Context Aware Scalable Dynamic Network (CASDN)

ABSTRACT: Current air, ground and space networks are very dynamic with large-scale mobility needing human in-the-loop configuration to adapt to unforeseen situations. Humans and current automated systems cannot reconfigure consistently or fast enough. This leads to network performance not meeting mission needs. Airborne, space and ground networks are crypto-partitioned, dynamic, complex, and hard for the current human-centric management systems to maintain optimal routes consistently when networks scale up to large numbers and large distances. Non-optimal routes and reactions to network disruptions affect the warfighters ability to communicate with others, maintain situational awareness and effectively complete their missions. The Air Force identified the need to use network context to manage dynamic networks automatically. ATCorp"s Context Aware Scalable Dynamic Network (CASDN) uses context to improve performance. During the Phase II, ATCorp will build a prototype of CASDN"s context based network management that provide overlay routing between red-side enclaves, and optimized traffic management across crypto-partitioned networks. By tracking and sharing context throughout a network, CASDN will enable the effective use of context to manage dynamic networks automatically. BENEFIT: CASDN fulfills the Air Force"s requirements for a context-aware network routing and management system capable of tracking and using context to optimize a dynamic network. CASDN will maintain mission assured network connectivity, and optimize network performance. The benefits to crypto-partitioned high-performance network routing & management will be a significant contribution to global sets of information available from the U.S. Space Surveillance Network and future DoD communications systems such as Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN); the Navy"s Next Generation Enterprise Network (NGEN); WIN-T and Joint Capability for Airborne Networking (JCAN). Additional commercial benefits can directly support cross-communications and high-connectivity requirements of commercial systems. These systems have an increasing need to use automated systems to make routing and topology decisions necessary for properly managing diverse communications systems.