Display research has comprised a substantial portion of the defense investment in new technology for national security for the past 13 years. These investments have been made by the separate service departments and, especially, via several Defense Research Projects Agency (DARPA) programs, known collectively as the High Definition Systems (HDS) Program (which ended in 2001) and via the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III Program (efforts ended in 2000). Using input from the Army, Navy, and Air Force to focus research and identify insertion opportunities, DARPA and the Title III Program Office have made investments to develop the national technology base and manufacturing infrastructure necessary to meet the twin challenge of providing affordable displays in current systems and enabling the DoD strategy of winning future conflicts by getting more information to all participants during the battle. These completed DARPA and DPA research and infrastructure programs are reviewed. Service investments have been and are being made to transition display technology; examples are described. Display science and technology (S&T) visions are documented for each service to assist the identification of areas meriting consideration for future defense research.

This paper describes Web-LCCA, a decision support tool for use in standardizing military display acquisitions. A model for predicting the life-cycle costs of military displays is presented. Version 1 of Web-LCCA is briefly described along with proposed system enhancements for a Phase 2 effort. LCC modeling issues and approaches for Acquisition Reform initiatives are discussed relative to life cycle cost implications. A sample study that highlights these acquisition issues is demonstrated using the model.

AMLCDs were chosen as the preferred avionics flat panel display technology in the early 1990s, displacing the older CRT displays. Although AMLCDs have fulfilled their promise of improved quality and reliability in the field, timely supply has remained problematic and has been characterized by repeated delays in delivery and interruptions of supply. Because of this history of troubled supply, we examined the display supply train to determine the root cause(s) of interrupted supply, and to recommend a strategies that may ameliorate future supply difficulties. This Report describes our findings.

The military display market is analyzed in terms of one of its segments, aircraft cockpits. Parameters that require special consideration, such as luminance ranges, light emission/viewing angles, and chromaticity coordinates, are examined.

This paper describes some of the initiatives being progressed by Smiths Aerospace to enhance the operational effectiveness of military helicopters, with particular emphasis on the GWHL Lynx and EH Industries EH101 programs. The areas discussed include engine instrumentation, flight instrumentation and the mission system displays. Various Crew Stations are described which provide a suite of AMLCD displays which: -Integrate information from the aircraft engine, electrical power and hydraulic systems onto 5ATI displays -Integrate primary flight, navigation and mission system sensor information onto large area (61/4' square or 6' by 8') displays -Provide standby attitude and air data information in the event of major system failure on 3ATI displays.

American panel corporation (APC) believes the use of custom designed (instead of ruggedized commercial) AMLCD cells is the only way to meet the specific environmental and performance requirements of the military/commercial avionic, shipboard and rugged ground vehicle markets. The APC/LG.Philips LCD (LG) custom approach mitigates risk to the end-user in many ways. As a part of the APC/LG long- term agreement LG has committed to provide module level equivalent (form, fit and function equivalent) panels for a period of ten years. No other commercial glass manufacturer has provided such an agreement. With the use of LG's commercial production manufacturing capabilities, APC/LG can provide the opportunity to procure a lifetime buy for any program with delivery of the entire lot within six months of order placement. This ensures that the entire production program will receive identical glass for every unit. The APC/LG relationship works where others have failed due to the number of years spent cultivating the mutual trust and respect necessary for establishing such a partnership, LG's interest in capturing the market share of this niche application, and the magnitude of the initial up-front investment by APC in engineering, tooling, facilities, production equipment, and LCD cell inventory.

Commercial off-the-shelf AMLCDs have matured to a technically advanced multifunction display medium that is suitable for use in aircraft cockpit applications. This paper recounts the developmental issues in an effort to dispel the remaining criticisms around using AMLCD's developed for consumer electronics in aerospace designs.

