EDTEC AIR Security Simulator Judy Leibow, Loret Gomez, Leo Clemente

Overview | Instructional Objective | Learners | Context | Scope | Object of Game | Design Details

Competing Products | Motivational Issues | Design Process | References

Overview

Ever since the tragedies of September 11, increase attention has been focused on airport security worldwide in order to make air travel safer and avoid a repeat of that type of event. One of the main areas of concern has been the airport screeners who are responsible for monitoring all passengers and luggage - both checked and carry-on - in order to identify dangerous or deadly objects and keep them from getting on the plane.

Although the federalization of airport screeners has resulted in an increase in both classroom and on-the-job training, recent reports have brought into question the effectiveness of this training. This simulation focuses on one aspect of the airport screeners' job - screening carry-on luggage. It is designed with two goals in mind: to provide training for new employees learning to recognize dangerous objects using the x-ray and other screening machines and, also, to provide training for existing employees in order to improve their expertise in quickly and effectively identifying restricted items.

At the beginning levels, the trainees will be asked to identify dangerous objects using a limited number of basic shapes, such as the outline of a gun or knife. Immediate feedback will be provided in the event of error to enhance the learning experience. As the screeners become more experienced, the number of different items, the perspectives in which they are presented (e.g. rotating an image 90 degrees so that it is viewed from the top instead of the side), and the number of items present in a piece of luggage will be randomly increased to more closely approximate real world situations. For a screener to be considered "expert" he or she must be able to consistently recognize the presence of the dangerous items while moving baggage through the x-ray machines at a pace which avoids unnecessary passenger delays.

Instructional Objective

This simulation is designed to teach airport baggage screeners to recognize the presence of dangerous or deadly objects in x-ray images of carry-on luggage. The simulation will be designed to accommodate various skill levels from the new trainee to the expert screener. The ultimate goal is have all airport baggage screeners operating at the expert level by being able to quickly and consistently identify prohibited items as seen in x-ray images even when those items are viewed from different perspectives or are surrounded by other, acceptable items.

Learners

The users of the simulation will have met the requirements set as part of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Screener Employment Eligibility Requirements. These include certain basic aptitudes and physical abilities as measured through a medical examination such as color perception, visual and aural acuity, physical coordination, and motor skills. Specifically, screeners must be able to:

• Distinguish objects on the screening equipment monitor at the appropriate imaging standard as specified by the Transportation Security Administration;
  Distinguish each color displayed on every type of screening equipment and explain what each color signifies;
• Hear and respond to the spoken voice and to audible alarms generated by screening equipment in an active checkpoint environment;
• Manipulate and handle baggage, containers, and other objects subject to security processing; and
• Conduct hand-metal detector and pat-down search procedures over an individual's entire body.

The simulation will challenge these learner skills during game play.

Context of Use

Ongoing training of screeners is an important part of maintaining screener skills. Our simulation would be part of the On-Line Learning Management System (LMS) being developed by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). This online training system will be made up of various training courses and is expected to begin the field testing phase later this year. In addition to operational testing which only measures screener performance at a particular time, the TSA is also planning to fully activate the Threat Image Projection (TIP) system. TIP places images of threat objects on x-ray screens during operation and records whether screeners identified the threat objects. By providing instances to test screener detection skills, the system provides on-the-job training and allows for immediate feedback. Our simulation layout would be based on this design with the addition of added interaction with virtual passengers and security personnel. It would reflect the types of conditions and distractions encountered during the screening process.

The simulation would be accessible both at work and at home. The workplace edition would allow users to work together in groups to share ideas during game play. A projector system would be used to display the game from the computer on to a large screen. Prior to the game the screeners would get an introduction of the actual airport scanning equipment. This would establish the relevance of the simulation during training. The simulation can also be played at home for added practice. At the conclusion of each game session, the items missed would be described. The techniques used for concealment would also be covered.

