[simpits-tech] HUD

[Chris Woodul]

My F-111D has two HUDS ( one on each side of the cockpit) but I am not at
this time converting the D model into a sim. The F-111F has one Lead
Computing Optical Sight on the Aircraft Comanders side of the cockpit. Matt
Wietlespach already made it work, although it was easier to make function
than a true HUD.
I supplied Matt Wietlespach with the Canadian Marconi HUD back in 1998 for
use in his homebuilt generic fighter cockpit. Matt upon reciept of it gutted
it, put in his own small CRT and rebuilt it into his pit. Matt then wrote
his own program and used a dedicated PC to slave his hud graphics from MFS.
He does have the problem of trying to focus on the HUD imagry on the combing
glass and the out the window view created by a large monitor placed fairly
close.
Matt sim could be helped by using rear projection onto a screen and giving
him some eye relief, but I dont think he has room. Matt may not ever get it
to focus both at the same time in his eyes, but he says its workable ( I
have not yet made it to Iowa, even though he has been here five times ; (
I have a GEC Marconi F-16 LANTRIN HUD that is essentially brand new and when
I get around to building up the VIPER, I will be able to pipe in video to it
and use its Raster/Calographic capabilites to the fullest. One reason I am
waiting doing the Viper is I need Falcon IV or later to be fully broken out
so that I can pipe out the HUD data seperately ( also the MFD's as I have a
real pair,,,I gave Matt a pair years ago and he was able to fire them up.
The point of this is you guys just keep plugin away at extracting all this
data out of FALCON while I work on my F-111F cockpit simulator. I hope that
by the time I start to put it all together that 99 percent of every thing in
the cockpit can be STIMULATED ( I am using real and high end simulation
components) from Falcon.
I plan on haveing a fairly large distance between the HUD Combiner Glass and
the large curved screen for the out the window view. I dont know if the
columnation issues can be solved enough to allow target boxes in the HUD
lining up on or overlaying the target depicted on the out the window
view...this is where custom HUDs come in on Military Sims,,,,its important
that what you see on the HUD glass lines up with what its supposed to
corespond with on the out the window view. I prefer the HUD symbology to
"float" in space in the glass rather than be projected on the screen (
although many military sims do this) I dont like it when you move your head
to the side of the HUD and look forward and can still see the imagry on the
screen. In a real plane you have to have your head in the "design eye"
position. If your head moves i.e. pulling G's ( down movement) or you just
tilt your head to the side, the image displaces or is partially ocluded.
Even the Level D 737-700 sim I fly occasionally requires that you keep your
head in just the right spot to see the image right. In this simulator the
HUD is an "off the shelf" Flight Dynamics HGS ( head up guidance system) The
optics all work out with the high end visual system in the CAE sim. Since
the out the window view image is reflected into the large mylar mirror from
the rear projected image appearing on the big curved screen above the
cockpit , the image has eye-relief and has much more distance between the
actual image rendering and your eye.
Justin I dont know why that HUD you flew with in the C-17 did not work,
since the visual system is simular to the Airliner level D visual systems.
The reason Military HUDs have a hard time in small simlators is that most
military Unit Training Devices dont have large visual systems ( even the
DART DOME system is really close in to the HUD itself. In the 737 sim I fly
ILS approaches using the donut around the velocity vector ( flight path
marker) and I am focusing on the A/S, ALT and ILS   cues as well as the
runway at the same time and have no problems with focus.
Sorry if this diatribe was long, but tonight I found some typing energy!

Chris Woodul

----- Original Message -----
From: "Justin Messenger" <jjmessenger@yahoo.com>
To: <Simpits-tech@simpits.org>
Sent: Monday, October 21, 2002 6:54 PM
Subject: [simpits-tech] HUD


> I have a detailed diagram of the F-4 gunsight that
> I'll post soon, it might be helpful to someone.
> Justin
>
> __________________________________________________
> Do you Yahoo!?
> Y! Web Hosting - Let the expert host your web site
> http://webhosting.yahoo.com/
> _______________________________________________
> Simpits-tech mailing list
> Simpits-tech@simpits.org
> http://www.simpits.org/mailman/listinfo/simpits-tech
> To unsubscribe, please see the instructions at the bottom of the above
page.  Thanks!
>