Adaptive Gravitational Gossip in Monitoring the Joint Battlespace Infosphere

Future USAF operations will be heavily dependent on having the right information at the right time, and Joint Battlespace Infospheres (JBIs) are poised to fill that role. To do this, JBIs must be ubiquitous -- always accessible, secure and responsive. Of all the literature written regarding JBIs, the most important problem to solve in order to make JBIs work in mobile scenarios are scalability, reliability and adaptability to changing battlefield conditions. This paper explores the use of SBCast, a novel adaptive probabilistic protocol and a delivery mechanism for JBI updates and as a possible solution towards guaranteeing these qualities. It documents tests of SBCast within a simulation environment configured with parameters based on actual military field operations. From these tests, the paper examines SBCast as an enhancer to JBI\u27s ability for overcoming transient network failures while managing different classes of subscribers by available bandwidth and priorities. By using the feedback from SBCast as a middleware layer controller, JBIs would be able to dial up traffic for parts of the network and dial down traffic in others based on dynamic changes in network congestion or traffic demands

Implementing an Information Retrieval and Visualization Framework for Heterogeneous Data Types

In today\u27s information focused world, there is no lack of entities focused on information gathering. However, there is still a widespread epidemic of information starvation in the Department of Defense (DoD). This starvation is attributed to the lack of interoperability between information gatherers and information consumers. To alleviate this problem, the DoD has put forth a vision of a Joint Battlespace Infosphere (JBI). This research proposes a framework for sharing and finding resources in a JBI. The framework uses an extensible metadata specification, agent technology, and the Control of Agent Based Systems (CoABS). It provides several tools for publication and subscription of resources, including a visual query wizard and a visualization of the results. This framework and tools provide visual query capability for the heterogeneous resources within the JBI

Extended MAGTF operations - tactical chat

Naval Research Program ProjectThe relatively new MV-22 Osprey has significantly extended the range Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) forces can deploy under the cover of a single period of darkness. Unfortunately, this extended range has strained the effectiveness and reliability of the MAGTF's communications capabilities. The purpose of this thesis is to provide a proof of concept for an economical, easily manufactured, reliable, low bandwidth, communications system capable of passing data over hundreds of kilometers through vertical terrain. In the course of this study, a successful communications system is created, utilizing COTS radios and hardware to circumvent vertical obstructions. Digital text messages are successfully transmitted through an analog radio signal over a distance of 170 miles. The transmissions pass through a relay radio attached to a high-altitude balloon. The system proves sufficiently speedy and reliable despite utilizing disparate end-point radios. This thesis successfully demonstrates the potential this system has to extend United States Marine Corps communications. Further research should focus on the system's capability over a larger range and the effects of system configuration settings on transmission speed and reliability.http://archive.org/details/extendedmagtfope1094553052Lieutenant, United States Coast GuardApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

A JBI Information Object Engineering Environment Utilizing Metadata Fragments for Refining Searches on Semantically-Related Object Types

The Joint Battlespace Infosphere (JBI) architecture defines the Information Object (IO) as its basic unit of data. This research proposes an IO engineering methodology that will introduce componentized IO type development. This enhancement will improve the ability of JBI users to create and store IO type schemas, and query and subscribe to information objects, which may be semantically related by their inclusion of common metadata elements. Several parallel efforts are being explored to enable efficient storage and retrieval of IOs. Utilizing relational database access methods, applying a component-based IO type development concept, and exploiting XML inclusion mechanisms, this research improves the means by which a JBI can deliver related IO types to subscribers from a single query or subscription. The proposal of this new IO type architecture also integrates IO type versioning, type coercion, and namespacing standards into the methodology. The combined proposed framework provides a better means by which a JBI can deliver the right information to the right users at the right time

A Flexible Framework for Collaborative Visualization Applications Using Java Spaces

The complexity of modern tasks is rising along with the level of technology. Two techniques commonly used to deal with complexity are collaboration and information visualization. Recently, computer networks have arisen as a powerful means of collaboration, and many new technologies are being developed to better utilize them. Among the newer, more promising of these technologies is Sun Microsystems\u27 JavaSpaces ™, a high-level network programming API. This thesis describes a tool for developing collaborative visualization software using JavaSpaces-an application framework and accompanying toolkit. In addition to a detailed description of the framework, the thesis also describes an application implemented using the framework, discusses the benefits of development under the framework, evaluates the performance of JavaSpaces in the context of the framework, and addresses the issue of network bandwidth limitations, which are a concern when developing visualizations that deal with large data sets

