SBIR-STTR Award

Hierarchical Analysis for Diverse Domain Assignment and Scheduling
Award last edited on: 3/31/2023

Sponsored Program
STTR
Awarding Agency
DOD : AF
Total Award Amount
$156,413
Award Phase
1
Solicitation Topic Code
AF21B-T001
Principal Investigator
David Sudit

Company Information

Barnstorm Research Corporation

PO Box 2148
Methuen, MA 01844
   (339) 224-2562
   ideas@barnstormresearch.com
   www.barnstormresearch.com

Research Institution

CUBRC

Phase I

Contract Number: FA8750-22-C-0266
Start Date: 12/23/2021    Completed: 5/23/2022
Phase I year
2022
Phase I Amount
$156,413
The battle space is evolving to be more complex. This increases the challenge on human operators performing mission planning. Complexity comes from planning across domain (ie. air, land, cyber, etc.) and accounting for the chain of command within each of those domains. Giving human operators an autonomous capability that can assist in mission planning across the domains and the chain of command will allow for shorter more accurate planning cycles. Hierarchical Analysis for Diverse Domain Assignment and Scheduling (HADAS) will create a mathematical foundation for planning at each level of the hierarchy and provide a mathematical methodology of traversing up and down the hierarchy. HADAS will use a rule engine to ensure interactions with human operators are efficient across all domains. HADAS will provide human operators with the ability to solve their planning problem, adhere to commands from superiors and determine if human intervention is needed to find a better or feasible solution. HADAS will do this by using three mathematical techniques: Tiered Mathematical Models, Downstream Constraint Flow, and Upstream Constraint Relaxation Flow. For each level of the hierarchy a new type of model will be defined that aligns with data available and decisions being made at that level. The models will increase in complexity going from a Caps and Lims model down to a Scheduling model at the lowest level. HADAS will create global constraints for each human operator node based on the solution of the parent node. This will prevent complexity of the models from growing down the hierarchy. HADAS will react to infeasibility by computing the slack of constraints using error models. The slack or tightness of constraints found by solving the error models will convey to upstream components where improvements can be made. HADAS will use Intelligent Exchange (IntellEx), a CUBRC developed capability, to facilitate the passing of information up and down the hierarchy and across the domains. Rules will be develop global constraints down the hierarchy to correct human operator nodes. IntellEx will also contain rules that determine if human intervention is needed to find a feasible solution. IntellEx has the ability to analyze the solutions of the various mathematical models and determine the question needed to be answered by the human operator.

Phase II

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Start Date: 00/00/00    Completed: 00/00/00
Phase II year
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Phase II Amount
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