A Common Operational Picture (COP) shows many operational aspects in coded form inside a geodata representation like a map. For building this picture, many specialized groups produce information. Beside the operating forces these are intelligences, logistics, or the own leaders planning group. Operations in which a COP is used typically are disaster management or military actions. An existing software for Interactive Visualization of Integrated Geodata runs on Tablet-PCs, PCs, Digital Map Tables and video walls. It is already used by the Deutsche Führungsakademie (military academy) for the education of staff officers. German civil disaster management agency decided to use the Digital Map Table for their intelligence analysis. In a mobile scenario, however, novel requirements have to be taken into account to adapt the software to the new environment. This paper investigates these requirements as well as the possible adaptions to provide a COP across multiple players on the go. When acting together, the groups do this in a widespread manner. They are physically spread and they use a variety of software and hardware to produce their contribution. This requires hardware to be ruggedized, mobile, and to support a variety of interfaces. The limited bandwidth in such a setting poses the main challenge for the software, which has to synchronize exchanging a minimum of information. Especially for mobile participants, a solution is planned that scales the amount of data (maps/intelligence data) to the available equipment, the upcoming mission, and the underlying theatre. Special focus is laid on a guidance vehicle leading a convoy.

Date Published: 1 May 2017
PDF: 8 pages
Proc. SPIE 10199, Geospatial Informatics, Fusion, and Motion Video Analytics VII, 101990I (1 May 2017); doi: 10.1117/12.2263430

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 10199:
Geospatial Informatics, Fusion, and Motion Video Analytics VII
Kannappan Palaniappan; Peter J. Doucette; Gunasekaran Seetharaman; Anthony Stefanidis, Editor(s)