High-capacity trunk radio for tactical communication on the digitized battlefield

Effective battlefield command and control that maximizes combat power, coupled with the high-mobility requirements of the battle staff, drives the need for a digitized battlefield network employing on-the-move, high-capacity wireless communications. The target high-capacity trunk radio (HCTR) link is a 156-megabits per second (Mbps), 64-QAM radio that operates in a 40-MHz bandwidth at a frequency between 4 and 8 GHz, and is able to achieve 99.9-percent path reliability and link-length maximums of 40 kilometers (km) for stationary ends operating at any location worldwide at any time. For links with one end on the move, the target HCTR is a 45-Mbps, 4-QAM, 40-MHz bandwidth radio or a 45-Mbps, 16-QAM, 20-MHz bandwidth radio with a maximum path length of 20 km; other characteristics remain unchanged. The goal of the program outlined in this paper is to ensure that wideband on-the-move radios can be built to satisfy these needs. The HCTR is intended to be a nondevelopmental item, with initial fielding of a scalable prototype in fiscal year 1996 for the digitized battlefield. The requisite HCTR link performance model comprises complementary models of the on-the-move wideband channel and the HCTR technology. This paper discusses the elements of these models and concludes with an illustrative method for using the performance model to determine maximum link lengths