Distributed Agent-Based Networks In Support of Advanced Marine Corps Command And Control Concept

Abstract

The capabilities that Mobile Ad Hoc Networking (MANET) technologies can provide to the Marine Corps are just fully coming into view. These new capabilities represent a much more apparent symbiotic relationship between maneuver at the tactical level and the capabilities of a network that supports that maneuver. However, in order to properly leverage these capabilities, a paradigm shift in what networks are and how they are managed must take place. As this new model of meshed, ad-hoc network devices presents a shift in how we employ our networks, the concept of network management must also shift in how we view planning and maintaining networks. This research describes a communication framework and network management system (NMS) that supports the design of network aware systems that enable a robust self-management capability in MANETs.