Impact of Control Augmentation on Pilot Workload During Shipboard Helicopter Hover Operation

Kurzfassung

The integration of control augmentation techniques into helicopter systems aims to assist pilots during the critical phases of shipboard operations to mitigate the effects of ship motion, wind and other environmental factors that can compromise safety. The control augmentation presented in the current paper involves the implementation of modelfollowing control laws featuring a combination of advanced response types with hold modes to improve helicopter handling qualities. The paper introduces a translational rate command type, relative to the ship, which incorporates Velocity Hold and Position Hold features to assist pilots and automate various stages of the ship deck landing maneuver. An Attitude Command Attitude Hold has been used as a baseline response type for the comparison. A preliminary pilot evaluation of the proposed control laws during a hover operation is presented to assess the impact of control augmentation on the pilot workload, task performance and operational safety. Simulation results demonstrate a stabilised hover and smooth trajectory relative to ship with reduced workload, improved handling qualities and increased overall safety perception for the pilots.