Data Fusion for USW Common Tactical Picture

This SBIR project provides the opportunity to address the challenges associated with protecting the carrier or other high value units from the submarine threat with the addition of a real-time decision aid for multi-sensor threat assessment. Adaptive Methods proposes a sailor-centric approach for concept-definition, ASW systems engineering, and decision aid algorithm development. This approach is chosen to reduce the risk of adding to ASW operator workload when integrating automation algorithms. Adaptive Methods proposes to develop an Ontological-based Situation and Threat Assessment enabling capability for rapid, accurate situation comprehension and decision making. This capability will leverage and extend existing semantic web and inference engine technologies while researching novel techniques for ontological situation assessment (Level 2 Fusion) and impact assessment (Level 3 Fusion). Our approach to build an effective automated fusion process is to first define the ASW operational context in which the technology must exist. The concept covers the 3 levels of situation awareness - perception, comprehension, and projection - and their relationship to ASW information processes and ASW sailors. For Projection, we are introducing the concept of Tactical State Estimate which encompasses all aspects of an object"s kinematic state, classification and threat assessment state, and tactical intentions.