Target Cuing in Visual Search: The Effects of Conformality and Display Location on the Allocation of Visual Attention

Two experiments were performed to examine how frame of reference (world referenced vs. screen-referenced) and target expectancy can modulate the effects of target cuing in directing attention for see-through helmet-mounted displays (HMDs). In the first experiment, the degree of world referencing was varied by the spatial accuracy of the cue; in the second, the degree of world referencing was varied more radically between a world-referenced HMD and a hand-held display. Participants were asked to detect, identify, and give azimuth information for targets hidden in terrain presented in the far domain (i.e., the world) while performing a monitoring task in the near domain (i.e., the display). The results of both experiments revealed a cost-benefit trade-off for cuing such that the presence of cuing aided the target detection task for expected targets but drew attention away from the presence of unexpected targets in the environment. Analyses support the observation that this effect can be mediated by the display: The world-referenced display reduced the cost of cognitive tunneling relative to the screen-referenced display in Experiment 1; this cost was further reduced in Experiment 2 when participants were using a hand-held display. Potential applications of this research include important design guidelines and specifications for automated target recognition systems as well as any terrain-and-targeting display system in which superimposed symbology is included, specifically in assessing the costs and benefits of attentional cuing and the means by which this information is displayed.

[1]  Ronald Azuma,et al.  A Survey of Augmented Reality , 1997, Presence: Teleoperators & Virtual Environments.

[2]  Paul Milgram,et al.  Perceptual issues in augmented reality , 1996, Electronic Imaging.

[3]  B. Bergum,et al.  Attention and performance IX , 1982 .

[4]  Anthony D. Andre,et al.  Taxiway Navigation and Situation Awareness (T-NASA) System: Problem, Design Philosophy, and Description of an Integrated Display Suite for Low-Visibility Airport Surface Operations , 1996 .

[5]  David C. Foyle,et al.  Attentional limitations with Head-Up Displays , 1993 .

[6]  David C. Foyle,et al.  Attentional Issues with Superimposed Symbology: Formats for Scene-Linked Displays , 1995 .

[7]  Rena A. Conejo The Effects of Highlighting, Validity, and Feature Type on Air-to-Ground Target Acquisition Performance. , 1998 .

[8]  Russell L. Martin,et al.  Aurally and Visually Guided Visual Search in a Virtual Environment , 1998, Hum. Factors.

[9]  Christopher D. Wickens,et al.  Effects of Frame of Reference and Viewing Condition on Attentional Issues with Helmet Mounted Displays , 1998 .

[10]  James B. Sampson,et al.  Cognitive Performance of Individuals Using a Head—Mounted Display While Walking , 1993 .

[11]  Daniel Gopher,et al.  Training head movement in visual scanning: An embedded approach to the development of piloting skills with helmet-mounted displays , 1997 .

[12]  H J Müller,et al.  Spatial Cueing and the Relation between the Accuracy of “Where” and “What” Decisions in Visual Search , 1989, The Quarterly journal of experimental psychology. A, Human experimental psychology.

[13]  J. G. Hollands,et al.  Engineering Psychology and Human Performance , 1984 .

[14]  L J Skitka,et al.  Automation bias: decision making and performance in high-tech cockpits. , 1997, The International journal of aviation psychology.

[15]  M. Posner,et al.  Attention and cognitive control. , 1975 .

[16]  Patricia May Ververs,et al.  Prepared for , 1998 .

[17]  Christopher D. Wickens,et al.  Object versus space-based models of visual attention: Implications for the design of head-up displays , 1995 .

[18]  C D Wickens,et al.  Electronic maps for terminal area navigation: effects of frame of reference and dimensionality. , 1996, The International journal of aviation psychology.

[19]  Christopher D. Wickens,et al.  Performance Issues in the Design of Helmet-Mounted Displays for Augmented Reality Applications , 1999 .

[20]  S. Yantis,et al.  Visual attention: control, representation, and time course. , 1997, Annual review of psychology.

[21]  Christopher D. Wickens,et al.  Costs and Benefits of Head-Up Display Use: A Meta-Analytic Approach , 1998 .

[22]  Raja Parasuraman,et al.  Performance Consequences of Automation-Induced 'Complacency' , 1993 .

[23]  Christopher D. Wickens,et al.  The Future of Air Traffic Control: Human Operators and Automation , 1998 .

[24]  J. Jonides Voluntary versus automatic control over the mind's eye's movement , 1981 .

[25]  R G Swensson,et al.  Omissions in radiology: faulty search or stringent reporting criteria? , 1977, Radiology.

[26]  Christopher D. Wickens,et al.  Superimposition, Symbology, Visual Attention, and the Head-Up Display , 1997, Hum. Factors.

[27]  C D Wickens,et al.  Head-Up Displays: Effect of Clutter, Display Intensity, and Display Location on Pilot Performance , 1998 .