Applying Response Surface Methodology to Problems of Target Acquisition

Abstract

To specify man's target acquisition capabilities and limitations, many equipment and situational variables as well as their interactions must be considered simultaneously. Response surface methodology (RSM), originally developed for use in the chemical industry, provides an experimental technique for collecting data on many quantitative variables at once in order to develop a multiple regression polynomial equation which describes the functional relationship between a performance score and the experimental variables. This equation, in turn, can be used to predict target acquisition performance. Besides the mathematical advantages of RSM, the technique provides the human factors engineer with the additional advantages of economy in data collection, flexibility in experimental approach, and efficiency in controlling undesirable fluctuations.