Apparatus and method for monitoring and detecting fault condition

An apparatus for improving an outcome of a simulated task within a training program involving a plurality of individuals performing one or more execution components, each of said execution components involving one or more objects, each of said objects characterized by one or more attributes including a boundary or a size or an initial position or orientation, the apparatus comprising:

• a portable programmable switching device having a water-resistant housing with at least four input terminals and at least four output terminals, said device having circuitry including a microprocessor, one or more sensing modules, and a transmitter/receiver module;
• wherein the at least four input terminals are configured to receive respective input signals corresponding to four different switched input conditions, and wherein the at least four output terminals are configured to provide respective switched or voltage output conditions such that the switching device is configured to provide sixteen different machine states at a given time and to remember previous machine states;
• wherein each of the at least four output terminals is configured to selectively provide a voltage output corresponding to one of:
• (i) a voltage input, or (ii) a switched output;
• said switching device programmed to receive and interpret analog or digital signals generated by one or more sensors positioned to sense when the boundary of one of said objects is crossed or when the initial position, size, or orientation of one of said objects is altered;
• said switching device programmed to poll, upon startup of an execution component, at least one of the one or more sensors to determine an operational status of the at least one sensor before the simulated task is performed;
• said switching device programmed to transmit a signal to one or more output devices in response to interpreting the analog or digital signals generated by one or more sensors;
• said switching device programmed to operate in one of at least two operational modes, wherein the at least two operational modes comprise:
• a remote operating mode where an output device emits an alert in response to the transmitted signal generated from a facilitator-initiated radio signal received by the transmitter/receiver module while the plurality of individuals perform the execution component, and
• a tilt mode where an output device emits an alert in response to a change in orientation of said switching device detected after an initial calibration period by scanning an accelerometer angle in 3.5-degree increments, storing a first scanned accelerometer angle as an initial angle, scanning a second accelerometer angle, and setting a voltage output high for 10 seconds when the second accelerometer angle differs from the initial angle;
• wherein each of said alerts is recorded on said switching device in real time to generate a list of alerts for each simulation;
• wherein said operational mode of said switching device is determined based on said execution component and is switchable by a radio transmitter fob;
• wherein said change in orientation of said switching device is detected by said one or more sensing modules.