul Ward, IST research
associate, and Director, IST Dr. Randall
Shumaker.
(U.S. Navy photo by Don Smith, DFC)
The new UCF Multiple Universities Research Initiative/Operator
Performance Under Stress, or MURI/OPUS, Laboratory — in close
concert with IST — will host this new collaborative effort.
The official signing ceremony took place in the MURI/OPUS
Laboratory on Nov. 1, attended by TSD and UCF leaders and other
CRADA principals.
TSD Technology Transfer Manager Patricia Nimmo says the initiative
is expected to develop possible applications of human factors
research for homeland defense, simulation-based military training,
and related technologies. “It also is great to see an added
benefit of such an effort; not only is an outstanding university
continuing to work cooperatively with our organization, but
respected researchers and scientists are excited about the
prospects,” she says.
UCF’s new laboratory has been established for human research
related to operator performance under stress, and now will be able
to benefit from Navy-sponsored research in virtual environments
for Small Arms Simulation Training that TSD has conducted for 15
years. Software already developed or enhanced for use in TSD’s
SAST laboratory will provide a significant part of the virtual
environment for research in the MURI/OPUS lab.
Ron Wolff of TSD’s Research and Engineering is the Navy’s
technical point of contact for the CRADA.
“We are extremely excited about the opportunity to work with
Dr. Peter Hancock and the MURI/OPUS Laboratory,” Wolff says.
“Dr. Hancock brings to the table a high level of enthusiasm and
visionary thoughts.”
Wolff says that the agreement presents a unique opportunity of
mutual benefit for both the MURI/OPUS Laboratory and NAVAIR TSD.
“We have a unique group of very talented engineers who stand by
ready to not only provide rapid response and support to the Small
Arms Simulator Testbed — SAST II — but also to support the MURI/OPUS
Laboratory in developing new technologies and applications for
future endeavors,” says Wolff.
MURI/ OPUS Laboratory Director Dr. Peter Hancock, has a joint
appointment to UCF’s Psychology Department and IST.
“From a personal perspective,” Hancock says, “it is absolutely
fantastic to have these formal interactions with other research
scientists in companion locations.
"We are, literally, right next door, so we hope in the future this
CRADA will help us share resources, enabling our graduate and
undergraduate students to participate in a unique experience,
while the Navy has the ability to look at these future scientific
personnel for their own programs.”
Hancock sees the agreement as a strong “win” for everyone, and
hopes it can help pioneer other similar partnerships.
Research scientist Dan Mullally of the Institute for Simulation
and Training was instrumental in generating the UCF-NAVAIR TSD
agreement.
According to Mullally, simulation in small arms marksmanship
training will become increasingly more important. “As future
weapons system complexity and cost continue to rise,” he says,
“this partnership between the university and government lab will
allow researchers to contribute to advances in this critical area
of simulation."
McClellan, Reed win Davis
Productivity Award
Tammie McClellan and Robert Reed of
IST's Department of Information Systems Technology
recently garnered an award in the Notable Individual Awards category
of the annual Davis Productivity Awards competition sponsored by
Florida Tax Watch.
Tammie McClellan and Robert Reed
McClellan and Reed developed a web-based
timesheet system that replaces error-prone manual data entry and
streamlines monitoring and reporting of work hours charged against
contracts and grants.
Their system enables managers to more
accurately account for state and contract funding for 130 employees.
The system saves the university about $70,000 each year.
Go to the
Florida Tax Watch website
for more information about the awards program and a list of winners.