Using Swift 3D technology or Flash Action Script, threat objects would be presented in 3D to best display the many possible perspectives. The simulation would also allow modelers and designers to work with aviation agencies in different locations to update the threat object library and customize the virtual scenarios. 3DS, DXF, and other compatible 3D file formats can be added into the simulation. The expandability of the simulation would help create a changing experience that could reflect new threats reported in the industry. The duration of the simulation would have no time limit, allowing the learner to practice their skills in different levels of challenge. However, the learner would be required to keep up with the fast pace of impatient travelers. The screener would need to best prioritize their time balancing safety with efficiency. Using the downloadable Shockwave player, the interactive Flash content in the simulation would be accessible online from both PC and Macintosh platforms.

Scope

The simulation interface will emulate the electronic detection and imaging equipment used by airport screeners to scan baggage for restricted articles. Restricted articles include:

• Fireworks: Signal flares, sparklers or other explosives
• Flammable Liquids or Solids: Fuel, paints, gas torches (including micro-torches and torch lighters)
• Household Items: Bleach, spray starch, insecticides, drain cleaners and solvents
• Pressure Containers: Spray cans, butane, fuel, scuba tanks, propane tanks, CO2 cartridges, self-inflating rafts
• Weapons: Firearms, Ammunition, gunpowder, mace, tear-gas, or pepper spray
• Other Hazardous Materials: Dry ice, gasoline-powered tools, wet-cell batteries, camping equipment with fuel, radioactive materials (except limited quantities), poisons, infectious substances
• Miscellaneous Items: (These items may be checked, but NOT carried on-board.) Knives of any length (except rounded blade butter knives and plastic cutlery), cutting instruments of ANY kind including carpet knives, box cutters and folding or retractable blades regardless of length, ice picks, straight razors (safety/disposable razors ARE allowed), and scissors (metal, with pointed tips).

Of most concern is the detection of weapons, explosives, and drugs Airport security screeners' duties include providing frontline security and protection of travelers, airports and airplanes by identifying dangerous objects in baggage and preventing those objects from being transported onto an aircraft. Novice airport screeners must become proficient at recognizing patterns that lead to identification of illegal items.

The simulation will contain 3-dimensional views of restricted articles to facilitate the recognition of the object. In some cases where it is not obvious why the article is restricted, an explanation will also be included.

Variables to the simulation will include:

• Varying conditions (e.g. long lines at the airport) such that the airport screener must rapidly detect illegal objects
• Using different views of the same object (e.g. side view versus flat view of a knife)
• Hiding an inconsistent number of restricted articles in a bag (from none to many different objects)
• Adding new restricted articles to the luggage, not yet seen by the airport screener

Adjusting the number of variables to the simulation could be randomly assigned by the simulator as the novice screener masters the levels of complexity or they could be controlled by the user. At any time during the simulation, the screener will be allowed to halt the simulation and review the 3-dimensional drawing of the restricted article in question; however, this will effect the user's score (i.e., time).

Initially, users will be given feedback for incorrect answers. The feedback will contain an image of the luggage with the restricted article. The restricted article will be highlighted and a 3-dimensional image of the article will appear so that users can recognize the image regardless of the view.

To avoid a mundane simulation, new restricted articles will be inserted periodically. By adding new restricted articles, altering the speed of detection, changing the number of restricted articles in a bag, and using different views of the same object, novice airport screeners will increase their skills of detecting illegal objects.

Object of the Game

What's the game goal? What's the end state that players are striving for (e.g., to be the first to reach the Finish square, or to be the first to reach 100 points.)

Design Details

Sign-In Screen

Players begin the game at the sign-in screen where the users enter their names and passwords. By requiring users to sign in, the game can track both the users' progress through the training and how well they do in each of the various simulations. When a screener chooses a simulation, the game automatically starts the session at the same level the screener was at the last time he or she played.

Selecting Simulation

Once the users sign in, they will be able to choose from the four simulations represented by the icons at the bottom of the page. (Please note that for purposes of this assignment, only the "Scanning for Restricted Items" section of the simulation will be fully developed.)

Identifying Restricted Items

The beginning screener will start his or her training with the "Identifying Restricted Items" module. This initial level will serve to familiarize new screeners with some of the restricted items they are likely to encounter on the job, such as guns, knives, explosives, box cutters, and other similar objects. Screeners will be able to see what these objects look like when viewed through the scanner. Objects will be presented from various angles so that the screeners will be able to recognize them no matter how they are placed in the carry-on luggage. This part of the training can be reviewed at any time by choosing the "Identifying Restricted Items" icon from the main menu.

