Thomas W. Mastaglio

The close combat tactical trainer program

The Close Combat Tactical Trainer (CCTT) is the first full scale development of a Distributed Interactive Simulations (DIS) training system. CCTT is being developed to support the training requirements of the U.S. Armys combined arms teams, however it also provides an entity-based battlefield which will be able to support higher level training and development activities. This paper will provide an overview of CCTT, discuss how it will use the DIS standard protocols and semi-automated forces within its architecture, the programs development methodology, and its role in future Army training. CCTT builds on the successful technology demonstration of this approach by DARPAs SIMNET project (Thorpe 1987).

Developing a large-scale distributed interactive simulation system

The Close Combat Tactical Trainer (CCTT) is a simulation-based training system being developed using a concurrent engineering approach. Industry and government engineers together with prototypical system users comprise the concurrent engineering teams. User representatives are located, along with industry, in an integrated development facility where they interact on a daily basis with the rest of the engineering team. CCTT is a large-scale complex simulation, its primary purpose is to improve human performance through its use in training. Focusing on human performance improvement as a simulation system product mandates a development effort based on usability engineering. Because CCTT has complex human-computer interaction requirements, field users have been integrated throughout the design, development and evaluation phases of the program.

Analysis of future UAS-based delivery

Commercial use of Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) has the potential to reshape the delivery market and to open new business opportunities to small businesses, e.g., local stores, pharmacies, restaurants, as well as to large international and national businesses and government entities, e.g., Amazon, Google, UPS, power companies, and USPS. Simulation models can examine the value added to current business operations, the effects of radical shifts in current operations, and the formation of new types of businesses. This paper presents an envisioned future UAS delivery business operation models and develops a theoretical constructive simulation model. The conducted simulation analysis based on full factorial design estimated causalities between multiple independent and dependent business and policy factors e.g. drone velocity, flying altitude, number of drones, delivery demand, route type, maximum drone fly-time, number of orders completed, time average drone density, order time, drone utilization, and reachability of customers.

Training in the Close Combat Tactical Trainer

The ability of the U.S. Army to maintain combat readiness is dependent on continuous collective training of its units on their wartime missions and tasks. Collective training has traditionally been accomplished primarily through field exercises. Within the last decade escalating costs combined with reduced budgets, environmental, and political factors have severely limited the Army’s ability to conduct field training. At the same time, simulation technology has advanced to the point where networked simulators can begin to assume a significant part of the collective training burden. SIMNET, developed by the Defense Advanced Projects Agency (DARPA) was the first network of simulators to use Distributed Interactive Simulation (DIS) technology (Thorpe, 1987). It demonstrated the capability of man-in-the-loop simulators to create a virtual battlefield on which meaningful collective training could be accomplished (Alluisi, 1991). In 1991 the Army assumed responsibility for the SIMNET program. SIMNET is currently being used for training at 10 sites in the United States and Europe.

Towards airspace rules for future UAS-based delivery

The growth of the nascent UAS industry will be affected by the airspace coordination rules between drones because these rules can impact business profitability. Few analyses have been reported to support design of commercial UAS operations in low-altitude commercial urban airspace. Analysis of minimum horizontal separation is critical for designing safe and efficient UAS delivery systems. In this paper a constructive simulation model is used to analyze and evaluate proposed UAS airspace traffic. A high density of delivery drones could create a bottleneck in a drone-based supply chain very quickly, especially when a high minimum horizontal separation standard is required. This paper proposes a simple idea on how to organize low-altitude UAS traffic, and evaluates the idea using a simulation model. Additional implications and future work needed in relation to UAS-based delivery are also discussed.