The Topographical Map Display military R&D project was dedicated to the design and development of hardware display prototypes to study alternatives to paper maps for command and control applications. It investigated better ways to present information to commanders by using a mosaic of electronic display screens to present a macroscopic view of a situation, rather than a microscopic view allowed by conventional single display screens. In the initial phase, the first-generation ToMaDi was built by using four 20' diagonal plasma display panels tiled in a 2 x 2 configuration. In the second phase, ToMaDi MkII was built. This unit used sixteen 14.1' diagonal thin-film liquid crystal displays tiled in a 4 x 4 configuration and connected to a WinNT4 PC computer. In addition to the mullion reduction, the size and pixel surface density increased and touchscreen capability was added. This way, the ToMaDi MkII allowed the user(s) to both easily see and control the information displayed, which is no ordinary task with large display devices. Despite its size, ToMaDi MkII remains an 'ordinary' workstation, which is easy to integrate with current and future CCIS through a network link. Up to now, the MkII prototype has shown very good characteristics that allow its use in specific operational scenarios. The value of ToMaDi was confirmed by its utilization in two major military exercises during the summer of 2000. In summary, the ToMaDi MkII makes electronic mapping a reality.

The term synthetic vision is used to describe combinations of sensor-based imagery (e.g., forward-looking infrared, millimeter-wave radar, light amplification or night vision systems) and imagery based on databases (e.g., digital terrain elevation data, obstacle and obstruction data, approach path data). While sensor-based imagery (often referred to as enhanced vision) has been available in military cockpits for several years, imagery based on databases (often referred to as artificial vision) has not. This paper discusses the display requirements needed for combinations of enhanced and artificial vision in military cockpits. We briefly survey current efforts to achieve synthetic vision displays in both military and civilian cockpits and the costs and benefits of these efforts. The relative advantages and disadvantages of enhanced and artificial vision are discussed within the context of current and future display capabilities, focusing on the human factors of these displays. A sampling of synthetic vision formats envisioned for use in military and civilian cockpits is presented to illustrate what might be required of head-down, head-up, and helmet-mounted displays in terms of resolution, luminance, and color. Further discussion is given to how these display requirements might be altered by aircraft mission, type, and the need to compensate for varying visibility and laser threat conditions.

Ambiguity concerning the terms Point of View and Frame of Reference has interfered with the accurate description, research and design of user displays. At least part of this misunderstanding is caused by the non-orthogonal of the terms; that is, not all points of view are possible in all frames of reference. The terms are disambiguated and defined in a simpler and more precise fashion so that displays can be accurately characterized. The new definitions also encourage development of new display designs, which can reduce the number of mental transformations users must perform and increase user comprension.

Expert system development tool ESDT-HKD is a general-purpose language for knowledge engineering. Rule plus frame plus black board is used as knowledge structure of the system. It is a perfect system implemented on personal computer. There is particular knowledge structure, and generating and running environment for users. This article introduces the system architecture, knowledge structure and implementation.

Proliferation of aircraft cockpit display types and sizes results in increased cost and risk to US Air Force, Navy and Army aircraft programs. As AMLCD technology improves, modules used in current production display units become obsolete, and in most cases there is no interchangeable replacement module immediately available. This paper discusses the use of standard AMLCD modules across multiple programs as a way to prevent programs from being so dependent on obsolete or unique devices in the future. It also suggests a list of display sizes and types that are good candidates for wide application and are thus less sensitive to events like the closing of one component manufacturer. One standardization effort, presented as a success story in this paper, resulted in the same AMLCD being used on 4 diverse programs. This display module will be built at a rate of nearly 1000 per year over the next 5 years.

Obtaining high quality Active Matrix Liquid Crystal (AMLCD) glass to meet the needs of the commercial and military aerospace business is a major challenge, at best. With the demise of all domestic sources of AMLCD substrate glass, the industry is now focused on overseas sources, which are primarily producing glass for consumer electronics. Previous experience with ruggedizing commercial glass leads to the expectation that the aerospace industry can leverage off the commercial market. The problem remains, while the commercial industry is continually changing and improving its products, the commercial and military aerospace industries require stable and affordable supplies of AMLCD glass for upwards of 20 years to support production and maintenance operations. The Boeing Engineering and Supplier Management Process Councils have chartered a group of displays experts from multiple aircraft product divisions within the Boeing Company, the Displays Process Action Team (DPAT), to address this situation from an overall corporate perspective. The DPAT has formulated a set of Common Displays Performance Requirements for use across the corporate line of commercial and military aircraft products. Though focused on the AMLCD problem, the proposed common requirements are largely independent of display technology. This paper describes the strategy being pursued within the Boeing Company to address the AMLCD supply problem and details the proposed implementation process, centered on common requirements for both commercial and military aircraft displays. Highlighted in this paper are proposed common, or standard, display sizes and the other major requirements established by the DPAT, along with the rationale for these requirements.