A Process for Vectoring Offensive Information Warfare as a Primary Weapon Option within the United States Air Force

Consistently and comprehensively using Information Operations (IO) capabilities as primary weapon option within the Air Force is the next step to operationalizing IO within the Air Force. Doctrine and official guidance has set the variables of mission and concepts of operations, organizational structure, and IW players in place. The missing variable to operationalizing IO and probably the most difficult is the \u27how\u27 or process of the equation. This research will introduce a useable process that can be incorporated within the Air Force for integrating offensive IW activities into the current and given environment. The process is the basis for further decomposition and identification of target aim points. In addition, its use of effect points should aid in focusing long-range, deliberate, and crisis action planning on the possible desired effects on an adversary. The research sets the stage by briefly defining the first three variables; organization, mission, and players in which AF IW is practiced and the inherent deliverables required. It will then introduce a view and decomposition of the information battlespace as the basis for offensive IW activities where affecting the information factors in order to induce a desired decision to achieve desired effects is the overall goal

UML Assisted Visual Debugging for Distributed Systems

The DOD is developing a Joint Battlespace Infosphere, linking a large number of data sources and user applications. To assist in this process, debugging and analysis tools are required. Software debugging is an extremely difficult cognitive process requiring comprehension of the overall application behavior, along with detailed understanding of specific application components. This is further complicated with distributed systems by the addition of other programs, their large size and synchronization issues. Typical debuggers provide inadequate support for this process, focusing primarily on the details accessible through source code. To overcome this deficiency, this research links the dynamic program execution state to a Unified Modeling Language (UML) class diagram that is reverse-engineered from data accessed within the Java Platform Debug Architecture. This research uses focus + context, graph layout, and color encoding techniques to enhance the standard UML diagram. These techniques organize and present objects and events in a manner that facilitates analysis of system behavior. High-level abstractions commonly used in system design support debugging while maintaining access to low-level details with an interactive display. The user is also able to monitor the control flow through highlighting of the relevant object and method in the display

A Bayesian Abduction Model For Sensemaking

This research develops a Bayesian Abduction Model for Sensemaking Support (BAMSS) for information fusion in sensemaking tasks. Two methods are investigated. The first is the classical Bayesian information fusion with belief updating (using Bayesian clustering algorithm) and abductive inference. The second method uses a Genetic Algorithm (BAMSS-GA) to search for the k-best most probable explanation (MPE) in the network. Using various data from recent Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, experimental simulations were conducted to compare the methods using posterior probability values which can be used to give insightful information for prospective sensemaking. The inference results demonstrate the utility of BAMSS as a computational model for sensemaking. The major results obtained are: (1) The inference results from BAMSS-GA gave average posterior probabilities that were 103 better than those produced by BAMSS; (2) BAMSS-GA gave more consistent posterior probabilities as measured by variances; and (3) BAMSS was able to give an MPE while BAMSS-GA was able to identify the optimal values for kMPEs. In the experiments, out of 20 MPEs generated by BAMSS, BAMSS-GA was able to identify 7 plausible network solutions resulting in less amount of information needed for sensemaking and reducing the inference search space by 7/20 (35%). The results reveal that GA can be used successfully in Bayesian information fusion as a search technique to identify those significant posterior probabilities useful for sensemaking. BAMSS-GA was also more robust in overcoming the problem of bounded search that is a constraint to Bayesian clustering and inference state space in BAMSS

Air Force Institute of Technology Research Report 2001

This report summarizes the research activities of the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management. It describes research interests and faculty expertise; lists student theses/dissertations; identifies research sponsors and contributions; and outlines the procedures for contacting the school. Included in the report are: faculty publications, conference presentations, consultations, and funded research projects. Research was conducted in the areas of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electro-Optics, Computer Engineering and Computer Science, Systems and Engineering Management, Operational Sciences, and Engineering Physics