Intelligent Agent Technology in Command and Control Environment

The Intelligent Agent (IA) technology has applications in the following areas of military Command and Control (C2): logistics, combat planning and battle plan execution monitoring. C2 information extraction should not rely on using simple database queries, since the amount of data available to the commander on the modern battlefield can be overwhelming. In order to make informed decisions; the commander must have immediate access to specific information in real time. The available data therefore, must be parsed in such a way as to extract only the specific information required by the commander. The ever-increasing volume of data in the C2 environment thus requires the use of IAs to extract relevant information for the commander in real time. The paper describes an application of IA in assisting a decision-maker, i.e. the military commander, by extracting needed information from a large amount of data and triggering an alarm when certain critical conditions are reached. The open architecture proposed here not only allows effective IA implementation but also expansion of future IA applications, as needs demand. This paper is a continuation of earlier work [Ref. 1,2,3]. 1.0 Introduction The increase in dynamics associated with the modern battlefield adds additional levels of complexity to the perception of what constitutes a battlespace. As a rule, even the best battle plans are subject to change. In this rapidly changing environment, the commander must be notified in real time when critical situation changes occur. For this problem, the IA proves to be extremely useful. In addition to alerting the commander about a sudden encountered problem, the IA also provides the necessary information allowing the commander to resolve the problem in near-real time. In general, IAs should exhibit the following behavior: 1. Intelligent – ability to infer, learn 2. Proactive goal-directed 3. Reactive respond to domain changes 4. Autonomous operate without human involvement. 1 This work was supported by the BV STO, CPXXI ATD(US Army CECOM) and CPoF (DARPA) programs Report Documentation Page Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. 1. REPORT DATE 1999 2. REPORT TYPE 3. DATES COVERED 00-00-1999 to 00-00-1999 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Intelligent Agent Technology in Command and Control Environment 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER