Enhancing ISR for

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Enhancing ISR for Unmanned Aircraft
Systems October 2009
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Introductions

• Matt Malek
  Director, Strategic Operations
• Mike Bruchanski
  Business Development Manager

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Mission

• Why are we here?
• Optimize the air system
• Improve mission effectiveness
• Enhance situational awareness
• How can AGI software support your needs?

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AGI basics

• COTS software for analysis and visualization
• Models object in space over time
• Analyze and understand relationships
• Constrain relationships

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Aircraft and ISR focus
Global Navigation Satellite Systems
Real-Time Data Feeds
Terrain Cityscape Modeling
Antenna Modeling
Imagery Map Data
Radar Analysis
Sensor Modeling
Constraints for Visibility
Spacecraft Design Operation
Communications Link Analysis
Weather Atmospheric Effects
System Performance Analysis
Ground Facility Modeling
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Differentiators and benefits

• Right answers, Right now
• Open architecture
• Scalable
• Lower cost
• Reduces risk
• Increase efficiency

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Flexible and scalable
Components
Desktop
Engine
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AGI software capabilities implemented
U.S. Marines
U.S. Air Force
AMMP
U.S. DoD
Coalition Warrior
U.S. Navy
HS - 5
U.S. Army
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AGI software capabilities
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Engineering and analysis
ISR Planning
Operations
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Foundation of capabilities

• Accurate visualization
• Position and time
• 3D visualization
• Geometry engine
• Model systems
• Interaction between multiple objects

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Engineering and analysisISR planning
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UAS capabilities

• Intervisibility (line of sight)
• Route modeling
• Payload analysis (sensors)
• Communication analysis
• Urban environments

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Case study U.S. Navy

• Benefits
• Expanded analysis capabilities
• Reduced analysis time
• Significant cost savings

• Background
• US Navy Integrated Battlespace Arena Lab needed
  ISR mission planning tool
• Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS)
  program
• Above and beyond typical mission planning
  software
• Solution
• Purchase AGI desktop software to validate UAS
  systems
• Modeled various UAS platforms and payloads in a
  single integrated environment

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Intervisibility line of sight
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Intervisibility - line of sight

• What can my UAS see?
• Position and time
• Consider constraints
• Geometry
• Time
• Terrain/Body Masking
• Lighting
• Multiple objects in chain
• Report, display and graph data

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Intervisibility - line of sight

• Application highlights
• Access between UAS and ground target
• Report and graph data
• Create body mask for aircraft
• Comparing potential locations for LOS antenna
  placement

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Intervisibility - line of sight

• Benefits
• Visualize complex analysis
• Validated and verified line of sight algorithm
• Model real world constraints
• Evaluate system design reducing or eliminating
  the need for test flights

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Route modeling
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Route modeling

• Aircraft performance
• Six degree of freedom modeler
• Based on aircraft performance
• Define basic values
• Airspeeds
• Accelerations
• Climb/decent rates
• Fuel flow
• Landing/take off distances
• Vertical or standard take off
• Change performance based on aircraft set up

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Route modeling

• Aircraft performance
• Create aircraft flight plan
• Procedures
• Waypoint to waypoint
• Holding patterns
• Takeoff/Landing
• Terrain following
• Waypoints
• Runways
• Navaids
• Other objects
• 3D route editing
• Import external models

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Route modeling

• Application Highlights
• Edit route in 3D
• Create new waypoints
• Add holding pattern
• View restricted airspace and threat areas
• Calculate and display restricted area intrusions
• Import existing route

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Route modeling

• Benefits
• Validated and verified flight model
• Adaptable to any aircraft
• Flexible route editing
• Open architecture import routes

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Payload performance
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Payload performance

• Sensor modeling
• Model field of view or field of regard
• Placed on any point of UAS
• Body masking
• Angle constraints
• Pointing information
• Compare sensor performance
• Calculate sensor swath
• Customize attributes with plug-ins

