Troop Readiness Evaluation with Augmented Reality Return-to-Duty (READY) system
Abstract
Objective and Rationale: The performance of military duties requires proficiency in the performance of dual tasks (e.g., simultaneous performance of a cognitive and motor task); however, there is no standardized approach to assessing return-to-duty (RTD) performance in Service members following mild traumatic brain injury. With data from our recently completed Department of Defense projects involving dual-task performance in civilian and military populations to create a military-specific clinically based dual-task paradigm has been validated and normative data gathered. These data will be used to inform the development of ecological tasks and outcomes to be presented to the Service member via a ruggedized HoloLens, an untethered, augmented reality headset that allows the user to maintain contact with the physical world and the people in it. Functional capacity tests that employ military-specific tasks, such as the Military Functional Assessment Program (MFAP) and the Assessment of Military Multi-tasking Performance (AMMP), do exist; however, they have not been adopted clinically, as they require substantial time and expertise to administer and score. Additionally, RTD decision-making has failed to consider or measure the Service member’s proficiency to interact with and function appropriately within their unit. Failure to consider the Service member’s ability to re-integrate and function reliably within their unit puts the individual Service member and their unit at risk. The objective of the proposed Troop READY project is to develop and validate a series of ecologically valid military assessment modules, delivered via the Rugged HoloLens, while providing validated, objective biomechanical outcomes that can be used to more accurately evaluate RTD. The Troop READY assessment modules will be developed for the HoloLens by General Dynamics Mission System in collaboration with the Cleveland Clinic and input from military consults with extensive experience in military research and the assessment and clearing of Service members in austere and clinical environments. The biomechanical outcomes derived from the Rugged HoloLens system will be validated to “gold standard” measures of gait and postural stability simultaneously gathered with 3D motion capture system and the Cleveland Clinic-Postural Stability Index (CC-PSI) in a group of 65 healthy adult civilians. Following successful validation of Rugged HoloLens technology and outcomes, a normative study involving 330 Service members (165 cadets and 165 enlisted) will be completed. All Service members will complete the three proposed Troop READY modules. The modules consist of marching while performing a cognitive task, reacting in a simulated combat situation, and performance in a small unit operations activity. Normative data will be computed for all modules separately and, if indicated, for cadets/officers and enlisted Service members. The project will be completed in 3 years. Applicability and Impact: Since 2000, more than 360,000 Service members have sustained a traumatic brain injury, of which 80% were determined to be mild traumatic brain injury. Determining readiness for RTD requires the use of objective, biomechanical metrics sensitive to detecting deficits specific to the military environment. In this project, a series of RTD modules representing varying levels of military service, including a unit readiness assessment, in terms of difficulty will be developed using the HoloLens platform. The Troop READY tool provides objective biomechanical outcomes of cognitive and motor performance, which can be shared across providers in real time or later in playback mode. These characteristics will facilitate a standardized and objective approach to RTD decision-making. The tool presents minimal risk to the user, as they navigate their environment completing military-specific tasks wearing the augmented reality HoloLens headset. While the current proposal is aimed
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Nov 19, 2019
- Source ID
- W81XWH1910685
Entities
People
- Jay L Alberts
Organizations
- Cleveland Clinic
- United States Army