Projection display technology has been found to be an attractive alternative to direct view flat panel displays in many avionics applications. The projection approach permits compact high performance systems to be tailored to specific platform needs while using a complement of commercial off the shelf (COTS) components, including liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS) microdisplay imagers. A common projection engine used on multiple platforms enables improved performance, lower cost and shorter development cycles. This paper provides a status update for projection displays under development for the F-22A, the F/A-18E/F and the Lockheed Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft.

Flight Visions is developing for the Crew System Interface Division of the Air Force Research Laboratories a set of developmental brassboards which demonstrate advanced approaches to head-up display design. Each of these brassboards relies on a technology other than a cathode ray tube to generate the display image. In this paper we report on a configuration based on Digital Micromirror Device and laser technologies.

In this paper we discuss our red, green, and blue (RGB) optical parametric oscillator (OPO) based laser projection display. The complete project display consists of two subsystems, the RGB-OPO laser head and the light modulation unit. The RGB lights from rack-mounted laser head are fibers coupled to the projection unit for independent placement. The light source consists of a diode-pumped pump laser and a LBO-based OPO. Based on our Nd:YLF gain module design, the pump laser is frequency doubled to serve as the pump source for the OPO. The unconverted pump power is recycled as the green light for projection. The singly resonant, non- critically phase-matched (NCPM) OPO has, to date, generated 13 W of 898-nm signal power and an estimated 9.3 W of intra- cavity idler power at 1256 nm. With approximately 76% of pump depletion, the power of the residual green light for projection is about 5.8 W. We have extra-cavity doubled the signal to produce approximately 3.5 W of 449-nm blue light and intra-cavity doubled the idler to produce approximately 6 W of 628-nm red light. The OPO-based RGB source generates about 4000 lumens of D65-balanced white light. The overall electrical power on a commercially available JVC's three- panel D-ILA (reflective LCD) projector with the arc-lamp removed and extensive modifications. The projector has a native resolution of 1365 x 1024 and the expected on screen lumens from our laser display is about 1200 lumens.

In a collaboration between Pennsylvania State University and Princeton University, we have been laying the foundations for flexible display technology. Flexible substrates including plastic or steel foil, backplanes of organic or silicone transistors, and directly printed RGB organic light emitting diodes are issues central to this collaboration. We present an overview of key recent results. Silicon based thin film transistors have been processed at the ultralow temperatures required for processing on plastic substrates. Organic thin film transistors and circuits with record mobilities have been fabricated that are naturally matched to low temperature substrates. Organic light emitting diodes have been made by inkjet printing in an approach that solves the RGB patterning problem of OLED displays. The mechanics of flexible substrates have been defined and thin film silicon transistor performance is shown to be unaffected by bending. Substantial progress has been made toward the realization of rugged, lightweight, flexible and even conformal displays.

Organic light emitting device (OLED) technology has recently been shown to demonstrate excellent performance and cost characteristics for use in numerous flat panel display (FPD) applications. OLED displays emit bright, colorful light with excellent power efficiency, wide viewing angle and video response rates. OLEDs are also demonstrating the requisite environmental robustness for a wide variety of applications. OLED technology is also the first FPD technology with the potential to be highly functional and durable in a flexible format. The use of plastic and other flexible substrate materials offers numerous advantages over commonly used glass substrates, including impact resistance, light weight, thinness and conformability. Currently, OLED displays are being fabricated on rigid substrates, such as glass or silicon wafers. At Universal Display Corporation (UDC), we are developing a new class of flexible OLED displays (FOLEDs). These displays also have extremely low power consumption through the use of electrophosphorescent doped OLEDs. To commercialize FOLED technology, a number of technical issues related to packaging and display processing on flexible substrates need to be addressed. In this paper, we report on our recent results to demonstrate the key technologies that enable the manufacture of power efficient, long-life flexible OLED displays for commercial and military applications.

