Saturday, September 17, 2011

Joint Battle Command-Platform (JBC-P)

JBC-P What is it?

Joint Battle Command-Platform (JBC-P) is the future iteration of the battle-tested Force XXI Battle Command Brigade and Below (FBCB2)-Blue Force Tracking (BFT) system, the Army’s friendly force tracking system. The system will be deployable across the global force and adaptable to support the requirements from separate units, missions and echelons. JBC-P is a system of systems that incorporates hardware, software, security and communication capabilities to deliver critical operational value for Joint battlefield visibility and for fratricide avoidance.

The enhanced capabilities that JBC-P offers can be summed up simply: more Joint interoperability, more fratricide prevention, more security, more bandwidth, more users and more information. It provides enhanced data encryption, better maps, better collaboration tools and more precise location information for vehicles, aircraft and dismounted Soldiers. JBC-P will provide a more modern user interface with drag-and-drop icons, touch-to-zoom maps, free draw and group chat. It will also integrate Tactical Ground Reporting (TIGR) functionality, a collaborative software tool that uses an intuitive interface, pictures and text to provide a searchable database of unit activities. Along with routes and places, TIGR is valuable for tracking people of interest – such as local police chiefs, religious leaders or enemy targets.

As part of the JBC-P upgrade, the Army will deploy the high-tech, high-speed Blue Force Tracking 2 (BFT 2) – a satellite communications network that is roughly ten times faster than the existing BFT system. JBC-P will also provide handheld systems for dismounted C2 & SA capability, and integrate one-way situational awareness reporting devices on vehicles called “beacons” to track 100% of vehicles and aircraft in the operational environment or battlefield.

What has the Army done?

With JBC-P, the Army is leveraging the success of and investment in FBCB2, which has approximately 100,000 systems already in the field. In addition the Marine Corps has approximately 10,000 systems in the field. The Logistic Community has approximately 10,000 systems in the field which will adapt JBC-P software. Primarily used in military vehicles, FBCB2's display screen shows blue and red icons over a geospatial imagery map. It paints a complete picture of the battlefield – including friendly and enemy forces, as well as terrain hazards enabling units to synchronize operations and avoid friendly fire incidents.

During Fiscal Year 2010, the Army focused on developing requirements and software for JBC-P, which is expected to begin fielding in Fiscal Year 2013. In order to bring these broad and critical new capabilities to the Soldier in a timely and cost-effective manner, the Army has implemented a new acquisition strategy. In the past, the Project Manager (PM) FBCB2 has utilized one main contractor, which handled software development and then subcontracted out for other components such as hardware. Now, the PM FBCB2 uses a more efficient strategy with the lead for software development handled by the Software Engineering Directorate (SED) in Huntsville, AL and a number of smaller contracts. Preliminary results of the initial SED system software acceptance testing are very positive, in that the processes and procedures are well documented and executed. Separate contracts have been or will be awarded for hardware and satellite transceiver production, encryption devices and satellite coverage. This strategy enables a higher degree of control and flexibility, and allows funding to be handled more effectively.

What continued efforts does the Army have planned for the future?

As a bridge between the present FBCB2-BFT and JBC-P, the Army began to deploy the FBCB2 Joint Capabilities Release (JCR) software in Fiscal Year 2011. JCR will allow mobile users to toggle between FBCB2 and TIGR, marking the first time TIGR will be on a platform-based system inside a patrol vehicle. In the past, Soldiers would have executed their mission based on planning they conducted on TIGR back at their operating base. With TIGR at their fingertips, Soldiers on patrol can adapt to unexpected circumstances, react to changes in the mission and conduct additional planning while in their vehicle. This capability will increase units’ safety and give them additional resources while on-the-move. Work at the Limited User Test (LUT) in White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) is substantiating the positive results of this capability . FBCB2 JCR is the foundation for the Network Integration Events (NIE) events with approximately 500 platforms in use with various software, hardware and communication validating backwork compatibility.

Another upgrade that will debut with JCR is BFT 2, which will transmit and load information much faster than the current BFT. With BFT 2, situational information can be beamed across the network in seconds, sending images to a ground station – then back through commercial satellites to forward-deployed units on the move.

As it transitions to JBC-P, the Army will execute the improvements by upgrading software on existing computers – mostly JV-5s – rather than immediately replacing them. This strategy is expected to yield significant cost avoidance “savings”. As they need to be refreshed, the computers will then be rotated out and replaced by models that fully meet JBC-P requirements. Eventually, commanders will be able to remove the screen from its fixed position and take it to the back seat or the hood of the vehicle. JBC-P is being integrated with systems that have not been fully interoperable with FBCB2/BFT such as Movement Tracking System (MTS), used to track vehicle movements, and Nett Warrior, which will connect Soldiers to the Army’s tactical network. JCR-Log is currently being evaluated at WSMR and now the Logistic and Maneuver Community can see each other.

To incorporate handheld devices, the Army’s current focus is to take advantage of the commercial developments in the smart phone industry and tailor those capabilities to JBC-P requirements. An interim solution currently in development would connect an everyday cell phone to a tactical radio, allowing dismounted Soldiers to exchange over-the-horizon command and control and beyond-line-of-sight situational awareness information. Prototypes are currently under development to mature the security of these Android based devices and refine the specifications for production handhelds. Additional efforts include the development of the Mobile Common Environment (CE) Product Development Kit (PDK), scheduled for initial release in fourth quarter 2011, which will enable easy third party application development of secure interoperable applications. A common environment with a well refined PDK abstracts the complexities of interoperability and security from third party developers and allows for more rapid development of capabilities by a broader development base. Additionally, DTCS radios have been implemented as one early beacon type in theater for dismounted forces. Position Location Information is routed across the Iridium constellation and into the FBCB2 Network Operations Center where it is distributed to the Common Operational Picture (COP) – putting dismounts on the COP for the first time.. The Army is also pursuing prototypes for a more rugged JBC-P handheld.

Why is this important to the Army?

In today’s joint operating environment, we have many stove-piped, Service specificC2/SA systems that are not interoperable because of the differences in data standards, protocols, security domains, procedures, and network architectures implemented by each Service. This major deficiency adversely affects the ability of joint warfighters to achieve Information Dominance in their joint Areas of Operation. This lack of platform-level interoperability prevents the sharing of vital friendly, enemy, and other survivability information at the platform level, and increases the risk of inter-Service fratricide. JBC-P fixes these deficiencies – it provides enhanced situational awareness of friendly, and reported enemy, neutral, and civilian entities (including reported international agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations). JBC-P provides command and control at the platform level across the Services enabling joint situational understanding and battlespace awareness. It affords joint warfighters the capability to gain and retain the tactical and operational initiative under all mission, enemy, terrain, troops, time and civilians (METT-TC) conditions despite an accelerated tempo. Finally, JBC-P contributes to the SA component of Combat Identification (CID) resulting in greater combat effectiveness and reduced fratricide.

As of July 2011
SAAL-SC4 DASC for JBC-P
(571) 256-9374

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