Battlespace Visualization
The battlefield has become modernized to the extent that communications technology is now considered a key component of military success. Combat soldiers who can understand surrounding situations and react quickly have an advantage over the enemy. This entails having real-time complete Situational Awareness (SA). At all times, soldiers need to know where they are, who their targets are, and where those targets are located. To achieve this, the military must leverage the success of commercial communications technologies to deliver “battlefield visualization.”
The recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan showed that enemy forces using simple cell phones were able to “level the battlefield” with friendly forces that used ruggedized military communications gear. Military mobile communication networks and video networking technologies must evolve to keep up with the innovations occurring in the commercial space.
Today’s soldiers are already very familiar with the use of smartphones and tablets to view YouTube and other video content, using cutting-edge Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks. In contrast, today’s military wireless video communication technologies are slower, unwieldy and inefficient. LTE offers soldiers a clear advantage when it comes to two-way communications. With a lower latency, faster speeds, and a more efficient architecture, LTE offers a sizeable and cost-effective improvement over the latest wireless military network technologies.
In conjunction with mobile LTE communications and commercial handheld devices, advances in commercial video media processing capabilities can deliver additional benefits for military communications. Media processing enables the delivery of rich media services, such as video conferencing, mixing in security camera feeds and overlaying maps and text.
The combination of mobile LTE technologies, commercial mobile device and tablet technologies, combined with video media processing and mixing capabilities, will deliver enhanced battlefield visualization that can provide a tactical advantage for troops over the enemy.
Today’s military has ever-improving communication technologies and standards. But as shown in Figure 1, even today’s 3G mobile networking technologies deliver superior mobile bandwidth, when compared to the once promising Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) military communications initiative. While 3G has delivered on one-way streaming video applications (e.g. watching a YouTube clip on a 3G smartphone), LTE offers not only increased bandwidth, but also the added advantage of lower latency, making real-time, two-way mobile video communications an economic reality.
LTE networks, with the latest broadband technology (LTE-Advanced), can deliver up to 1 Gbps of data, far surpassing other mobile communication networks and making it an ideal network to deploy at the tactical edge of combat areas. Using LTE-ready field hardware and software solutions, soldiers can now enhance their SA with real-time information from their commanders, including video, pictures, and data. When troops can see exactly what their commanders are directing them toward, they are safer and better equipped to perform as a highly-functioning unit.
Two key functional groupings exist within an LTE network: the Radio Access Network (RAN) eNodeB, which handles the air interface and conversion to a wired network; and the Evolved Packet Core (EPC), which is responsible for the call routing and switching. The deployment location of these LTE functional blocks depends on the military application requirements and communication priorities. The following image highlights two deployment models that address the varying requirements of Warfighters.
In the scenario on the left, the eNodeB resides on the UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle), while the EPC core resides on a centralized platform at the command center. This scenario is ideal when communications between soldiers and the command center is critical. A single EPC can manage many eNodeB nodes. Hence, this model provides improved scalability for hundreds of troops in the field.
The scenario on the right showcases how the eNodeB and the EPC core could both be hosted inside a UAV. This delivers a complete LTE communication network on the UAV. Combining the eNodeB with the EPC achieves impressive low-latency communication between soldiers, as it eliminates latency associated with the satellite link. However, this scenario supports a smaller number of soldiers or video surveillance endpoints.
Regardless of the desired architecture and communication requirements, the examples discussed here could easily run on a small-form-factor Intel® multi-core compute platform, which is comparable to the size of a shoebox, facilitating compliance with the size, weight and power (SWaP) requirements of today’s UAV military equipment.
there are many ways for LTE architecture and video conferencing to be deployed in a military environment. The LTE eNodeB and EPC could be deployed for a Hummer vehicle in the field, or alternatively, in a UAV overhead. Streaming video feeds from various individuals and from UAV cameras are received for each endpoint device, and then mixed together in the MRF and optimized for each soldier’s terminal constraints and information requirements. For example, a dismounted soldier can utilize a ruggedized tablet to view a multi-plane display of various decision makers, other infantry, video feed from maps and UAV cameras. This information can also be transported via satellite to Navy ships and regional command centers. Another example, a soldier in the field can use a monocle video display rendered from a small-form-factor Intel processor he carries on his back, providing increased Situational Awareness from his commanders.
The EPC network includes wireless backhaul via satellites or other means to the centralized command center, or to a navy ship in regional command centers.
The key building block technologies addressed so far—eNodeB, EPC core and the media processing—are largely commercially-available software modules. A battlefield video conferencing application can be customized from commercially available solutions to meet military information and security requirements. Together, these software components can be integrated with the appropriate “right-sized” Intel multi-core hardware platform. For example, AdvancedTCA (ATCA) provides a large-capacity, large-scale platform for a Navy ship or command center. In contrast, a small ATCA chassis or rackmount server can be scaled for Hummer command vehicles, while small COM Express platforms can fit in an infantry backpack or inside a UAV.
Radisys delivers integrated platforms that combine the hardware platform, software and services to deliver a complete battlefield visualization solution. Equipment manufacturers can develop military communications solutions using Radisys’ ruggedized products offered in a variety of platform architectures and form factors including ATCA, COM Express and rackmount servers (i.e. network appliances). Intel processors are used across the board, enabling developers to leverage a common code base, delivering scalability across the hardware platforms.
Aerospace and Defence customers expect long product life cycles. Radisys’ hardware platforms leverage Intel-embedded silicon that typically has a life cycle of seven years. Radisys has developed the processors to support products for years, even after the silicon goes end-of-life.
A leader in commercial LTE, conferencing, and COTS platform products and solutions, Radisys provides the foundation for an improved and economical capability to deliver battlefield visualization.
