ASAS
New Ways to Leverage Human Analytical Power
by Colonel Theodore G. Chopin
The current and future versions of the All-Source
Analysis System (ASAS) may never contain all of the desired
functionality identified by the Military Intelligence (MI) Corps as
a necessary part of the ASAS. The course of MI doctrinal
development, increasingly rapid advances in technology, and MI
professionals' different ways of supporting commanders guarantee
the continuing reality that we will always be catching up. Success,
then, in building and fielding improvements to the current ASAS
software and hardware must always be relative to the perception of
whether the combat and materiel development communities are doing
as well as they are able and expected to do.
This article will not attempt to force the reader to adopt a
perception. Instead it will deal with some of the important
principles that are emerging as the underpinning to the program's
current and future focus and direction. An understanding of these
principles should help guide the formulation of the perception. In
other words, the ASAS program leadership ought to have some areas
of mutual, continued focus in order that they might make the best
prioritization decisions.
ASAS RWS
There are four major parts which comprise the ASAS system of
systems
- All-Source.
- Single-Source.
- ASAS Remote Workstation (RWS).
- Communications.
Of these, two are really more important components of
this entire system and should take precedence in most resourcing
considerations.
For overall ASAS operations, the most important part of the system
is the ASAS RWS. This is the part of the total ASAS system that is
the primary intelligence presentation device. It is also the tool
that provides the majority of the intelligence workstation
capability that many MI leaders and soldiers have at their
immediate disposal. Also of critical importance is the fact that
this is the MI battlefield functional area (BFA) plug into the Army
Battle Command System (ABCS).
The "remote" designation in its name says that this combination of
machine and software has been designed for operation outside the
Analysis and Control Element (ACE). Whether located at echelons
above corps, division, brigade, armored cavalry regiment, separate
brigade or battalion, this intelligence workstation is key to
successful ASAS operations.
At lower echelons, the need for the RWS to contain and manipulate
large amounts of data decreases. So, at the battalion level, the
paramount need is for the RWS to manage only the limited amount of
information necessary to create and present the current relevant
enemy picture. The RWS will also provide well-integrated and
automatic tools which allow the intelligence operator to accomplish
his mission. Both the current fielding of today's RWS (the RWS
Version 1 with Warlord software), and the feverish development pace
of the next generation RWS aim toward this end. Task Force XXI will
receive that RWS. Its designation is ASAS RWS Version 3 (V3).
Following discovery, experimentation, and testing of resident
capabilities in this next generation workstation, the next
generation fielded ASAS RWS, Version 4, will incorporate these
lessons learned. Regardless of which version is in the field, the
RWS will remain "the pointed edges of the spear" for the MI Corps'
primary weapon system, the ASAS!
ASAS All-Source
The second important part of ASAS is the All-Source functionality
in the ACE. This key element of the system is steering the
developmental and operational effort to best leverage the power of
the ASAS. Underlying resource allocation decisions at all levels
should be the understanding that to leverage the current and future
systems' power to the fullest extent possible, the focus must be on
getting all available information into the All-Source Correlated
Data Base (ASCDB). This is where the most powerful part of the ASAS
software resides. The unit that focuses ACE operational effort on
getting intelligence collection and preprocessing outputs into the
ASCDB can realize the most complete, relevant, and timely
intelligence production. The mechanisms and concepts associated
with leveraging all this single database's fusion capability are
new to our Corps. The principles are complex. The database is a
single, multidimensional one.
Figure 1.
We are asking all of our analysts and leaders to exercise new
dynamic analytical methodology before the data arrives. They
must establish inventive and complete normalization definitions,
multiple alarm sets, desired coefficients of correlation, required
output data-element compression ratios, and many more such
seemingly esoteric values. This is becoming a new lexicon of the
Army MI Corps. The often improved ASAS Block I all-source software
and hardware has these capabilities today. Admittedly, they are not
as user-friendly as we would like and as the software will become.
This fact, however, is not a valid excuse to avoid its use. The
fact is, it performs. The smartest leaders and operators are using
its power today.