Holographically formed polymer dispersed light crystal (HPDLC) materials have the potential to enable creation of a full motion video rate reflective display technology with excellent color, contrast, reflectance and good power efficiency. Current HPDLC display research focuses on the improvement of angular viewability and reduction of the drive voltage. Measurements of HPDLC devices have begun at AFRL to verify and expand measurements made by dpiX LLC. Specular and diffuse reflections are examined in terms of angular and spectral reflectance distributions. Presently reported measurements verify the ability of an HPDLC device to shift the reflected signal image away from the front- surface substrate specular angle (source image glare) by some 10 degree(s) and to expand the spread of the reflected signal image (full-width-half maximum) from a bout 1-2 degree(s) to 4- 10 degree(s) for a point illumination source under worst orientation conditions. Colors were stable over 20 degree(s) of viewing angle. Potential defense applications include replacing paper in cockpits and crewstations.

Pioneering efforts within the global flat panel display industry to develop high-resolution displays are contrasted against mainstream strategies to maximize volume through a few standard products. Progress in the transition from analog to digital modes of data transmission is assessed. Development of web processing techniques, seamless tiling of displays and improved bandwidth management are recommended as ways of stretching basic display technologies to provide large screens with more information content.

The use of commercially available AMLCD panels to satisfy existing avionic apertures often requires re-manufacturing of the native 4:3 aspect ration panels. The approach adopted by BAE SYSTEMS to develop a robust production process to enable this is described in detail. Evidence and test results are presented which indicates that the cutting process has not compromised the seal integrity of the re- manufactured panels.

Active Matrix, Liquid Crystal Displays (AMLCD) are being used extensively in severe environments which require a wide range of optical performance. Conditions vary from high performance military aircraft to rugged use on the ground in both military and commercial vehicle environments. Not only are these displays being exposed to high ambient temperatures, shock and vibration, but also the requirement for readability in direct sunlight imposes conditions where backlight brightness must be greatly increased, imposing added thermal requirements. This paper discusses a fluid immersion, liquid cooling technique that allows great increases in backlight brightness with major improvement in thermal efficiency of the display. Improvements in susceptibility to shock and vibration can also be deduced from the use of this methodology. A prototype has been developed and is described in this paper and results compared to a conventionally cooled unit. A number of other advantages, which result from liquid immersion, are also discussed.

New approaches to light directionality and backlighting are described. They are discussed in the general context of the Liouville theorem and the second principle of thermodynamics; 3-D autostereoscopic applications are also discussed.

Two years ago, at the SPIE AeroSense 1999 Conference, Quantum Vision reported on a new technology that we predicted would become the best choice for projection displays. Quantum Vision has now developed this alternate approach, the resonant microcavity phosphor [RMP] for use in CRTs. The Quantum Vision patented technology provides a robust, high technology replacement for the powder phosphor currently used in most CRTs. This emissive component is based upon a rugged thin film phosphor, capable of generating high brightness, extended lifetime, expanded dynamic range and higher resolution images. Current measurements and theoretical predictions indicate that RMP-CRT projection displays can lead to much higher light throughput and electron beam limited resolution, while having a cost profile consistent with high volume CRT products. Other features make it ideal for use with holographic and diffractive optical elements. Data is presented demonstrating the characteristics of red, blue and green RMP-CRT faceplates operated on a demountable CRT test station design by Quantum Vision.

