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Comment by GartzenDeHaes | Hacker News Reader

Size can be reduced and light leaks can be fixed. I wonder what the actual tests were and which ones passed and what failed.

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From what I've read elsewhere the previous testing stage was using COTS hololens hardware which is not weatherproof or GI proof, and this was the first test of the production hardware, or at least the first version of the future production hardware, and it worked at least WRT being waterproof etc.

Its still early days for that program.

Note that this is not exactly the militaries first heads up display or helmet mounted display. This is "ancient" tech for helicopters and some ground vehicles with remote weapons systems. The new part of this program is the hardware is going to be dirt cheap in comparison (although still about $30K each) and its not just going to be for vehicle drivers / pilots / gunners but for infantry soldiers.

Yep, people would cry if they realized how much the helmets those pilots have cost. Plus those have to be specifically fitted, these are definitely aimed at being a grab from the shelf kind of kit.

It also failed the 'does it make soldiers want to vomit' test.

> US soldiers using Microsoft Corp.’s new goggles in their latest field test suffered “mission-affecting physical impairments” including headaches, eyestrain and nausea, according to a summary of the exercise compiled by the Pentagon’s testing office.

> More than 80% of those who experienced discomfort had symptoms after less than three hours using the customized version of Microsoft’s HoloLens goggles, Nickolas Guertin, director of Operation Test and Evaluation, said in a summary for Army and Defense Department officials.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-13/microsoft...

Assuming the goggles actually give a big boost to soldiers, that will just become a training & screening issue.

Can't handle it? Guess you're not cutout to be in the AR unit. Just like not everyone is cut out to be a pilot or a navy diver.

I actually equate it more to if deployed they won't be a full time use thing, like most night/thermal optics. If used for short engagements it'll be much more palatable. Most service members I deployed with had issues with existing tech and varied lengths of time they could go before disorientation/eye fatigue set in.

I think the hoped for end result is that every soldier wears one of these. If only a fraction of soldiers wears one, the ones wearing one will have to keep the others informed about the things they see that those without can’t see (and that includes telling them such things as “don’t shoot them. They’re ours” or “don’t go there. It’s a mine field”).

That’s a huge efficiency loss, even ignoring that the enemy will start targeting those wearing one.

I'd be curious to see if it's persistent or goes away with use. AH-64 pilots have all sorts of issues starting out with the "monocle" (headaches, nausea, dizziness, etc) but it goes away eventually and the they consider the benefits to outweigh the cons.

3 hours of continuous use sounds pretty good. I could only take about 15 to 20 minutes of wearing the first widely deployed night vision googles (AN PVS-5).

The disorientation is crazy on those, I still remember my first time we had to use them driving. I'm pretty sure everyone puked within the hour.

Any article actually disclosing the counts of soldiers? This 80% number is useless on its own without knowing more about the overall population tested. Makes for a great scare headline though.

VR/AR motion sickness is going to be an issue for a while. There was some hope with stimulation of nerves via the neck, but I haven't heard much from that.

The hololens sets were also trying to do a lot with Nightvision/Thermal capabilities, which also have the same issues oddly enough. Anyone that's worn them for an extended period will tell you that they suffer the same issues as AR/VR.

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