Front-of-the-Fight Radios

JTRS Handheld, Manpack Small Form Fit Program Works to
Deliver Blanket Communications Coverage for the Battlefield.

by Adam Baddeley
MIT Correspondent 

The common hardware and universal software architecture now being finalized for HMS is being undertaken at a frenetic pace, with a view to positioning it in the overall interoperable networks. The HMS radios being developed under prime contractor General Dynamics C4 Systems demonstrated their critical networked-communications capabilities in recent government field tests. The tests proved the radios’ interoperability, range, video transmission and networking abilities.

“The results of these tests validate that JTRS HMS will transform the battlefield by bringing secure wideband communications and situational awareness to dismounted soldiers at the front of the fight,” said Army Colonel Daniel Hughes, Ground Domain program manager for the Joint Program Executive Office JTRS.

A recent field experiment at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., featured a twochannel Manpack HMS radio exceeding a 20-kilometer range requirement test and transmitting voice and data over rugged terrain and rough conditions. The Manpack HMS radio is also part of an ongoing field experiment in Lakehurst, N.J. Using the new, highly-advanced Soldier Radio Waveform to uniquely format information, the Manpack HMS radio successfully transmitted voice, video, data and messages to 25 nodes simulating soldiers operating within a single network.

Joe Miller, director of JTRS programs for General Dynamics C4 Systems, explained the long-term goal of the company this way: “From our perspective the value is not in the radio; the value is in the network. Until you integrate all the systems together, you don’t get any great benefit.”

As its name suggests, HMS comprises a number of different radios. Some are on contract while others remain options. The most numerous of the HMS are the Small Form Fit (SFF) variants, designed to provide embedded radios that will integrate on other platforms to provide them with a communications capability while deriving power and potentially additional environmental protection from them. Characterizing recent changes in the SFF arena, Miller said, “What we are seeing is consolidation of the SFFs.”

The SFF-A is designed to equip the Future Combat System-centric (FCS) Intelligent Munition System and FCS Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS). A second variant, SFF-H, would have operated as a twochannel gateway for SFF-A, but this has now been eliminated in favor of a one- and a two-channel SFF-A. The difference between the two was that the two-channel SFF-A has two Core Radios plus a diplexer.

The SFF-D is identical to the SFF-A, but with the addition of L-band frequencies, and is currently being flown on the Micro Air Vehicle. SFF-E is an optional form factor that provides a two-channel solution for UAVs.

Also in the unmanned world is the SFF-F, originally envisaged as equipping the Small Unmanned Ground Vehicle (SUGV). As Miller noted, however, “That is option on the contract, but rather than develop a new radio, it now looks like they are going to use the SFF-D radio on the FCS SUGV.”

rough conditions. The Manpack HMS radio is also part of an ongoing field experiment in Lakehurst, N.J. Using the new, highly-advanced Soldier Radio Waveform to uniquely format information, the Manpack HMS radio successfully transmitted voice, video, data and messages to 25 nodes simulating soldiers operating within a single network.

Joe Miller, director of JTRS programs for General Dynamics C4 Systems, explained the long-term goal of the company this way: “From our perspective the value is not in the radio; the value is in the network. Until you integrate all the systems together, you don’t get any great benefit.”

As its name suggests, HMS comprises a number of different radios. Some are on contract while others remain options. The most numerous of the HMS are the Small Form Fit (SFF) variants, designed to provide embedded radios that will integrate on other platforms to provide them with a communications capability while deriving power and potentially additional environmental protection from them. Characterizing recent changes in the SFF arena, Miller said, “What we are seeing is consolidation of the SFFs.”

The SFF-A is designed to equip the Future Combat System-centric (FCS) Intelligent Munition System and FCS Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS). A second variant, SFF-H, would have operated as a twochannel gateway for SFF-A, but this has now been eliminated in favor of a one- and a two-channel SFF-A. The difference between the two was that the two-channel SFF-A has two Core Radios plus a diplexer.

The SFF-D is identical to the SFF-A, but with the addition of L-band frequencies, and is currently being flown on the Micro Air Vehicle. SFF-E is an optional form factor that provides a two-channel solution for UAVs.

Also in the unmanned world is the SFF-F, originally envisaged as equipping the Small Unmanned Ground Vehicle (SUGV). As Miller noted, however, “That is option on the contract, but rather than develop a new radio, it now looks like they are going to use the SFF-D radio on the FCS SUGV.”

The SFF plan for the Non Line-of-Sight-Launch System (NLOSLS) has not seen any consolidation, with the SFF-G still providing in-flight communications with the Lockheed Martin Loitering Attack Missile and Raytheon’s Precision Attack Missile. SFF-G is an option on the HMS contract. The SFF-J, the two-channel Type 1 solution that will equip the system’s container launch unit, is under development.

