Speech recognition in advanced rotorcraft - Using speech controls to reduce manual control overload

An experiment has been conducted to ascertain the usefulness of helicopter pilot speech controls and their effect on time-sharing performance, under the impetus of multiple-resource theories of attention which predict that time-sharing should be more efficient with mixed manual and speech controls than with all-manual ones. The test simulation involved an advanced, single-pilot scout/attack helicopter. Performance and subjective workload levels obtained supported the claimed utility of speech recognition-based controls; specifically, time-sharing performance was improved while preparing a data-burst transmission of information during helicopter hover.