About HRED
The Human Research and Engineering Directorate (HRED) is ARL’s principal center for research and development directed toward optimizing Soldier performance and human-autonomy teaming. Research within HRED focuses on how to improve Soldier performance in a dynamic and changing battlefield. As technology and autonomous systems become an increasingly integral part of Soldier teams, it is critical to determine how these systems can work with and be adapted to the Soldier and their capabilities. Autonomous systems must be able to be integrated into Soldier teams and move from tools to teammates. Critical to this is an understanding of how humans and human teams perform and change in dynamic environments and situations. HRED leverages human-robot interaction, human-informed machine learning, human cognition and adaptive teaming to improve human-autonomy teaming for future Army teams.
The Directorate is recognized by the National Science Foundation (NSF) as a Center of Excellence in Human Engineering, Ergonomics, and Experimental Psychology. It conducts a collaborative research program with NSF-supported university faculty and their graduate students. In addition, the HRED participates in the extensive Department of Defense University Initiative Program.
The majority of the Directorate’s research facilities are located at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. Additionally, field elements are maintained at 20 locations in the continental US.
Directorate Program Representative
Dr. Piotr Franaszczuk
Human Research and Engineering Directorate
DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory