ease new vision for ms informs nov 2011 v2

U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command

U.S. Army Research Lab (ARL)

Human Research & Engineering Directorate (HRED)

SFC Paul Ray Smith

Simulation & Training Technology Center (STTC)

U.S. ARL STTC

12423 Research Parkway

Orlando, FL 32826

*UNCLASSIFIED/APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE*

Executable Architecture Systems Engineering (EASE), A New Vision for M&S

INFORMS Charlotte 2011 Annual Conference

November 16, 2011

Henry Marshall , Science & Technology Manager

Advanced Simulation Branch

407- 384-3820 / [email protected]

www.matrex.rdecom.army.mil

SFC Paul Ray Smith Simulation & Training Technology Center

2 *UNCLASSIFIED / APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE*

Distributed Modeling & Simulation is Difficult

Subject Matter Expert Simulation Engineer

Manager

I want to simulate the operations of my new system being executed in the

field.

Sure, great! What exactly are your new systems operational environment

requirements?

Just use my system model, in a simulated operational environment, Need it

soon! .

But, what actually needs to be modeled? And when is soon?

This is a real simple Simulation problem dummy, Such a geek!

What! We need details on the experiments terrain, force structure, model

fidelity, etc.

Why can’t you plug together the latest versions of the best models?

No, they don’t work together yet! That is why you need me to make them

interoperate!

We’re behind schedule and we have limited funding! We need a

Enterprise tool to ease and expedite distributed simulation.



Requirements for an M&S Enterprise System

• Difficulty in developing M&S environments

– Hard for users to identify the best models

for their environments

– Hard for users to compose environments

• Should provide a process to maximize the

automatic deployment and configuration of

environments based on models requirements

vs. environmental requirements

• Should provide an overarching enterprise

system to manage M&S models development

and sustainment over their long life cycle – Should make it easy for developers to track high level

requirements, system design, architecture, threads,

Federation Object Model (FOM), application

specifications, and interface agreements

• Should provide tools and processes to facilitate

interoperability among models according to the

captured high level functional requirements

Photos Credit: United States Army

Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC)



Requirements for an M&S Enterprise System (Cont.)

• Should manage/provide surrogate models

where ones are not available or under

development

• Should provide data collection to support the

After Action Review (AAR) and exercise data

log analysis by the Users

• Should manage execution of the simulation

providing a rapid execution launcher

• Should provide a way for M&S to harness the

power of cloud computing allocating resources

between physical machines (e.g.

workstation/simulator) and virtual machines (e.g.

constructive simulation)

• Possibility - future large DoD-wide cloud of

processors providing powerful computational

support for users to conduct M&S


Program Office for Simulation Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI)



EASE Prototype Concept

EASE User

Interface /

Coordination

AAR /

Data

Deploy Asset Management Models & Simulations

Surrogates

M&S Users

M&S Developers M&S System Engineers



EASE Components

Deploy Asset

Management

System Design

Description

(SDD) EASE Interview

SE

Bri

dge

Workflow System

Systems Engineer Developers and

Integration Engineers M&S User Hardware and

Network Engineers

Software Hardware



Systems

Engineering

Challenges for M&S Interoperability

Interoperability:

• Common medium (Middleware)

• Same language (English)

• Shared understanding (Subject)

Syntax Model Metadata

Semantics

Operational

Needs

Challenges:

• Technical protocol connectivity (HLA vs DIS)

• Data structure alignment and mapping (Platform vs EntityState)

• Semantic meaning alignment (SitRep : Report vs Detection)

• Execution Agreements (time management, dead reckoning, etc.)

