NIST, PML, Visual Recognition of Lighted Character Signs in Aviation - Recruitment Flyer

ATTACHMENT

RECRUITMENT ADVERTISEMENT/FLYER

VISUAL RECOGNITION OF LIGHTED CHARACTER SIGNS IN AVIATION

Sign up to participate in our study of airport signaling. The experiment is to view a lighted X sign from a 60 m distance and answer if you recognize the X sign lighted at different intensities.

What is required to participate?

• You can be a NIST employee that has the permission of your management to participate.

• You can be a non-NIST employee that is either a Federal or a non-Federal participant.

• You are at least 18 years old.

• You have visual acuity of 20/20 or better. Glasses or contact lenses are acceptable. NIST researcher will test your vision.

• If your vision accuracy is found unacceptable for the purpose of this research experiment, we will excuse you from the study without any penalty.

• If you qualify for this research experiment, we will ask you to provide your age, gender, and race/ethnicity in a brief demographic survey and assign a participant number to you.

• These data will not be connected to your name in our records, but if you prefer not to provide your age, gender, and race/ethnicity, we will excuse you from the study without any penalty.

What will we be doing in the experiments?

• This experiment will take about one hour. You are welcome to take short breaks between sessions or any time if necessary.

• You have no obligation after you volunteer. You can cancel participation or withdraw from experiment at any time for any reason.

• The experimental sessions will take place at the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Gaithersburg campus (Room C02E of Building 220).

• The experiment will be conducted in a long (30 m) dark room lab. An “X” sign formed by many lighted dots is operated at one end of the lab. It’s intensity is varied to different levels.

• You will be seated at the viewing position in the lab, and dark-adapted for five minutes, during which, the operator will explain the procedures for experiment, and the operator will let you practice the experimental run a few times.

• The X sign is turned on at an intensity level and presented for several seconds.  You will look at the sign and answer if you recognized character X or not. Depending on the light level, you may see “X” or see just a dim or bright dot. After you answer, the X sign is turned off for a few seconds and turned on for next intensity level.

• The step above is repeated for 10 different intensity levels of the X sign.

• The light source color and other conditions for the X sign are changed, and the above experiment is repeated.  

How will your privacy be protected?

• All the demographic and experimental data will be recorded by a pseudo-randomly assigned participant number.

• No key will be kept that will link your name, or any personally identifiable information to any vision testing results, experimental data or demographic information collected under the study.

How do you get involved?

• The Principal Investigator is Dr. Yoshi Ohno. You can call him at 301-975-2321 or e-mail him at ohno@nist.gov to express your interest and learn more.

We plan to recruit ~50 volunteers, NIST employees and non-NIST employees as well as pilots who are members of the Air Line Pilots Association.

This research is being conducted by the Sensor Science Division, Physical Measurement Laboratory.

NIST IRB Approval ________________ NIST IRB Case # _____ 2