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Payload performance

• Coverage Modeling
• Analyze multi-asset interactions
• Across region
• Along a route
• Instantaneous or cumulative
• Apply constraints for higher-fidelity modeling
• Generate quality figures of merit
• Standard AGI calculations
• Plug-in capabilities
• Calculate satisfaction stats for each figure of
  merit

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Payload performance

• Application highlights
• Define search region
• Import aircraft routes
• Model sensor zoom levels
• Range and time coverage calculations
• NIIRS Plug-in coverage calculations
• View satisfaction report

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Payload performance

• Benefits
• Evaluate multiple sensors in a controlled
  environment
• Develop concept of operations for sensor use
• Combine with other capabilities for full ISR
  planning support

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Case Study - U.S. Marines

• Benefits
• Expanded analysis capabilities
• Reduced analysis time
• Significant cost savings

• Background
• United States Marine Corps (USMC) needed evaluate
  different UASs sensors
• Needed a quick assessment
• Solution
• Purchased AGI software
• Assess UAS systems and candidate sensors
• Determine communication link capabilities
• Compared electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR)
  sensors

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Communication analysis
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Communication analysis

• Communication system modeling
• Define transmitter and receiver
• Set power, frequency and modulation type
• Specify antenna
• Dynamic link performance
• Add to object
• Inherit object properties
• Physical environment
• Terrain masking and reflection
• Atmospheric properties
• Weather
• Sun effects

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Communication analysis

• Communication systems modeling
• Interference effects
• Friendly and enemy
• Calculate jamming capabilities
• Create reports and graphs
• Link budget
• View losses
• Similar capabilities for radar

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Communication analysis

• Model urban environments
• Multipath diffraction model
• Considers actual geometry of surrounding
  buildings
• Higher fidelity and greatly reduced computational
  times
• Multiple applications including
• Tactical mobile communications
• Net-centric ISR architectures
• Analysis of urban tactics

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Communication analysis

• Application Highlights
• Import urban terrain
• Develop building mask
• Model line of sight link
• Gain pattern visualization
• Received power for aircraft route
• Analysis of urban area
• Multipath calculations

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Communication analysis

• Benefits
• Better prediction of operational performance
• Better understanding of mission impact
• Model system within a system
• Consider complex constraints
• Adjust mission based on constraints

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Case study Global defense contractor

• Benefits
• Saved millions of US dollars by reducing the
  number of flight tests
• Delivered system on time, earning additional
  award fees

• Background
• Evaluating communication systems for airborne
  platforms
• Specifically concerned with antenna coverage, due
  to impacts from aircraft keel
• Solution
• Used AGI software to model as installed antenna
  patterns
• Allowed customer to understand the coverage and
  blockage of various flight paths reducing the
  number flight tests

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Development Software forISR Planning and
Operations
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ISR planning and operations

• Rapid development
• ISR optimization
• 3D visualization and situational awareness
• Sensor visualization
• Imagery searching and retrieval

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Rapid development
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Software to meet your needs

• COTS development tools
• Out-of-the-box API
• Develop and deploy solutions
• Mission operations
• Enterprise integration
• Thin or thick clients
• Server desktop applications
• Web Services
• Mission specific workflows
• Create new applications
• Embed into existing applications

• COTS applications
• Out-of-the-box GUI
• Cross-functional tool
• System, platform, payload design
• Systems engineering
• Mission analysis
• Real-time analysis
• Unrestricted workflows
• Integrated map and globe
• Integrated graphs and reports

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Develop or extend

• Create new applications

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Develop or extend

• Extend existing applications

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Rapid development

• Move from idea to application at the speed of
  battle
• Leverage AGI technology
• Avoid deployment costs and development risk
• Faster delivery

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Case study U.S. Government

• Benefits
• Mission planning from 2 days to 2 hours
• Dynamic replanning from hours to minutes
• Plan more missions
• Improved data collection
• Significant cost savings

