EVALUATION OF NIGHT VISION GOGGLES FOR MARITIME SEARCH AND RESCUE (VOLUME I - TECHNICAL REPORT). INTERIM REPORT

Three experiments were conducted during 1989 by the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development (R&D) Center to evaluate night vision goggles (NVGs) for their effectiveness in detecting small targets at night. Three types of NVGs were evaluated: the AN/AVS-6 Aviators Night Vision Imaging System (ANVIS) NVG was tested onboard Coast Guard HH-3 and CH-3 helicopters, and the AN/PVS-5C and AN/PVS-7A NVGs were tested onboard 41-foot Coast Guard utility boats (UTBs). Simulated persons in the water (PIWs), 4- and 6-person life rafts, 18- and 21-foot white boats, and white, personal flotation device (PFD) strobe lights were employed as targets during realistically-simulated search missions. A total of 1,490 target detection opportunities were generated during the experiments. These data were analyzed to determine which of 25 search parameters of interest exerted a statistically-significant influence on target detection probability. Lateral range curves and sweep width estimates are developed for each search unit/target type combination. Human factors data are presented and discussed. Recommendations for conducting NVG searches for small targets and for additional data collection and analysis are provided. This report consists of two volumes. Volume I contains the text of the report and Volume II contains the data listing. Requests for Volume II should be sent to the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center.