Habitat Search Product: Intelligent Node Architecture for Meaning-based, Context-sensitive Searching

Gestalt, LLC will define the technical feasibility, benefits, and market merit of meaning-based searches using orthogonal hierarchies of information managed by intelligent nodes simulating human behaviors and intuitions, integrated with currentstate-of-the-art web-based searching. The intelligent nodes will augment existing legacy search technology, creating a hierarchy of managed search information layers (creating meaning), which we believe can achieve significant improvements in searchresults producing extremely accurate, timely results of value to the user. The intelligent nodes will also allow the introduction of non-web based information resources (such as databases, command and control systems, attack plans, intelligence reports,competitive business reports, enterprise resource planning systems, etc.). In addition, the intelligent nodes can be used to selectively present the findings in order to ensure to maximize learning of the user. Unique to our approach is the integrationof legacy and future internet search engines (which allow vasts amounts of information to be reached) with an intelligence technology that scales significantly beyond today's intelligent agent-based technology. Our approach we believe is applicable to theproblems faced by supporting network-centric warfare, such as Future Combat Systems (FCS), as well as Fortune 500 enterprises. There is significant commercial opportunity to improve the presenting, locating, and using of information that is now readilyavailable within local intranets, local and distributed databases, and the Internet. Many companies are establishing Enterprise Information Portals (EIPs) that support searches in appropriate context for those companies. Significant commercialopportunity exists to extend EIPs and internet searching in general with automated and intelligent technology in this market sector. While the commercial benefits to Fortune 500 companies and the like cannot be underestimated, the benefit to thegovernment could be even more revolutionary. Network-Centric Warfare (NCW) is the embodiment of an Information Age transformation of the Department of Defense (DoD). It involves a new way of thinking about how we accomplish our missions, how we organizeand interrelate, and how we acquire and field the systems that support us. NCW moves the DoD to the next level of Jointness as envisioned in Joint Vision 2020.This SBIR will use a DARPA idea of habitats (i.e., self organizing entities around a mission or task) applied to searching information. It will leverage current and future internet searching engines because of the shear volume of data available, whileincorporating scalable intelligent technology to support human-like intuition and abilities. Together this synergistic approach can product in a timely manner relevant information to a task or mission.We believe there is significant commercial application of this technology to the field of Enterprise Information Portals, and to government needs supporting network-centric warfare (such as the needs of Objective Force). We also believe that ademonstration of intelligent technology that scales to significant size and can process the amount of data as needed by this SBIR is of general interest in the research and development community to numerous areas, such as modeling and simulation, training,mission rehearsal, situation analysis, data fusion, command and control, etc.