RIFLEMAN RADIO

Perhaps the biggest change in the SFF is the establishment of SFFC( V)1, or Rifleman Radio. SFF-C was originally envisaged as a singlechannel Type 2 solution for Land Warrior infantrymen as an embedded radio but has now been transformed into a stand-alone radio in its own right, still operating the Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW).

“Thales is working with General Dynamics to bring this radio out to the field in the relative near term,” said Felix J. Boccadoro, director of business development and legislative affairs for Thales Communications.

“There has been a need and desire to get SA capability and voice capability down to the squad members. Rather than trying to utilize a radio with its full capabilities, in terms of current waveforms, Rifleman Radio puts a mobile ad hoc networking capability down to the individual soldier. There is a capability production document that is fully staffed by TRADOC, and it’s already made it through to the Joint Requirements Oversight Council.”

The Rifleman Radio differs in a number of key ways from its predecessor SFF-C. “Rifleman Radio took functions that were in the Land Warrior ensemble, like the user interface and Vocoder, and moved them into the radio,” Miller explained. “The internal GPS SAASM was replaced with commercial GPS still supporting automatic position reporting. The Rifleman Radio comes with an MBITR battery that can be removed, and instead the radio can interface to the Land Warrior ensemble for control and power. So it serves a dual role.”

The Rifleman Radio has some unique features, most obviously the absence of a display. “The radio tells the operator the number of the preset channel and Precision Location information through the headset. For the team leader, we are delivering a version with an accessory display—essentially providing a network capability with full SA, soldier tracking and voice for leaders who were not issued the complete Land Warrior ensemble,” Miller said.

SFF-B is also on contract as part of Phase 2 of Increment 1 and will provide two-channel Type 1 communications for Land Warrior ensembles. The SFF-B is capable of multiple independent levels of security. This allows leaders to communicate down to Rifleman Radios, while at the same time communicating up into classified networks.

SFF-K is on contract as single channel, with up to four crypto channels for Navy and Air force fixed wing aircraft. It is primarily targeted for air-to-air combat ranges, but, as Miller noted, “there is no reason why it couldn’t be applied to tactical applications.” Progress has been brisk, with 300 radios delivered to date in support of the Phase 1, early concept demonstration phase (CDP) testing. Officials recently tested an HMS 25 SRW node network at Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst, N.J. A further CDP, once additional software is completed, is scheduled for the fall.

“The first Phase 1 radio to go to soldiers, the Rifleman Radio, is being fielded to the Army’s Evaluation Task Force at Fort Bliss to run a user evaluation in November/December of this year. We just recently delivered the first five of those 65 radios,” Miller said. “These radios will go to a limited user test (LUT) in April 2009, for a Milestone C decision in June of next year.”

That timeframe also includes Milestone C for all the Phase 1 radios. Miller continued, “Many of these radios are embedded in a platform and will be tested with the platform as a system. Therefore the customer is not running these embedded radios through a separate LUT. When we run the Rifleman Radio through the LUT, that will qualify all Phase 1 radios for a Milestone C decision.” If successful, an LRIP award is planned for June or July for the Rifleman Radio and the SFF-A, -H and -D radios.

Radio development for Increment 1 Phase 2 covers Type 1 radios, which are the twochannel manpack, two-channel handheld, and the SFF-J and -B. Work on component modules for this solution is well advanced.

“We have just completed our first 2 MHz– 2.5 GHz Core Radio 2, and we have our first boards assembled and in integration and testing,” said Miller. “By the end of this year we will have our first functioning prototypes. The software is also completing development, and by the end of the year, we will add Type 1 radio services to the software. By the end of the year, the software will be complete, and we will start integration for all of the Type 1 radios.”

The sets will begin set level integration early next year, porting SINCGARS, DAMA SATCOM, HF and both Type 1 and Type 2 versions of SRW.

The requirement for a two-channel handheld has been in abeyance, largely due to design trade-offs associated with thermal issues and technology maturation. Despite the challenges, the requirement still remains and General Dynamics has submitted alternative proposals.

Miller explained some of the options: “You could take a Rifleman Radio approach and modify an SFF-B, converting it to a two-channel handheld, by adding user interfaces and a battery. Alternatively, you could dedicate one channel to just operating Type 2 SRW and the second channel to Type 1 running all the waveforms. There are a series of options with different performance, size and weight characteristics and cost implications. The government is currently evaluating these options.”

WAVEFORM WORK

Work on porting EPLRS, a Type 1 waveform and one of the Increment 1 waveforms, meanwhile, is on hold right now due to an information assurance (IA) security assessment. There are some enterprisewide issues with the waveform, and contractors are awaiting a Department of Defense decision on the way forward.