• Fidelity and resolution differences



Data

Collection

Event Objectives

Warfare Functions

Modeling Design

Performance Data

Data Queries Pseudocode

Scenarios

Computing Asset Data

Automation

Test Cases

Execution Specifications

Model

Requirements

Data-Driven Systems Engineering

Model

Deployment &

Configuration

System Design Execution Details

Collected data traceable to

event objectives



Requirements System of System Requirements

What Modeling & Simulation Functions

How Design Decisions

Functional

Requirements

Technical

Requirements

M&S Functions

Architecture

Strategies Modeling Design

Decisions

Re

aliz

e

Sequence Diagrams Object Model

Who

Components

Software Applications

Technical Specification

Traceable Technical

Design Artifacts

Subsystem

Requirements

Publish / Subscribe

Details Matrix

Auto-Generated

Test Cases

Event-Specific

Functionally-Driven

Design Products

Test Stimuli /

Validation

System Design Description (SDD)

Initial Requirements tracking for EASE based

On SDD used to generate User Interview



Interview System for M&S User



Interview System for SE User



M&S User Interview Example



Execution Results



Applications in EASE

Mode –

What the application will do

Scenario –

What data initializes the

application

Trap–

What data to capture from

the Application

Stand Alone Application Composition

Mode

Trap Scenario



EASE Manages the Execution

Cooperation

(How applications work together)

Network Layout Bonded

Configuration Event

Sequence

Mode

Coop

Scenario

Trap

Mode

Coop

Scenario

Trap



EASE Collects Results

Cooperation

(How applications work together)

HLA Results OneSAF AAR

Desktop Video

Capture (Live and

Recorded)

Generated Data

Capture

…

…

EASE allocates applications to computers resources,

manages application execution and collects results for review

Mode

Trap

Scenario

Coop

Mode

Trap

Scenario

Coop

Mode

Trap

Scenario

Coop



Interview

Platform as a Service

Cloud Resource Pool

EASE Prototype Cloud Execution

• Single interface into a group of execution sites

• Disparate customer environments possible

EASE Orlando

288 GB RAM

48 Processors

Remote Site

Alpha

Additional RAM

Additional Processors

…

…

…

• Slice the resources into segmented execution environments for

multiple users

• Dedicate a large amount

of resources to a single

execution environment



Middleware Abstraction

MATREX ProtoCore Software Library Used

by EASE

Static Object Oriented and type safe Application Programming Interface (API)

Plug-in architecture allows models to be middleware agnostic.

Middleware protocols / architectures include: HLA 1.3, IEEE 1516, TENA, and OneSAF

SORD/RDM

Software reuse for reliable and consistent functionality

SoS architecture agreements implemented: dead-reckoning, coordination conversions,

etc.

Code generation of object model classes allow flexibility for object model changes

Model Object Model Classes

Plug-in Architecture

Java and C++

Implementation

Code Generation

Object

Model

HLA

1516

HLA

NG TENA SORD

SoS Architecture Agreements

MATREX: Modeling Architecture for

Technology, Research and EXperimentation

HLA: High-Level Architecture

TENA: Test & Training ENabling Architecture

OneSAF: One Semi-Automated Forces

SORD: Simulation Object Runtime Database

RDM: Runtime Data Model

IEEE: Institute of Electrical and Electronics

Engineers



MATREX Advanced Test Capability

(ATC) used by EASE

Tool that provides ‘black box’ testing of applications within the SoS design

Allows developers to test their individual components without having to bring up the entire

set of systems

Allows the user to create a sequence of actions or events to stimulate the federate under

test and validate its response received

Generates source code which is then run to execute the test and verify result

Middleware and object model agile (built on the ProtoCore)

Test cases stored in eXtensible Markup Language (XML)

XML can be exported from MagicDraw or the MATREX systems engineering tool

Test Application XML SoS SE Tool

MagicDraw

XML

ATC



Wrap up

Our objective is to continue research in the

following areas:

Make it easier to execute complex

distributed M&S

Provide guidance on the best ways to

encapsulate distributed M&S capabilities

Use Platform as a Service technology to

manage simulation assets

EASE is a prototype ready for application

specific requirements

We could also use your help with:

Feedback on our direction

Pointers to other groups we might be able to

collaborate with

Questions?


Program Office for Simulation Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI)

ease new vision for ms informs nov 2011 v2

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