Motion Sickness, Crew Performance, and Reduced Manning in High-Speed Vessel Operations
Abstract
This study examined the effects of ship motion on motion sickness, susceptibility, and performance. Data were collected onboard HSV-2 SWIFT during four periods from May 2004 to April 2005. HSV-2 SWIFT was chosen to examine performance on a high speed vessel with a catamaran hull type and a small crew. Data were collected using handheld personal digital assistants (PDAs) with a performance task along with questionnaires. There is a possibility that crewmember cognitive performance, as measured by Lapses on the Psychomotor Vigilance Task, may be related to reported Motion Sickness. Observations showed that adaptation to the ship motion occurred between day 2 and 3. Data collection periods found a relationship between the Motion History Questionnaire and motion sickness incidence. Lack of rough seas during the three of the data collection periods made it difficult to determine if there were more significant relationships during the analysis. Recommendations were to conduct future data collection during rough seas that have more variation in sea state and efforts should address how motion sickness affects crew performance and if crew performance is degraded to a level that will affect the ship's missions, specifically the LCS's missions of Surface Warfare, Anti-Submarine Warfare, Mine Warfare, and high speed operations.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA443242
Entities
People
- John J. Calvert Jr.
Organizations
- Naval Postgraduate School