What is this unit above the autopilot panel in Boeing test aircraft?

Question

I keep seeing this (more here and here) unit (maybe solely) in Boeing test airplane cockpits above the autopilot panel. Can someone tell me what is this and what the purpose of this big unit? Based on this video the center display tells you the time (UTC?) but cannot figure out the purpose of the 2 side displays. Not to mention having a clock in the cockpit does not require a huge unit like this I assume even in aircraft safety terms with being spark proof...).

Also would be interesting to know what is that small black panel to the right of the bottom FMC here. Looks some buttons have arrows, maybe camera control panel?

Answer 1

This is not an integrated unit. It was likely assembled by Boeing. The center display is an airborne IRIG precision time display made by the Datum Corporation, (look at the logo bottom left of the display) which merged with Symmetricom in 2002 so references are scarce. Here is a similar but different model which has a brief description of capability.

IRIG is used to communicate timecodes from precision references such as atomic clocks, in this case as transmitted by GPS satellites. The devices on either side are not marked, but they would be used by each test pilot to record timestamps as they begin and complete specific actions in their test plan. 'Address' on the devices would be used to specify the location of each timestamp and likely autoincrements after each use.

Answer 2

This is an educated guess. It is my assumption that it is a quick-access flight data recorder, cockpit voice recorder, or both. I believe this because of the two units that flank the clock. As @ocirocir stated in their comment, the extremely precise clock is for timing of events. Test pilots and flight engineers keep close documentation upon what happens during flight. With today's technology, it would stand to reason that some of this documentation could and should be done digitally, either as primary record or to supplement and cross-verify with the test flight crew.