DIS-XML: Moving DIS to Open Data Exchange Standards

Abstract

The Distributed Interactive Simulation (DIS) IEEE-1278.1 standard is used in many military simulations. The binary data format for DIS does not lend itself to use in emerging web services standards or data analysis and storage tools because the data format is not recognized by most general purpose data manipulation tools. We examine an alternate XML-based representation of DIS information. An XML representation unlocks legacy data by placing it in a standard data format, and thereby integrates with the many XML data transformation, storage, and analysis tools. An XML-based approach also allows easy generation of programming language Application Program Interfaces (APIs). The information contained in DIS PDUs can shift between any of several representations, including the binary IEEE- 1278.1 standard, XML, or programming language objects. The XML representation can be used in web services applications or passed over instant messaging channels. Initial tests demonstrate satisfactory performance.