Corse of Action Visualization and Analysis Workstation for the Battlefield Commander

This Phase I effort propses to prototype and demonstrate a Course of ACtion Visualization and Analysis (COAVA) workstation for the brigade/battalion commander. The primary function of the workstation is to support the commander's assessment and planning functions by providing several related and complementary views of the tactical situation. These views are linked to a simulation facility that can support the manipulation, visualization, amd analysi of COA alternatives. Our approach is motivated by the need to provide decision support in areas that are difficult for humans, namely, tracking multi-dimensional information, visualizing abstract situational features, managing uncertainity, detecting conflicts and constraint violations, and action/reaction gaming and outcome assessment. The proposed workstation will provide the commander with the ability to view a situation from multiple perspectives and to traverse related displays by following hyperlinks connecting related entities. We plan to prototype the COAVA concept for a limited-scope scenrio with development in a Windows environment using Visual Basic, Access, and CLIPS as the rapid prototyping tools. Following the demonstration, we will evaluate the concept's potential for full-scope development.