NSAD-R-2010-049: LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE …

1 - Enclosure to NSAD-L-2010-158 Task JHS01 NSAD-R-2010-049 LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE architecture roadmap implementation common GATEWAYS AND BRIDGES EXECUTION PLAN JUNE 2010 - - NSAD-R-2010-049 LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan June 2010 Prepared by: R. R. Lutz, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory D. L. Drake, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory D. Bergin, Trideum Corporation D. Cutts, AEgis Technologies Group K. Lessmann, Trideum Corporation M. O Connor, ITT Corporation LVC architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan This page intentionally left blank.

2 LVC architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan Page iii TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .. ES-1 1. INTRODUCTION .. 1-1 2. REPORT 2-1 3. EXECUTION OPTIONS: FOUR STRATEGIES .. 3-1 4. STRATEGY: STATUS QUO .. 4-1 Outcome of a Status Quo Strategy .. 4-1 Benefits .. 4-2 Impacts .. 4-2 Risks .. 4-2 5. STRATEGY: INFORM .. 5-1 Problems Addressed .. 5-1 Tasks .. 5-1 Workshops .. 5-1 Tutorials and Training Courses .. 5-3 Cadre Support .. 5-5 Gateway Information Desk .. 5-6 Desired End State .. 5-8 6. STRATEGY: ENHANCE .. 6-1 Problems Addressed .. 6-1 Tasks .. 6-1 Gateway Capabilities Description.

3 6-1 common Gateway Language Definition .. 6-3 Performance Benchmark Specification .. 6-6 Gateway Testing Laboratory .. 6-9 Cadre/SME Support .. 6-11 Desired End State .. 6-13 7. STRATEGY: CREATE .. 7-1 Problems Addressed .. 7-1 Tasks .. 7-1 common Gateway Framework Definition .. 7-1 Build Gateway Components .. 7-3 Prototype Components .. 7-4 Select and Improve Gateways .. 7-6 Build a New Gateway .. 7-8 Desired End State .. 7-10 8. RECOMMENDED STRATEGY .. 8-1 Continue with the Status Quo? .. 8-1 LVC architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan Page iv Implement the Inform Strategy?

4 8-1 Implement the Create Strategy? .. 8-1 Implement the Enhance Strategy? .. 8-1 9. PROPOSED PROJECT PLAN .. 9-1 10. SUMMARY .. 10-1 APPENDIX A: REFERENCES .. A-1 APPENDIX B: ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .. B-1 LVC architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan Page v LIST OF FIGURES Figure 3-1. Initial Data Gathering and Synthesis Methodology .. 3-1 Figure 3-2. Organization, Consolidation, and Analysis Methodology .. 3-1 Figure 5-1. Dependency Relationships for the Inform Tasks .. 5-8 Figure 6-1. Dependency Relationships for the Enhance Tasks .. 6-13 Figure 7-1. Dependency Relationships for the Create Tasks.

5 7-10 Figure 9-1. Enhance Strategy Project Plan .. 9-1 LVC architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan Page vi This page intentionally left blank. LVC architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan Page ES-1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE architecture roadmap (LVCAR) Study developed a vision for achieving significant interoperability improvements in live, virtual , or constructive (LVC) simulation environments. The study recommended several activities intended to reduce the time, effort, and cost required to integrate multi- architecture events.

6 Three of the key LVCAR Phase I recommendations were to determine whether existing gateway and bridge1 applications were effective in meeting user requirements, whether improvements in gateway/bridge capabilities were necessary to address identified gaps, and how these improvements could be best implemented to maximize the Department of Defense (DoD) return on investment (ROI). To address this recommendation, the LVCAR Phase II common Gateways and Bridges task began with three major activities: performing gateway and bridge literature research, augmenting this research with the team s own gateway and bridge usage and development experience, and developing formal gateway and bridge operation terminology.

7 With this starting point, the team was able to create an initial delineation of gateway/bridge2 capabilities. Starting with this initial capability description, the team compiled a Gateway Capabilities Matrix Template. This template allowed the team to create two structured questionnaires. The first was for commercial and government-funded gateway developers, for which an online web interface was provided. The second was for site visits to users of gateways within DoD, mainly selected from large-scale exercise coordinators for the United States military services and joint operations.

8 Although the questionnaires were written for different audiences, they were written in a parallel fashion that allowed a correlation of answers across the two audiences. The background literature research also aided the team in creating a candidate list of developers and users to fill out the questionnaires. In addition to the developer questionnaire and the gateway user site visits, the team also held a one-day workshop, the LVCAR common Gateways and Bridges Workshop, to present the findings of those questionnaires. The workshop was held at the Virginia Modeling, Analysis, and Simulation Center (VMASC) in Suffolk, VA, on 4 March 2010.

9 At the completion of the data gathering and analysis aspects of this task, the gateway characteristic assessment points were identified and documented in the project s initial 1 The term bridge in this context refers to intelligent translators that link together enclaves of simulations that use the same underlying simulation architecture . A gateway is also an intelligent translator, but it is designed to link simulation enclaves that use dissimilar architectures. 2 It became clear during the team s preliminary investigations that the distinction between gateway and bridge was insignificant from a development and usage standpoint.

10 Both are used for translating between architectures; the difference between a gateway and bridge was primarily a matter of how the system was configured rather than how the system was coded. For that reason, the term gateway is used for both types of applications in this document. This terminology was accepted by all of the developers and users with which the team interacted. LVC architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Execution Plan Page ES-2 deliverable, the LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE architecture roadmap implementation common Gateways and Bridges Characterization Report. As indicated in that report, there is wide agreement that there are several potential improvements that can be made to lower the technical and cost risks generally associated with the use of gateways.