Using automatic identification technologies for logistic support on battlefields of the future\c James D. Kinkade.

Abstract

This thesis analyzes potential uses of automatic identification technologies to support Army forces on future battlefields. The thesis emphasizes radio frequency (RF) tag systems, but also presents an overview and comparison of six other automatic identification technologies (bar codes, optical character recognition, magnetic stripe, smart cards, optical cards, and voice recognition). The dynamics shaping the Army of the future, the characteristics of that Army, and the characteristics of the logistics system that will support it are discussed. Given those characteristics, potential logistic uses of automatic identification technologies (AIT) are considered. Recent Army applications are presented and the results and lessons learned evaluated. The thesis concludes that AIT can play a central role in future Army logistics; in particular, if effectively coupled with existing Army systems, AIT can provide commanders and logisticians with invaluable knowledge about the location and status of essential materiel and its expected arrival time at the desired location. In