IMPROVED PROCEDURES/TOOLS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF HIGHLY RELIABLE SOFTWARE FOR COMPUTER WEAPONS SYSTEMS IDENTIFICATION AND APPLICATION

MODER ARMY WEAPONS SYSTEMS ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY DEPENDENT UPON COMPUTER SYSTEMS; THIS DEPENDENCY WILL INCREASE WITH THE GROWING APPLICATION OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ROBOTICS AND PARALLEL AND DISTRIBUTED PROCESSING. ATTENDANT TO THIS INCREASED USE IS INCREASED COMPLEXITY WHICH IN TURN DEMANDS BETTER RELIABILITY PROCEDURES AND TOOLS. THIS ANALYSIS EXAMINES THE ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH THE COMPUTER WEAPON SYSTEM OPERATES AND THE ASSOCIATED RELIABILILTY PROBLEMS; IT IDENTIFIED EXISTING, APPLICABLE TOOLS AND PROCEDURES, ASSESSES THEIR EFFECTIVENESS, AND IDENTIFIES SHORTFALLS AND VOIDS. IT EXAMINES ALTERNATIVES IN THREE CATEGORIES: LOW COST, NEAR TERM, HIGH IMPACT MEASURES; MID-TO-LONG TERM MEASURES ESSENTIAL TO EMERGING SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT; AND MEASURES WITH DEVELOPMENTAL APPLICATIONS (I.E., ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE). THE MAIN FOCUS ON THE ANALYSIS IS ON THE FIRST TWO AREAS AND WILL RESULT IN SPECIFIC AND EXECUTABLE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE ARMY. THE NEAR-TERM MEASURES CAN BE DEVELOPED FOR IMPLEMENTATION IN PHASE II.