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Preliminary Development of an Integrated Mobility, Lethality, and Survivability Soldier Performance Testing Platform

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Advances in Human Factors and Systems Interaction (AHFE 2019)

Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 959))

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Abstract

There is a desire for an integrated tool to measure the impact of military clothing and equipment on mobility, lethality and survivability. This study was a first step to develop such a test platform. Twenty Soldiers executed the test in three levels of encumbrance. Mobility was measured via obstacle completion timing. Lethality tasks included static and dynamic shooting engagements, with traditional marksmanship measures and cognitive decision-making. Quantification of body exposure and exposure to threat time comprised survivability measures. Preliminary results indicated that as encumbrance increased, mobility, lethality and survivability were altered. Obstacle completion times increased, marksmanship precision and vertical stability during the static elements improved, and shooting efficiency and threat elimination during the dynamic elements decreased. By expanding on this methodology, we create additional capabilities for the US Army and our international partners. Lessons learned from this study will allow for improvements to the test platform as it is developed.

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Acknowledgments

This research was funded by Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center (CCDC Soldier Center) research program 16-159 and Program Executive Office (PEO) Soldier Project Director Soldier System Integration (PD SS&I). The authors would like to acknowledge the data collection and support team that assisted in the execution of this study from Aberdeen Test Center and CCDC Soldier Center’s Biomechanics and Human Factors Teams. Most importantly, the authors would like to acknowledge the Soldiers who participated in this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center, Natick, MA, 01760, USA

    Stephanie A. T. Brown & K. Blake Mitchell

Authors
  1. Stephanie A. T. Brown
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  2. K. Blake Mitchell
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Stephanie A. T. Brown .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Caparica, Portugal

    Isabel L. Nunes

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Brown, S.A.T., Mitchell, K.B. (2020). Preliminary Development of an Integrated Mobility, Lethality, and Survivability Soldier Performance Testing Platform. In: Nunes, I. (eds) Advances in Human Factors and Systems Interaction. AHFE 2019. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 959. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20040-4_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20040-4_14

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-20039-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-20040-4

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