SBIR-STTR Award

This project seeks to demonstrate the feasibility of applying advanced model based reasoning techniques based on the Open Autonomy Kernel (OAK) to a survivable component level automation infrastructure (CLAI) developed for Naval shipboard automation applications. The key feature of the CLAI is cost effective scalable reliability through a dependable topology and dynamic reconfiguration for network fragment healing. The model based reasoning will be used to anticipate the effect of damage given a prediction or sensor input that indicates a damage event is likely. Given the prediction and the model it should be possible to pre-configure the CLAI to minimize the extent of damage and the latentecy of past damage healing. These techniques will first be applied to the network infrastructure itself but could be applied in the future to any of the automated systems attached to the network. This should eventually allow all associated ship systems to reconfigure themselves prior to a "hit" and thereby minimize the effect of the "hit".Minimize Latency and Improved Reliability for Network and System Reconfiguration in the Event of Damage. More IntelligentNaval Shipboard Automation; Auxiliary Systems; Damage Control; Industrial Automation in Hazardous Environments

This project will develop and implement in embedded hardware the capability needed to configure pre hit, a component level automation infrastructure.This approach optimizes survivability using models of damage or casualty scenarios. This capability will be demonstrated in a laboratory hardware in the loop simulation. This project leverages the results of several other ongoing research efforts all focused around survivable component level systems based on the ANSI 709.1 protocol.This work further extends the dependable topology with network fragment healing concepts.

Benefits:
This project brings together three important enabling technologies; model based reasoning, network fragment healing, and high speed component level embedded distributed processing, to produce the unprecedented capability, that is, to predict and configure "pre-hit" a component level automation infrastructure to minimize vulnerability and maximize survivability from real time threat and damage information. This approach provides the potential for decreased latencies in healing and better fight through capability for highly automated (low manned) systems. Moreover, the demonstrated cost effectiveness of the dependable topology with NFH makes it affordable and therefore a prime candidate for future Naval automation ship infrastructure. This project will produce, the first hardware in the loop embedded system capable of pre-hit reconfiguration of a component level network. This will provide the crucial scalable infra-structure needed for advanced survivable component level networks.The principle military application will be the component level automation infra-structure on board a Naval platform. There are three major immediate commercial opportunities that will be enabled by this project: 1) Load balanced router for optimized component level networks. 2) Combined router/IP gateway with sophisticated routing algorithms. 3) Resilient survivable automation system for critical services using model based reasoning for state estimation and reconfiguration