Portable Wireless Monitoring Station

With the rapid expansion of signaling technology and broad-based adoption and use of commercial communications systems (for example, cellular telephone, satellite telephone, and trunked radio) by enemy military, paramilitary, and terrorist groups, a newset of tactical situational awareness and force protection challenges must be addressed and met by deployed SOF signal surveillance teams. Applied Signal Technology, Inc. proposes to design and present a development plan for a Manpack Wireless SurveillanceSystem specifically for use by SOF personnel for tactical wireless communications monitoring. This effort develops design for a full multi-channel cellular/PCS tactical surveillance system that uses low-power components in a very small package. The designwill be leveraged from a functionally similar system. Commercial off-the-shelf subassemblies will be integrated with the leveraged development to generate a low risk design that meets SOCOM's needs. The wireless monitoring system will use a general purposesoftware architecture that enables simultaneous coverage of more than one signal type and allows the addition of signal processing upgrades and new signal intercept functions as they emerge. In addition to SOCOM's force protection requirement organizationsinvolved in counter narcotics, homeland defense, counter terrorism, and investigative law enforcement drive the need for a flexible portable wireless monitoring system. The market for this system is driven by limited budgets and ever changing wirelesscommunications protocols. Historically, a product specific to one wireless signal type was built. The cost of purchasing a product for each signal type has become prohibitively expensive for many government organizations. The number of products requiredto cover all possible signal types and the possibility that the target under surveillance would not be communicating on a supported signal type limited the utility of the equipment. Developing a single flexible wireless station that monitors current andfuture signal types removes this prohibition and provides government agencies with a cost effective solution.