Military Technology 04/2021

A real-time scene in MetaVR’s VRSG, showing visualisation of the wearer of a Varjo XR-3 mixed-relaity headset through the collection of eye-tracking data. The scene features an F-18C platform entity (with Finnish markings) in flight over a 3D terrain rendering of Albacete Air Base in Spain. (Images courtesy MetaVR) subjective process, helping to ensure the trainee’s gaze is directed in the right direction during critical moments of the engagement. MilTech: What are the two biggest challenges you currently face, and how are you addressing them? GS: We traditionally act as a supplier, with our software integrated by a prime contractor into larger systems that end up being capable but very expensive. So, despite our success in making VRSG extremely capable with an accessible price point (relative to military/DoD pricing), our soft- ware currently lacks a forum in the market for being fielded as a com- ponent of affordable systems which would be extremely well-suited to programmes such as Pilot Training Next. We see a pent-up demand for ultra-low cost, fully integrated and in- stalled pilot training simulators based on realistic cockpit shells for pilot training. We have addressed this by taking on a light manufacturing capa- bility and have begun producing military-style fast-jet cockpit shells that we are now offering as a complete low-cost mission training platform, which uses mixed reality with the Varjo XR-3 headset and Battlespace Simulations’ MACE software to provide the flight and semi-automated forces capability. The headset removes the need for a dome display, the cockpit shell promotes ‘suspended disbelief’ training, and we are working at a price point of less than $200,000, with the system able to be up and networked within a few hours. MilTech: What is the single biggest change coming in your market seg- ment. How will it affect you? GS: We are ahead of the curve with what we are doing in this high-ca- pability/low-cost market space, and I think we will continue to see this reflected across the market, as users look to acquire high-fidelity sys- tems at low price points, while also avoiding blown-out, long-running programmes that fail to deliver capability but cost a lot of money along the way. What will push the door wide open on this will be the adoption of a standardised meta terrain description, which would allow terrain to correlate whatever IG software was in use. That will enable IG specialists to lead development in this area, rather than what happens now, which is that standards are created by people who aren’t experts in the field, to the detriment of the end-user. MetaVR – a company familiar to the entire training, simulation and modelling community – is an enterprise that has consistently punched above its weight and regularly provides the market with innovative, intelligent initiatives. Garth Smith, the company’s President, shares his views with MilTech in answering the three traditional questions. MilTech: What are your three most important product or service offerings? GS: The Virtual Reality Scene Generator (VRSG) forms the basis of all MetaVR product offerings. The Microsoft DirectX-based render en- gine provides geospecific simulation as an image generator (IG), with game-quality graphics, enabling users to visualise geographically ex- pansive and detailed virtual worlds at 60Hz frame rates, on commercial- ly available PCs for military training purposes. VRSG provides real-time, single- or multiple-channel visualisation of virtual environments, dynamic moving 3D models, and special effects, with advanced visual features, including full-scene anti-aliasing and continuous level-of-detail morphing. While VRSG is most commonly used in third-party simulators, its ability to run on commercially available PCs has led us to develop a number of self-contained, low-cost, portable simulation systems. A recent ex- ample of this is our portable joint fires training solution, the Deployable Joint Fires Trainer (DJFT). This system is designed to provide a quick de- ploy capability for Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC) and Forward Observers (FO) to train alongside fixed- and rotary-wing aircrew within a fully immersive, joint training environment. The modular plug-and-play system is comprised of three or more stations, fully contained within two-person portable ruggedised cases; which contain all the hardware required to run dynamic, full-spectrum JTAC/Joint Fires training scenari- os, including laptop, GPS receiver, Varjo mixed-reality headset, and com- munication systems. Users wearing the mixed-reality headset can inter- act with physical equipment (such as simulated military equipment) while immersed in and interacting with the virtual world. Scenarios are run on Battlespace Simulations’ Modern Air Combat Environment (MACE) and MetaVR’s VRSG. Our newest technology has been developed in partnership with Varjo: a brand new eye-tracking visualisation capability for simulator-based pilot or ground-based training. The capability integrates the real-time eye-track- ing capability of Varjo VR and mixed-reality headsets with VRSG’s ability to visualise the gaze of a pilot or soldier, depicting the gaze of each eye as a colour-coded 3D cone. During the training mission, the instructor can see where the trainee is looking throughout the mission and, at the end, VRSG can export this data via DIS as a PDU log for review with the trainee during after-action debrief. This adds a critical dimension to this normally The 3-2-1 Interview MT 4/2021 · 77 Addressing Pent-Up Demand A MetaVR 3D model of an ACTROS vehicle, in a high-resolution geospecific terrain – in this case, in Hajin, Syria. f