This section is also designed to help the screeners learn to use the simulation controls. When beginning any simulation, the player has the option of reviewing the instructions for the simulation, reviewing the keyboard controls, and viewing a brief demo to familiarize themselves with the particular game.

Below you will find the Keyboard Controls page for both the "Identifying Restricted Items" and "Scanning for Restricted Items" simulations. The controls are designed to replicate as closely as possible the actual controls used on airport screening machines. The red and green buttons at the bottom of the keyboard are used to control the images as they move across the screen - in the same way objects move through the scanner on the conveyer belt. The "Forward" and "Backward" buttons allow the screener to move the object forward and backward on the "conveyer belt." If the screener need additional time to review a particular item they can push the "Stop" button to stop the movement of the object through the scanner.

The white buttons in the middle of the keyboard are used for zooming in on a particular area of the screen once the image is stopped. The viewing area is divided into a 3 x 3 grid. Each button represents one square in the grid. Pushing one of the buttons allows the screener to zoom in on that section of the grid. Pushing it again returns the image to its normal size.

Finally, there is a mouse-like control built into the keyboard. For the purposes of the simulation, the mouse will be used to identify threat objects found in the luggage x-ray images. The screeners will use the left mouse button to highlight a weapon or other prohibited object. In addition to highlighting the suspected object, the left mouse button will also give screeners access to reference material consisting of images from the "Identifying Restricted Items" library. Right-clicking on the highlighted object will confirm that the screener has located the object.

There are also two additional controls for use during the simulation: "Pause" allows the screener to pause the game if necessary. "Exit" is used if the screener wants to quit the simulation entirely.

Scanning for Restricted Items - Level 1

The first level of this training involves placing weapons and other restricted objects in luggage. Screeners will have to locate prohibited items as seen in an x-ray view of a piece of luggage with the added distraction of the other types of items people normally carry in their luggage. This level will be relatively simple, with an object being seen in full profile in every piece of carry-on luggage. At this level, the screeners will receive immediate feedback, either praise if they correctly identify the weapon or hints and tips to avoid future mistakes if they are wrong. The emphasis here is on correctly detecting threat objects. Time is not a factor.

Scanning for Restricted Items - Level 2

This next level will be more difficult by having weapons appear randomly instead of in every piece of luggage. The screeners will continue to receive feedback as they play the game, either congratulating them for finding a weapon or offering help for mistakes. For example, if a screener misidentifies a radio as an explosive devise, he or she might receive feedback pointing out how to differentiate the two. If a screener misses an object entirely, he or she will receive feedback pointing out where the object was hidden in the suitcase. At this level, the game will also begin to keep score based on the number of items correctly identified (hits), the number of items missed (misses), and the number of items misidentified as threat objects (false alarms). The screener will need to meet a certain minimum score to be able to progress to the next level.

Scanning for Restricted Items - Level 3

This level is very similar to Level 2 except that the difficulty is increased by presenting the restricted items at different angles making them more difficult to find and identify. Again, a minimum score will be required to move on to the next level.

Scanning for Restricted Items - Level 4

This level, the highest in the game, is meant to most closely approximate the real-life working conditions of the airport screener. The only difference will be that the rate of incidences will be somewhat higher than could be expected on the job to give screeners more opportunities to find and react to restricted items. At this level, an additional factor is added: the time necessary to correctly identify the hidden threat objects. The score for this level includes a factor for the amount of time a screener took to scan luggage. The score a screener receives, therefore, rewards both speed and accuracy. So that the flow of the game is not interrupted, screeners will receive any feedback at the end of the game session.

This level of the simulation is useful not only for the initial training of airport screeners but also as a means of continuing to increase the skills of experience screeners. Studies have shown that expert screeners may need fewer visual clues than novices to recognize patterns that lead to identification of items (Institute for Simulation & Training Review, Spring 2002). The simulator can be used as a means to give novice screeners the practice they need to become more expert.