Cathode ray tube (CRT) technology dominates the direct view display market. Mature CRT technology for many designs is still the preferred choice. CRT manufacturers have greatly improved the size and weight of the CRT displays. High performance CRTs continue to be in great demand, however, supply have to contend with the vanishing CRT vendor syndrome. Therefore, the vanishing CRT vendor syndrome fuels the search for an alternate display technology source. Within the past 10 years, field emission display (FED) technology had gained momentum and, at one time, was considered the most viable electronic display technology candidate [to replace the CRT]. The FED community had advocated and promised many advantages over active matrix liquid crystal displays (AMLCD), electro luminescent (EL) or Plasma displays. Some observers, including potential FED manufacturers and the Department of Defense, (especially the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA)), consider the FED entry as having leapfrog potential. Despite major investments by US manufacturers as well as Asian manufacturers, reliability and manufacturing difficulties greatly slowed down the advancement of the technology. The FED manufacturing difficulties have caused many would-be FED manufacturing participants to abandon FED research. This paper will examine the trends, which are leading this nascent technology to its downfall. FED technology was once considered to have the potential to leapfrog over AMLCD's dominance in the display industry. At present the FED has suffered severe setbacks and there are very few [FED] manufacturers still pursuing research in the area. These companies have yet to deliver a display beyond the prototype stage.

Ground vehicle displays must function in the most demanding operational environment with stringent functional requirements. Operational demands on displays are rapidly increasing, reflecting its position as the primary man-machine information interface. Modern vehicles are fitted with sophisticated second generation FLIR imaging systems, map, external situational awareness displays and vehicle systems status displays. Operator interfaces are constantly evolving to reflect the need to reduce crew count. All this is happening in an environment of cost reduction and the insertion of COTS elements.

The report scope covers the displays and controls at the pilot's crewstation on the current model Air Force A-10A and OA-10A aircraft. A description of an electronic display and an electronic control panel that have come to be of concern to the Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC) are included in the Funded Display Replacement Programs discussion. The display, which is a monochrome cathode ray tube (CRT), and the control panel were designed some 30 years ago. Thus, it is necessary to insert new technologies to maintain the capability heretofore provided by those now out of favor with the commercial sector. With this paper we begin a look at the status of displays in the A-10, which may remain in inventory until about 2030 according to current plans. From a component electronics technology perspective, such as displays, the A-10 provides several 10-year life cycle cost (LCC) planning cycles to consider multiple upgrades. Lessons learned from these projects can be applied both to other displays in the A-10 and other aging Department of Defense (DoD) weapon systems.

Throughout the history of aviation, air vehicles have been developed for military applications in a number of roles, especially the use of weapons to attack targets on the ground and in the air. The complex dynamics of weapons aiming and employment from air vehicles has driven the design of a wide variety of specialized software and operator interfaces. The task of weapons employment in an air vehicle is particularly challenging when the target is itself an air vehicle. This paper examines specialized implementations in cockpit display symbology for weapons employment of modern air-to-air missiles.

MIL-L-85762 (Military Specification, Lighting, Aircraft, Interior, Night Vision, Imaging System (NVIS) Compatible) served for over twelve years as the standard definition of Night Vision Imaging System (NVIS) compatibility. MIL-STD- 3009 (Department of Defense Interface Standard for Lighting, Aircraft, Interior, Night Vision, Imaging System (NVIS) Compatible) was written to replace MIL-L-85762. MIL-STD-3009 implements acquisition reform principles by deleting detailed design requirements and maintaining the essential interface characteristics.

There are many technical approaches to replacement of the CRT image source for a Head-Up Display (HUD). LCD projectors promise to greatly lower the cost of the HUD because the cost of these displays continues to drop while the cost of CRTs remains stable. LCD projectors allow the realization of multi-colors in the HUD. Their high luminance provides bright raster images, where CRTs are limited by the constraints of the scanning electron beam. Finally, LCD projectors have a digital interface. There are none of the high voltage power supplies, A/D converters, and deflection amplifiers found in CRT drive systems, further improving cost and reliability. This paper describes the performance requirements and achieved performance of an LCD projection image source for use in a wide field of view head-up display (HUD) optical system.

The resizing of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs) for custom sizes are required in avionics has been successfully demonstrated. There are two key points about resizing; it works and it is cost effective. The AMLCD is definitely more suitable for avionics than CRTs and electromechanical displays. LCDs can be more sunlight readable and more dimmable than CRTs for avionics. However, the COTS LCD, resized or not, custom or not, needs to be ruggedized with suitable back light, packing, etc., and successfully tested before it is qualified for avionics applications.