TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Information Systems

RESTRICTION ON PERFORMANCE BY FOREIGN CITIZENS (i.e., those holding non-U.S. Passports): This topic is "ITAR Restricted." The information and materials provided pursuant to or resulting from this topic are restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), 22 CFR Parts 120 - 130, which control the export of defense-related material and services, including the export of sensitive technical data. Foreign Citizens may perform work under an award resulting from this topic only if they hold the "Permanent Resident Card", or are designated as "Protected Individuals" as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3). If a proposal for this topic contains participation by a foreign citizen who is not in one of the above two categories, the proposal will be rejected.

OBJECTIVE: Develop innovative technologies for modeling and simulation of interface transactions among naval platform combat system elements.

DESCRIPTION: Combat systems are made up of a diverse mix of sensors, weapons, control systems, and display subsystems operating in a federated fashion. These federated subsystems may not be time-synchronized in adoption of new computing environments, improved war-fighting capabilities, data communications models, and software architectures at varying advanced capability build and capability insertion schedules. This creates a dynamic and challenging testing and integration environment for each constituent subsystem by having to adopt multiple versions of specific interfaces in order to verify the required interoperability. Typically, subsystems maintain high fidelity synthetic simulations for their sensor level interfaces; however, simulations of control system and weapon system interfaces for test, certification and training are of limited fidelity, allowing for syntax and semantic mismatches.

Innovative technologies are required to ensure interface simulations are sufficient to test both the syntax as well as semantics of a given interface in order to minimize costly and time-consuming issues during formal combat system integration and certification. Promising approaches may include parallel and distributed simulation techniques that enable data synchronization, and provide automated event schedule management and randomized controls. Innovative designs should be flexible to minimize the impact of interface changes and additions to the overall fidelity of the simulation capability. The desired simulation capability will support event modeling based upon user-defined reactive/adaptive algorithms and support synchronization with other higher level simulations.

PHASE I: Identify and define timing relationships and data models to be addressed in combat system interface simulators. Establish a model which enables automated interface message sequencing, and provides latency control. Provide an assessment of how the recommended simulation approach model will accurately model the syntax and semantics of combat system interfaces.

PHASE II: Develop a prototype combat system simulator that exploits reactive/adaptive interface techniques. The prototype should model timing relationships defined in Phase I, and provide innovative time saving automation methods that control interface testing. Perform appropriate limited-scale experiments to demonstrate product feasibility.

PHASE III: Develop a production simulation capability of federated peer combat subsystems for the AN/SQQ-89. Deploy the simulation system to support AN/SQQ-89 development, testing and certification. Design and develop interfaces with existing AN/SQQ89 training systems, and integrate as part of AN/SQQ-89 shipboard systems to support embedded shipboard training

PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL/DUAL-USE APPLICATIONS: Modeling and simulation of systems with non-deterministic timing characteristics can be applied to web service interfaces used in many commercial transactions, such as banking.

REFERENCES:
1. ACM Transactions on Modeling and Computer Simulation (TOMACS), George F. Riley et al

2. Using Ontologies to Support Interoperability in Federated Simulation, Tarun Rathnam

3. Changing Focus on Interoperability in Information Systems: From System, Syntax, Structure to Semantics, Amit P. Sheth

KEYWORDS: Modeling; Simulation; Training; Testing; Software Architecture; Transactions; Interfaces

** TOPIC AUTHOR (TPOC) **

DoD Notice:   Between November 10 and December 12, 2010, you may talk directly with the Topic Authors to ask technical questions about the topics. Their contact information is listed above. For reasons of competitive fairness, direct communication between proposers and topic authors is not allowed starting December 13, 2011, when DoD begins accepting proposals for this solicitation.

However, proposers may still submit written questions about solicitation topics through the DoD's SBIR/STTR Interactive Topic Information System (SITIS), in which the questioner and respondent remain anonymous and all questions and answers are posted electronically for general viewing until the solicitation closes. All proposers are advised to monitor SITIS (11.1 Q&A) during the solicitation period for questions and answers, and other significant information, relevant to the SBIR 11.1 topic under which they are proposing.

If you have general questions about DoD SBIR program, please contact the DoD SBIR Help Desk at (866) 724-7457 or email weblink.