Pilot ability to understand synthetic voice and radio voice when received simultaneously

The goals of a prior study were to determine if synthetic voice messages would reduce the F-14 aircraft pilot's workload, increase his effectiveness during the mission, and to establish the hardware impact on the aircraft. Recommendations for additional studies to use voice in the F-14 and other future naval aircraft were made as well as for investigations into related areas such as crew perception and discrimination of a computer generated voice. The goals of a prior study were to determine if synthetic voice messages would reduce the F-14 aircraft pilot's workload, increase his effectiveness during the mission, and to establish the hardware impact on the aircraft. Recommendations for additional studies to use voice in the F-14 and other future naval aircraft were made as well as for investigations into related areas such as crew perception and discrimination of a computer generated voice. Some pertinent questions arising from the F-14 study concerned: the distinctiveness and intelligibility of a computer generated synthetic voice in the aircraft hearing situation; whether or not the pilot can separate radio-transmitted human voice messages of interest from simultaneously generated synthetic voice messages; and the optimum method of presenting such messages through the headset. An exploratory study was designed to investigate these questions. The intent was to examine differing methodologies in presenting the stimuli used, and to ascertain trends in the subjects performance data.