• Background
• Classified US DoD customer
• Need to improve sensor and aircraft mission
  planning
• Customer needed faster delivery
• Solution
• Used COTS development software and delivered a
  capability in 90 days

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Case study Software developer

• Background
• Flight system testing for UAVs challenging
• Telemetry loss or interruption the mission may
  fail
• Solution
• RT Logic selects AGI software to complement its
  Telemetrix product line
• Assessed coverage and blockage of various flight
  paths reducing the number flight tests

• Benefits
• Improved time to market
• Reduced development costs
• Simplified analysis

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ISR optimization
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Develop ISR plan

• Where should I fly my UAV and when?
• Typical planning problem
• What do you want to see?
• When do you want to see it?
• Where is it located?
• What are the constraints?
• Complicated by real world issues
• Large target deck with different constraints
• Complicated geometry
• Dynamic replanning

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Develop an ISR plan

• Target scheduling
• Ordering of objectives
• Airspace navigation
• Avoiding no-fly zones
• Aircraft routing
• Vehicle characteristics

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Develop an ISR plan

• Application Highlights
• Import geometry
• Specify targets
• Re-task aircraft
• Implementation of AGI Components
• Dynamic Geometry Library
• Terrain Analysis Library
• Routing Library

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3D visualization and situational awareness
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Improve your situational awareness

• Effectively present decision aids
• 2D and 3D view
• Terrain and imagery
• Airspaces and regions
• Deconfliction
• Incorporate many real time feeds
• Cursor on target
• Blue Force Tracking
• Link 16
• Collaborate and annotate
• Manage handovers
• Mark targets

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Sensor visualization
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Effectively employ your sensor

• Remove the soda straw (limited view)
• Video provides narrow view
• No location context
• Limited coverage awareness
• Reporting near real-time data
• Aircraft and sensor position
• Project video on terrain and imagery
• Video position is often incorrect
• Correct metadata
• Software only solution

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Effectively employ your sensor

• Use historical imagery to correct metadata

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Effectively employ your sensor

• Application Highlights
• Real time data showing aircraft and sensor
  position
• Project the image to fill the sensor
• Turn on correction
• Add mosaicing

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Effectively employ your sensor

• Benefits
• Improved situational awareness
• Faster analysis
• Implementation of AGI Components
• Dynamic Geometry Library
• Terrain Analysis Library
• Insight3D
• Video on Terrain

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Case Study U.S. DoD

• Benefits
• Reduced analysis time
• More effective missions
• Expanded dynamic replanning capabilities

• Background
• Situational awareness needed for multiple UAVs
• When do assets enter areas of interest
• Solution
• AGI software ingests key data, performs analysis
  and then sends alerts when events or points of
  interest are identified

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Exploit the surveillance
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Exploit the surveillance

• What do I do with all of this imagery?
• Post-mission video and metadata
• Review flight data
• Review video data
• Reconstruction of image collection
• Where was the asset?
• Where was the sensor pointed?
• Were there any other assets that may better
  support the mission?

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Exploit the surveillance

• Traditional Image Request
• Based on geography
• Date
• Scale of image

• AGI Calculated Information
• Sun position
• Azimuth and elevation angle constraints
• Image quality estimation
• Other available assets

• Result
• Quicker image retrieval
• More accurate image(s) returned based on request

Image Archive
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Exploit the surveillance

• Application highlights
• Import aircraft data
• Search video graphically
• View synchronized video and mission data
• Benefits
• Improved analysis
• Better use of intelligence data

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Summary

• Ready now
• Benefits
• Lower cost
• Lower risk
• Speed to market
• Apply to
• Engineering and analysis
• ISR planning
• Operations
• Flexible business model

David Fishering, Frost Sullivan, An
Assessment of the Benefits Associated with
Software by Analytical Graphics, Inc. (AGI),
August 2008
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Getting started
Discover
Develop
Deploy
adn.agi.com
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Next steps

• Discover, design and deploy
• www.agi.com
• adn.agi.com
• Contact local AGI resources and partners

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• Thank you

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