A dynamic aircraft simulator for study of human response characteristics

A dynamic high speed jet aircraft simulator is described. This simulator is intended for use in psychological experiments designed to determine the transfer characteristics of a pilot under simulated flying conditions. A two gun scope in the cockpit presents an indication of the roll and bank angles of the aircraft and the position of a target. The target can be made to follow any prescribed course by means of an electronic function generator, or to move in a random way by a filtered white noise source. Potentiometers geared to the stick and rudder feed voltages into an analog computer which solves the equations of motion of the aircraft and the components of target lead angle. The computer employs negative feedback d-c amplifiers and servo-multiplier techniques.