Fire control-based adaptation in data fusion applications

In military command & control applications, the information quality requirements are very context-dependent and seldom predefined. This leaves much room for adaptation. In this paper, the duration of the search & lock-on operations of the fire control radar is estimated and used as an adaptation trigger. The proposed estimation process aims at establishing a quantitative relationship between the quality of the tactical picture and the reaction time available for decision-making. Based on the target´s time of flight, the defensive weapon properties, and the desired range of interception, admissible operational conditions and constraints for the fire control radar are derived to allow the weapon system to achieve its planned interception. These conditions and constraints are re-expressed in terms of tracking quality requirements. Then, adaptation mechanisms are used to select and tune the tracking algorithms and/or manage sensors in order to meet those requirements.