Final Screen

Once the screener has completed a simulation, a final screen will appear to give the screener his results. The screen will list the relevant statistics for the level:

Hits = the number of restricted items correctly identified
Misses = the number of restricted items not found
False alarms = the number of non-restricted items identified as restricted
Time (Level 4 only) = the amount of time necessary to complete the level
Total Score = the total score based on all of the above statistics

The total scores will be based on a Signal Detection Theory equation. Screeners will receive points for all correctly identified items and will lose points for misses and false alarms. Misses will lose more points than false alarms because of the serious consequences of missing an item. At Level 4, time will also be factored into the equation.

If a screener has scored high enough to move on to the next level, he or she will receive a congratulatory message on the final screen. If the score is too low, the message will encourage the screener to try again. Additional feedback on the types of errors and suggestions for avoiding these errors will also be provided. Either way, the screener's score will be compared to the score necessary to "master" a level to let him or her know how close his or her score is to the mastery level. He or she will also receive a listing of the top scores for that level to see how his or her score compares to other screeners at other airports.

Top Scores - Level 4

One way to motivate the screeners to spend more time practicing their skills is to appeal to their competitive nature. The faster and more accurately a screener works, the higher the score. For a screener to be considered "expert" he or she must be able to work quickly and accurately enough to obtain a certain score. As further motivation, the game will keep track of the highest scores for a particular airport or for all airports. Rewards or prizes will be given to the person with the highest score each month.

Competing Products

Airline Tycoon and Airline Tycoon Evolution deal more with the management issues with running an airline. Airline Tycoon Evolution requires that the player purchase and allocate resources to design the inside of the terminal. The financial aspects of the industry might help the player understand the reason for certain limitations in the workplace. The game characters are not realistic, but instead caricatures are used. You are able to build planes, purchase security equipment, and hire personnel. The ability to see how the airports are managed behind the scenes could be incorporated into the simulation. This would provide the learner with some background information on the management structure and possible support.

Airport Tycoon 3 has the added realism and 3D graphics, but the focus is mostly on building the environment around the airport, not the inside of the terminal. Our simulation would take careful consideration of the environment both inside and outside the security inspection areas. With information on the layout design of the environment, the learner will be able to determine where other security personnel are located. Effective security measures will depend on working as a team to stop the infiltration of organized terrorists and other illegal activities.

Can You Spot the Threats is an interactive flash simulator on MSNBC that recreates the screening process. It lets you scan the luggage and bags for explosives, guns or knives. You have the ability to stop the conveyor and analyze the items more closely. When you stop, you can hear passengers complaining and being rude. You can also switch from traditional black and white X-ray to color backscatter X-ray scanning to be able to differentiate between organic material and explosives. Our simulation would focus on this part of the screening process. In addition, it would allow the player to follow through on inspection procedures and look inside suspicious luggage. Other security precautions would also be taken to insure successful detection. Although the game begins by showing you potential threat objects, it doesn't explain what they are. Our simulator would describe and show these objects from different angles as seen from both types of X-ray scanning. It would also explain how these threat objects can be disguised by non-threat objects.

Motivational Issues

Describe how the game engages the learner. How does it make use of curiosity, challenge, control, fantasy, competition, cooperation, etc.? (No one game will do all of these things, so focus on the particular strengths of this particular game.) Make specific reference to the theoretical readings associated with this course.

Design Process

Describe the process you went through in putting the game together. What were your first thoughts? How did you enhance your ideas? What ideas did you consider and reject (and why?). How did you gather background information? What did you do to see if there are similar games out there? What did you do to get feedback on the idea? How did you flesh out the game to the point of having a playable prototype? How did you gather feedback from that? What lessons did you learn from this that you'll carry to your next game design project?

References

What did you look at to inform your design of the game?

Books & Journals

• Book1 (Use APA format, except for the negative indent of the first line)
• Book2
• etc.

Electronic

• http://www.dot.gov/affairs/tsarequire.htm
• http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d031173.pdf
• http://www.strategyfirst.com/en/games/
• http://www.airporttycoon3.com/
• http://www.msnbc.com/modules/airport_security/screener/