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Student (f/m/x) - Enhancing Situation Awareness in Drone Operations
Job Description
Req ID:  3028
Place of work:  Braunschweig
Starting date:  Zum nächstmöglichen Zeitpunkt
Career level:  Student employment, Student research project and final thesis
Type of employment:  Part time, Full-time
Duration of contract:  6 Monate

Remuneration: Remuneration is in accordance with the Collective Agreement for the Public Sector - Federal Government (TVöD-Bund)

Enter the fascinating world of the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V.; DLR) and help shape the future through research and innovation! We offer an exciting and inspiring working environment driven by the expertise and curiosity of our 11,000 employees from 100 nations and our unique infrastructure. Together, we develop sustainable technologies and thus contribute to finding solutions to global challenges. Would you like to join us in addressing this major future challenge? Then this is your place!

The DLR Institute of Software Technology sees software as a catalyst for research and innovation. The institute's staff, currently numbering around 200, make a significant contribution to advancements in the fields of aviation, space, energy, transportation, and security through the development of state-of-the-art software solutions and innovative research.

Our areas of competence include reliable and safety-critical software systems, artificial intelligence, high-performance computing and quantum computing, human-system interaction and visualisation, software and systems engineering as well as digital platforms and digital twins.

What to expect

The Visual Computing and Engineering department develops interactive visualization and modeling methods to collaboratively make digital twins and complex technical systems experientially accessible – from the early design phase to the analysis of large scientific datasets in immersive 3D environments. Among other aspects, Extended Reality group focuses on researching, developing and evaluating human-machine interfaces in extended reality environments for drone operations. Maintaining situation awareness during drone operations is a constant challenge, especially in high obstacle environments. Traditional Ground Control Stations (GCS) often rely on 2D maps and/or single video feeds, which can limit operators’ spatial awareness. Mixed Reality (MR) offers new possibilities for presenting information in more intuitive ways, for instance, tabletop 3D maps can be combined with different views in front of the user, such as First-Person View (FPV), Third-Person View (TPV), and side perspectives. These views can be arranged around the user’s field of view, including placement in the peripheral view, to better support operators’ mental model of the drone’s position and environment. Hence,  the aim of this thesis is to explore how can different combinations of views (e.g., FPV, side view, top-down 3D map) be arranged in MR to best support situation awareness.


Your tasks

  • Review literature on situation awareness needs in drone operations and XR visualization strategies
  • Design a prototype MR interface (e.g., for HoloLens or Meta Quest) showing multiple views of a simulated drone flight
  • Implement view combinations like: FPV (drone camera), synthetic side views, and TPV
  • Conduct an evaluation or pilot study to test the prototype
  • Analyze user feedback to derive design insights and guidelines

 

Your profile

  • Currently enrolled in Computer Science, Aeronautics, Media Technology, Human-Computer Interaction or a related field
  • Experience with Unreal Engine or Unity, preferably in XR development context
  • Experience with C++ or C#
  • Knowledge on GIS tools is desired
  • Interest in XR, and/or human factors in aeronautics is desired

We offer

DLR stands for diversity, appreciation and equality for all people. We promote independent work and the individual development of our employees both personally and professionally. To this end, we offer numerous training and development opportunities. Equal opportunities are of particular importance to us, which is why we want to increase the proportion of women in science and management in particular. Applicants with severe disabilities will be given preference if they are qualified.

We look forward to getting to know you!

If you have any questions about this position (Vacancy-ID 3028) please contact:

Andreas Gerndt 
Tel.: +49 531 295 2782 
Apply now