Miller said, “Raytheon was under contract, and they gave us a complete porting plan, so we know how much it is going to cost and how long it will take, but we are on hold until they determine what the IA solution is.”

Another key waveform is the Mobile User Objective System (MUOS), being developed by General Dynamics under a separate program, providing next generation UHF SATCOM, which is now part of Phase 1. Ported onto the manpack, it will operate using an additional power amplifier type, replacing either of the standard simplex PA on either side of the radio on the HMS manpack design. It will still run the other waveforms when required, however.

“We do not want to burden every one of the radio sets with the costs of the full duplex hardware that MUOS needs,” Miller said. “Ultimately that same circuitry will be integrated into a handheld as well, but we are not going to change the core radio architecture.”

Speed is of the essence with the MUOS capability, he added. “That terminal will be ready in time for the first MUOS satellite launch in early 2010.”

In another move designed to address BLOS capabilities, the HF waveform has been put back on to the requirement for HMS. “We are also starting High Frequency back up on the manpack. That was on hold for a while, but the decision was made in August,” Miller said.

Rockwell Collins is another major player in the program. “We have worked very closely with General Dynamics to add as much value as we can to the manpack, so it does the right job coming to the marketplace,” said Robert Haag, senior director, soldier solutions, for the company. “The HF waveforms, which we are developing and porting, will be turned on in FY 2009. That will give us a nice backup capability should we need a long haul or reachback capability in the fielded manpack.”

As an internally funded solution, ITT and General Dynamics have cooperated to produce the Sidehat, an appliqué radio that attaches to the side of most SINCGARS ASIP radios. It gives the radios the ability to operate the SRW, creating a cost-effective way of introducing the waveform synonymous with JTRS HMS to the widely deployed combat net radio.

Sidehat comprises an ITT electronics board that interfaces to the ASIP radio via a proprietary interface connector and is linked to a Type 2 HMS core radio. This will migrate to a Type 1 solution, as that becomes available next year. Miller said, “What we are trying to do is to get adoption of this under the program of record to make that happen, so we get sponsorship for NSA certification.”

Work on the Sidehat could lead to proliferation of ITT sourced modules into the wider HMS enterprise. Miller said, “Our agreement with ITT says that the ITT SRW transceiver that they are developing is on the Sidehat roadmap to insert along with the General Dynamics Type 1 COMSEC from the program of record. The agreement says that we will analyze the SRW transceiver for SRW-only type sets within HMS to see if there is a cost/benefit of rolling in that technology, and if there is a benefit we will insert it. We are looking at a number of core technologies, and that is just one.”

“SRW has had some significant events. We have now delivered a fully qualified version to the JTRS information repository for the Unattended Ground Sensors and NLOS domains, and we are continuing qualification testing for the dismounted soldier,” said Larry Williams, director, business development, for ITT.

COMMUNICATIONS SYNERGIES

A broad coalition of leading players within the HMS team gives the program direct access to know-how from any resulting synergies with DoD’s transformational programs—JTRS, Warfighter Information Network-Tactical (WIN-T) and FCS communications— in the communications domain.

“BAE Systems is involved on all JTRS programs and WIN-T,” explained Tim Stow, senior director of communications modernization for BAE Systems. “On HMS, we are a co-developer of the embedded radio software and co-producer of SFF radios.

“On WIN-T, we are the co-developer of the JC4ISR radio as well as the lead developer of the embedded radio software,” Stow continued. “The benefit of being involved across all of these programs is we are able to leverage our knowledge and apply our lessons learned to ultimately bringing these capabilities to the warfighter for the JTRS and WIN-T programs.

At the 2008 AUSA annual meeting and exposition held in Washington, D.C., in October, General Dynamics demonstrated similar synergies as part of a DoD-blessed but privately funded effort to show common communication across multiple hardware and software domains. This used a new radio package related to but currently outside of HMS.

The package comprises an HMS core radio in a vehicle application that also supports WiMAX 802.16D+. Miller outlined its growth path this way: “The vehicle radio is designed to house two Core Radio 2s with Type 1 COMSEC, SAASM GPS, and a blackside router needed to run the industry-standard routing protocol. This radio will run all of the JTRS waveforms including WNW. It won’t initially run MUOS because it doesn’t have the MUOS appliqué on it, but it will run everything else.”

“What we are demonstrating here is system- level connectivity,” he continued. “We have an HMS radio in the WIN-T Soldier Network Extension vehicle and inside General Dynamics Land Systems’ Joint Light Tactical Vehicle. We are communicating from these vehicles to a Warrior ensemble via SRW over HMS. HMS position reports have been integrated with both the Warrior display and with the Command Post of the Future [CPOF] as well. SA has been merged across HMS, WIN-T, CPOF and Land Warrior, giving them all a common view of the data.” ♦