A Situation Awareness Visualization System

Knowledge is today's most valuable resource. The Information Age has unleashed strategic imperatives for knowledge tools capable of managing inJormation overload--too much information arriving too fast for the brain to absorb unassisted. Unless presented effectively, a deluge of data will obscure the vantage point which topsight--a central understanding of the 'big picture'-requires. METAPHOR MIXER, the Principal Investigator's patent pending information fusion and visualization technology, renders information into knowledge and understanding by taking advantage of people's visual smarts: resulting in better decision making and situation awareness. As Clausewitz observed, "Knowledge must be so absorbed into the mind that it almost ceases to exist in a separate, objective way." METAPHOR MIXER excels at visualizing large, multivariate databases. It graphically depicts vast amounts of real-time information as data terrains: dynamic, visual icons populating a spatially structured three dimensional space. The resulting visual grammar communicates visual, auditory and interactive cues through an irmnersive user interface. METAPHOR MIXER implementations allow users to configure real time information from many sources and create displays that are information-rich and clearly understandable. Software agents and other cogmtive enhancement components provide an intelligent push-pull of command and control data. It enables decision makers to identify and select data items, navigate the data terrain and spot emerging patterns and anomalies. Phase I efforts will demonstrate the feasibility of applying advanced, COTS information fusion and visualization technology to enhance knowledge acquisition and management abilities, specifically with regard to threat and target functions. Displaying such information as visual metaphors empowers users to act on real-time information, enabling swift, decisive maneuvers to dominate the battlespace. The resulting enhanced situation awareness will assist Command in affecting the tempo and shape of the battlespace and anticipating tactical requirements through time and space.