AAWSAP DIRD, Cockpits in the Era of Breakthrough Flight, November 2010

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Both side panels are deliberately not in the tunnel vision zone, since they provide
additional functions that are less time critical.
Each side panel is a mix of fixed and
adaptive displays. The convention is that the panel on the left (consistent with the
navigation panel on the left) is for displays and controls related to the environment
outside the craft, while the panel on the right is associated with the function of the craft
itself.
Only some of the sensors and functions are known at this time, and it is expected that
further advances in sensor technology might provide other abilities that are not yet
foreseeable. Following the requirements from Chapter 1, this panel will at least have
controls for the fol lowing :
•
External visible spectrum cameras that provide input to the virtual surround display.
•
Augmented spectrum cameras (e.g., infrared or ultraviolet).
•
Star tracker.
•
Cosmic microwave background sensors.
•
Inertial sensors and their related integrations for velocity and position.
•
Object detection and trajectory determination.
Internal Conditions Panel
The right panel flanking the pilot seat has more detailed displays and controls regarding
the vehicle's functions, such as energy, propulsion, and computation. Similar to the left
side panel, it is a mix of fixed and adaptive displays.
This panel provides deeper levels of detail for the elements displayed on the vehicle
status panel, along with control settings for the same. The functions of this panel are
closely integrated with the flight-assist system, especially in regard to recommending
corrective actions to vehicle malfunctions.
Absent the technology for the vehicle's breakthrough propulsion and power systems,
further details of this panel cannot be suggested at this time.
Periphery Motion Displays
The last two physical panels are the periphery motion displays, which are located on
either side of the cockpit in the pilot's periphery vision. They are a physical back-up to
the virtual surround display, where each offers more intense moving grid lines.
The panels simply display a grid whose motion is synced with the motion of the craft
relative to the surrounding space. In this way, the pilot gets subtle cues to motions
that can be mentally processed in parallel with the other displays. Such an additional
motion display is expected to become necessary because of the added degrees of
freedom available for the vehicle's motion. This can be particularly useful during hover,
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