The Afghan Village demonstrator was originally requested to provide an interactive resource for a new Counter-IED course to be hosted at the IED Disposal Wing of DEMSS. The project also demonstrated how quickly such a resource could be developed by the HIT Team – in less than four weeks from the time of the original request. The demonstrator was designed to be used as a pre-deployment awareness-training tool, including many features
– ground signs, building anomalies, threat indicators, unusual objects and the like – that might be experienced or observed whilst on a routine patrol in Afghanistan. One of the key driving features behind the level of fidelity specified for this demonstrator was the need for realistic and variable daylighting. When correctly implemented, realistic lighting and shadowing effects can help render crucial IED cues – command wires, disturbed earth, small markers – almost invisible, It is often these near-invisible markers that can make the difference between a safe patrol and one at risk of casualties from IED explosions.