Visualizing Probability of Detection to Aid Sonar Operator Performance

This study tested whether the display of rings indicating the probability of target detection would improve human performance on a simulated active sonar detection task. Participants viewed a series of simulated sonar returns and decided whether a target was present or not. Participants performed the task both with and without uncertainty range rings that indicated 90% and 10% detectability ranges. The probability of detection rings did not improve the overall ability of participants to distinguish targets from noise, but did appear to influence response bias and spatial attention. These results suggest that displaying probability of detection may not be an effective way of improving the performance of sonar system operators.