Adapting Commercial VR-Based Training Through Scenario Customization and Less Than Lethal Practice Ranges for Training Gaps in Domestic Ops and Defense Support of Civil Authorities

Street Smarts VR proposes adapting their current Virtual Reality training platform to integrate two new features. These two features, a Scenario Self-Authoring Module and a Less-Than-Lethal Practice Range, will provide our DAF partners the relevant, customizable, and accessible training they need to rapidly mobilize and deploy in their unique environments. However, ALL our customers, whether Federal, State, Local, Educational (private campus safety), and Entertainment (Casinos) law enforcement/security organizations will benefit from these features. All customers using the SSVR training platform in the future will be able to customize scenarios towards their own diverse training objectives.  Furthermore, all will benefit from the Less-Than-Lethal practice range by virtual employment of their specific weapons.  This will also provide SSVR further opportunity for commercialization by expanding our Less-Than-Lethal virtual offerings. This proposal could not be more relevant or timely.  Historical events and evolving issues make it imperative that DoD and all levels of law enforcement get the absolute best training available before experiencing the stressors of likely events they will face.  The ANG’s security mission frequently calls on them to perform a wide variety of Domestic Ops (DOMOPS) involving scenarios they can’t realistically train for.  The Scenario Self-Authoring Module will not only allow very specific and relevant training through a wide variety of environments, avatars, and threat weapons but provide applicable crowds/protests/demonstrations with the ability to size and control crowd reactions. Again, this training capability is not only applicable across the DoD but to all our customers and not available anywhere else. Further, the DoD has a Defense Support of Civil Authorities (DSCA) role, with numerous other Federal Government Agencies, to support a whole of government response to acts of terrorism, attacks, or natural/manmade disasters.  The National Security Strategy of the United States of America notes that “potential adversaries are developing advanced weapons and capabilities that could threaten U.S. critical infrastructure. Adversaries may also strategically target attacks to exploit interdependencies between infrastructure sectors and magnify cascading failures between them, posing incident response challenges above and beyond those created by catastrophic natural hazards.” Training and preparation in response to these contingencies are required, for the Air National Guard, and potentially the active duty.  The mission specific focus for this SBIR is the Emergency Support Function (ESF) 13, Public Safety and Security located in the National Response Framework (NRF).