Test Assistant For Fast Analysis (TAFFY)

In order to provide the best connectivity to the warfighters, US Army needs to continuously study and test new telecommunication technologies.  These technologies are often achieved by employing complex algorithms and components which makes implementing, understanding, testing of such systems a daunting task.  Properly understanding the radio behavior, combined with the complexity of properly interpreting collected RF or other data, is challenging for even an expert in RF communications and networking.  As a result, lab testing is often somewhat limited to basic validation of a subset of behaviors.  The end result is that any deficiencies and other unwanted characteristics are discovered only when systems are undergoing field test or even after systems are fielded.  Ultimately, less capable telecommunications capabilities are then delivered to warfighters, or warfighters must rely on older technologies, in an age when information exchange is a key force multiplier.  We propose to make it possible for the engineers and researchers in the lab environment to automatically exercise a variety of radios and then collate and report the results for further analysis, radio troubleshooting, and investigation using a combination of RF channel emulation, IQ data capture, and integrated analysis tools.