Applying Distributed SAT-based Constrained Optimization to Global Missile Defense Battle Management

Emerging weapons systems are making a layered ballistic missile defense a reality. To realize the potential benefits of this diverse capability, it is necessary to extend the ability of assignment and planning algorithms and decision theory. We propose to implement a broadly applicable solution that builds upon the general framework of SAT-based reasoning and our specialized Salt, Alef, and REASON technologies for rendering constrained optimization problems to that model. This effort will build upon our existing distributed SAT-solving technology with well-founded extensions to improve support for (1) allocation optimization in the context of global inventory management, (2) constraint groups typical to battle-management problems, and (3) information reuse across iterative refinement or repair. The resulting technology will preserve our existing capability to reason about the most difficult aspects of battle management including complex availability, coordination, deconfliction, and mutual-exclusion constraints and holistic measures of fitness. The resulting technology will also be fully adapted to operating, if necessary, in a heterogeneous, geographically distributed (net-centric) computing environment. In this effort, we are partnering with Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensors (MS2) who has an interest in transitioning our core SAT-based technology into their speculative Command, Control, Battle Management, & Communications (C2BMC) solution portfolio.