Usability within the digital battlefield : usability issues as applied to the digitised battlefield within a Southern African military context

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:Defence forces around the world are experiencing a period of dynamic change with new forcestructures being combined with new technologies in an effort to enhance effectiveness. Presentday resources and technology available to the modern society, have facilitated the evolution ofwarfare as a technologically advanced enterprise, with the decided emphasis on the digitisationof the battlefield. With rapid development in the field of battlefield digitisation there is anincreasing need to address the important issues and challenges facing the military. In order tomeet strategic defence guidelines, it is necessary to integrate the capabilities of defence forceswith modern technology. In this regard the South African Defence Force is striving towards thedigitisation of the battlefield. This digitisation can potentially satisfy the many requirements setfor the Defence Force, in a more timely and cost-effective manner than traditional methods offunctioning and training would be able to achieve.Effective situational awareness and command and control structures are essential for any militaryoperation, especially with increasingly complex military demands. Key areas of importance arethe collection, dissemination and management of information, which if executed skilfully, willresult in forces capable of operating more effectively and with greater flexibility. Decisionmakers on the battlefield continually suffer from information overload due to the extremely rapidinflow of information. This is likely to worsen with the continued introduction of newinformation technologies. The technology level of any defence force should therefore beappropriate, driven by usefulness and cost-effectiveness.The digitised battlefield allows for the execution of near realistic military exercises, whileconserving material and reducing the detrimental impact on environment and personnel, as is thecase with traditional exercises. A key issue of focus is the usability and integration of relatedtechnologies within the digital battlefield. Promoting optimal usability through continuous andcomprehensive user-based evaluation is crucial and will result in increased human performancethrough interaction with technology. Optimal usability must be engineered into any product(defined as something produced by means of either human or mechanical work) from theinception of the product's life cycle.Within today's technology orientated society, the digitisation of the battlefield and the usabilitythereof have become increasingly important issues. Most research has investigated the concepts of battlefield digitisation and usability in isolation, and little co-ordinated effort has been made tointegrate digitisation and usability, even though the relation is important and necessary. A studyof this nature has not hitherto been conducted within the South African military context. Thepurpose of this study is to provide a theoretical background of the issues of military digitisationand usability, in order to determine the significance of this relation. This research aimsspecifically to promote the viewpoint that usability is central to military digitisation, as well as toemphasise the importance of user-centred approaches to system development and utilization. Theresult will be enhanced human performance and satisfaction when interacting with digitalbattlefield applications.The theoretical perspective is provided by way of a literature review of the relevant military andusability concepts. Military functioning is discussed, highlighting the importance of situationalawareness and effective command and control capabilities. The digitisation in the military isexamined with specific reference to Virtual Reality and simulation. An overview of usability(within a human-computer interaction and user-centred design context) and usability evaluationmethods are provided.This research was conducted during a military exercise conducted by the South African NationalDefence Force. A usability inquiry approach was followed with questionnaires distributed toparticipants involved with the Command and Control Digital Battlefield System. Informationwas obtained concerning participants' characteristics, likes, dislikes, needs, and understanding ofthe digital battlefield system. The analyses of the information consisted of descriptive statisticsas the research aimed to illustrate the attitudes concerning usability and the digital battlefield.The results provide an understanding of the perceptions of the users regarding the digitalbattlefield system and its usability. Conclusions are drawn from results obtained andrecommendations are made for future research.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University