As the Block II program progresses, additional functionality will
be integrated and it will become easier to use. The facilitators
for this part of the ASAS to become more useful have been the
conversion of the ACE all-source platforms to the DEC Alpha reduced
instruction set computing (RISC) machinery, and the outstanding
post-deployment, software support work that has been done by the
Communications and Electronics Command.
In other words, the all-source capability that is in every ACE
today is not the capability that was there a year ago. The speed
and completeness with which the software can now operate has made
it effective to invest the time and effort needed to really focus
on the all-source functionality. MI commanders and G2s are now
allowing their operators to get sufficient numbers of weekly hours
on their machines working real and exercise traffic to be able to
establish and maintain proficient operators. Given that
opportunity, we can realize actual benefits.
These two parts of the ASAS (the RWS and the ACE system) are key to
leveraging its current power. But, of course, they cannot and do
not stand alone. Without the single-source functionality and
communications gateways in the ACE, the ASAS as a "system of
systems" does not function. They are both vitally important too.
Application of Lessons Learned
We continue to move toward new single-source, all-source, remote
workstation, and communications software packages, all integrated
into a common hardware and software infrastructure. We are
beginning to make some of the lessons we have learned in the last
few years pay off more fully. The Program Manager Intelligence
Fusion will deliver this new capability to all ASAS users.
Human-computer interfaces will improve. Software throughout the
ABCS will become much more common and intuitive to operate. We will
establish new and powerful linkages between processes which will
allow operators to make single entries and receive valuable,
immediate feedback. allowing the analyst to spend time doing real
analysis.
Until now we have primarily focused on getting a capability to the
field. Whether it was the original Block I hardware and software,
the improved hardware and software, or the Block I software on the
ASAS-Extended commercial hardware variant, the first priority was
to get something in the hands of our MI Corps. It has provided a
limited capability and helped us begin to learn from experience the
priorities for the next generation systems. This has been done.
Software Support
A special word on software support is germane to this article. It
takes the cooperation of all and considerable resources to continue
to be successful. Key to our future success in making the ASAS
better and more interoperable with the other systems on the
battlefield, is the requirement to adequately support software
after fielding. In many ways, the fielding of the ASAS across the
force has defined the new paradigm in this vitally important area.
This new paradigm is full-time, on-site software support led by a
robust BFA software engineering structure. No central software
laboratory will ever be able to replicate all the interoperability
requirements of our force. It is a fact that each unit is different
and has different software interoperability requirements. It is
therefore absolutely essential that software support be available
on-site for a "system of systems" as complicated as ABCS and the
ASAS.
Not all share this view! More than any other threat to our
continued short-term success is the move to limit this software
support function. It is this author's opinion that we must all
understand and stay engaged in this important dialogue over the
coming years if we are to maximize our success in digitizing our
Army.
Outlook
Now, within resources provided, we will move on to provide more of
the critical operational capability required by MI warriors to
answer increasingly demanding questions. Using the established
software development and support infrastructure, we can maintain
and enhance the horizontal interoperability of the current ASAS
while building interoperability within the ABCS and Global Command
and Control System (GCCS) as they are fielded. It is and will
continue to be the Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) System
Manager's job to coordinate all ASAS efforts to capture new
requirements and drive improvements in the current system.
There is no one magic solution for the intelligence soldier. ASAS
will not do it all. The proficiency levels demanded of us and all
our people in communications, collection, preprocessing,
processing, and fusion are large and growing.
The age of the information warrior is only beginning to be
understood and dealt with in a meaningful way. With cooperation,
maintenance of proficiency and training, and the provision of
reasonable funding, we will continue to make great strides.
Colonel Chopin has been the TRADOC System Manager,
ASAS, since 1992. He has had a varied career including a number of
command and staff positions at field stations in Europe and an
assignment at the National Security Agency. Colonel Chopin is an
Army War College graduate. He has a bachelor degree in Business
Administration from Georgia State University and a master of
science degree in Systems Management from the University of
Southern California. Readers can reach Colonel Chopin at (520)
533-3504 and DSN 821-3504. For additional information, visit TSM
ASAS on the World Wide Web at http://www.tsmasas.army.mil.