Photo By Kimberly Koonce | Jerad Smith, aerospace engineer with the propeller fleet support team, tries on an...... read more read more
MARINE CORPS AIR STATION CHERRY POINT, N.C. – If you’ve ever taken a training class for a job-related task, you may have found that you’ve forgotten a step or two when the time came to apply what you learned to your job. But aviation maintenance professionals at Fleet Readiness Center East may soon be able to take their instructor with them to the hangar floor – at least virtually – using augmented reality technology.
Engineers and trainers at FRCE recently observed a demonstration of how augmented reality headsets can be used to create and display hands-free training and troubleshooting aids for artisans and their Navy and Marine Corps customers.
FRCE’s Advanced Technology and Innovation Team has been working for about two years to bring augmented reality technology to the facility. Augmented reality uses handheld devices or digital eyewear to overlay digital information on top of physical objects, so users can see the virtual and physical environments in relation to each other. This digital information can also include graphics, text, videos and sound.
According to FRCE senior leaders, augmented reality technology has the potential to positively impact FRCE in terms of safety, quality, throughput and cost.
“For artisan system familiarization training alone on new aircraft, for new capability establishment efforts, and for apprentice development, the opportunities for the use of this technology are endless,” said Mark Meno, FRCE executive director. “Augmented reality has come such a long way that even for the crucial, tight tolerance, and complex systems found in military aviation, it is a very suitable replacement for hands-on training. I’m excited to see where we can take this next.”
ATI team members say augmented reality has the potential to streamline training and troubleshooting, which would result in significant cost savings and increased efficiencies for the depot.
“We can create content that can take out many, many steps that we currently do and condense it to a more manageable state that we have direct control over,” agreed Tad Sylivant, ATI team lead logistician and augmented reality project lead. “The financial impact that it brings to the table, the man-hours saved, the cost saved, the verification and validation of processes, it’s just endless to what this technology can do for us.”
Consultants from PTC, based in Boston, Mass., and Illumination Works, based in Beavercreek, Ohio, visited FRCE in late January to meet with depot leaders, engineers and training specialists to demonstrate possible applications for augmented reality at the military aircraft maintenance facility.
The workshop began with an opportunity for engineers to experience what it’s like to create content for the augmented reality headsets. Rob Thompson, FRCE senior materials engineer for polymers composites, frequently trains artisans on how to prepare a wet layup in composite repair. He conducted the same class while wearing an AR headset to record the training, and he said he quickly adapted his teaching style to the system.
“I had to make sure that I kept my head down so the screen was still capturing what I was doing,” Thompson said. “It got very natural after a while, and the voice commands were easy to use.”
Thompson’s class was soon edited to a video training module, with accompanying textual material describing each step of the process. To view the lesson, artisans would wear augmented reality headsets. Because the training is hands-free and can be reviewed using voice commands while the artisan is completing the work task, artisans can be trained more quickly and efficiently than using other methods of training, according to team members.
“An expert can easily record how they do a maintenance task,” said Paul Charron, FRCE’s power and propulsion/additive manufacturing engineering lead for the ATI team. “Then someone else, a complete novice like me, can put the headset on and actually see the job done from the expert’s perspective. I see this has the potential to be a really powerful training aid.”
Engineers and industrial training leaders who viewed the demonstration said they considered the technology would be especially appealing to younger artisans, Marines, and Sailors, who have grown up to be comfortable with digital technology.
“A lot of the engine artisans will use basic training flip charts when they’re troubleshooting and wanting to see why some parts are not fitting right,” said Chris Lucas, T408 senior engineer. “Using the AR goggles, you can view the virtual engine in front of you next to the real engine and see how everything is supposed to fit.”
Engineers who support deployed Marines and Sailors said augmented reality applications could help the FSTs extend their reach to assist with training and troubleshooting when they cannot physically be on site.
“At the top of this technology, you’re able to get an entire CAD model of an entire vehicle, and break it down into the components,” said Julien Fogel, FRCE aerospace engineer with the Propeller FST. “I think it’s something our Marines could benefit from, to see how whatever system they’re working with ties in to other systems.”
According to ATI team members, the next three months will be spent working with stakeholders who have expressed interest in the augmented reality technology, while identifying others who might not have considered AR’s potential applications. Sylivant said that augmented reality solutions could have a big impact on FRCE’s production efforts, even when applied to relatively simple processes.
“We could be producing a product that is as simple as putting part A to part B to produce C, or we could be executing a very complex procedure where you could have overlying source data such as CAD models, work instructions, video of the actual process, and so on,” said Sylivant. “That’s the potential of augmented reality – you can add many types of source data into the AR content to help the users have a better understanding of what they’re working on.”
FRCE is North Carolina's largest maintenance, repair, overhaul and technical services provider, with more than 4,000 civilian, military and contract workers. Its annual revenue exceeds $1 billion. The depot generates combat air power for America’s Marines and naval forces while serving as an integral part of the greater U.S. Navy; Naval Air Systems Command; and Commander, Fleet Readiness Centers.
| Date Taken: | 03.05.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 03.05.2021 09:08 |
| Story ID: | 390649 |
| Location: | CHERRY POINT, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 113 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, FRCE looks to add augmented reality as training and troubleshooting tool, by Kimberly Koonce, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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