Development of the Special Operations Combat Management System

摘要

The information age has arrived in the military of today, and will continue to play an increasingly important role in the future. Real time battlefield information is becoming increasingly available to the soldier through such advances as Global Positioning Systems (GPS), satellite communications, an astonishing array of special sensors and detectors and eventually, the Battlefield Tactical Internet. With such a monumental increase in information availability, now what is needed is a method for linking of resources and sharing of data at not only the command level but at the level of the individual warfighter. A similar information revolution took place in the 80's in the civilian world with the establishment of the Internet, and the desktop personal computer surfaced as the interface device of choice due to its low cost and its increasing applicability to everyday life. 14. ABSTRACT The Special Operations Combat Management (S0CM) System Program was an aggressive, fast paced research and development project which used advanced microelectronics packaging technology to design, build and test a state-of-the-art, high end Pentium computer. The computer was packaged into a small, but rugged, body-worn configuration, and was integrated with other items to become a complete wearable soldier information system suitable for use by members of the Air Force Special Operations Command. The system was integrated with military radios, commercial Wireless Local Area Network (LAN) technology, Global Positioning System (GPS) and a Mission Software package to provide personnel with advanced computer assisted information management, communications and navigation capabilities. The prototype S0CM wearable computer was completed in less than seven months from contract Authorization to Proceed, and the four deliverable systems were completed in less than one year.