TTO Overview 1. DARPA's Tactical Technology Office has a distinguished legacy of high performance air and space vehicles. More recent efforts have also emphasized the affordability of advanced capability vehicles. This is of huge importance in an era of declining defense budgets. The very latest TTO projects are incorporating a new dimension -- knowledge or "e-manning"-- into air, ground and space systems providing new capabilities to the warfighter. This presentation will describe some of TTO's successful ongoing programs, including the benefits they will provide in battle, and how affordability and knowledge have joined high performance as hallmarks of TTO systems. 2. DARPA is a key player in providing information dominance to the battlefield commander, whether the battlefield is at sea, in the air, or on land. The Discoverer II system, now a joint DARPA-Air Force-NRO effort, will address the key problem of data intermittency in target tracking intelligence. The system both develops and relies upon knowledge bases in order to provide birth-to-death tracking. Other TTO programs, including dynamic databases, automated ISR management, digital RF tags, and micro air vehicles, will round out the information picture for the commander. 3. The small unit soldier does not require the comprehensive view provided by ISR systems, but needs to have corresponding detailed knowledge in his limited portion of the battle space. TTO is developing micro air vehicles for "ISR in microcosm." Micro air vehicles will provide force multiplication, I & W and surveillance capabilities which will enhance unit success in performing assault, perimeter security, and urban operations. These micro vehicles can be provided at extremely low cost, and can provide priceless security and effectiveness enhancement at the forward edge of the battle area. 4. In the air battle, TTO is working to reduce risk to tactical aircrews while enhancing air operations effectiveness. The Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle will have the same payload as a manual aircraft while requiring less size and weight and being more survivable. It is ideally suited to perform the most hazardous combat air operations such as SEAD. The Miniature-Air Launch Decoy will greatly complicate the targeting problem faced by enemy anti-aircraft defenses. It can also be filled with sensor suites to provide valuable information to aircrews or commanders. Rotary-wing unmanned vehicles will provide commander with highly capable ISR and combat assets. In space, TTO is working to provide an on-orbit resupply and upgrade capability for high- value space systems. Spacecraft will become more survivable, even in an environment of proliferating anti-satellite systems. New missions will be enabled, and spacecraft will no longer become and remain obsolete while on orbit. 5. The philosophy behind UCAV is to remove weight and volume required by human aircrew support while adding intelligent systems and maneuvering capabilities which will enhance survivability and mission effectiveness. It is designed to go in harm's way, to prevail in an engagement against enemy air defense, and to be affordable. Onboard knowledge-based processing will enable a high degree of autonomy and success against artificial targets. A new capability is to have UCAV fly proactive profiles to stimulate dominant SAM sites into activity and to preemptively engage them at their point. 6. TTO is ensuring that system performance is superior, not only on the battlefield, but also on the total life cycle basis. Long periods of dormancy occur between combat operations, so UCAV is being designed with a 10-year storability feature. It will emerge from storage in ready-to-fly condition. Rather than training operators with expensive live flight operations, a realistic virtual flight training capability will reside within the system. When next called upon for actual operations UCAVs can be rapidly and affordably transported to a forward base and arrive for combat 7. (video) 8. TTO's land system programs share the emphasis on high performance, affordability, and knowledge- based control inherent in the air and space programs. Just as UCAV will reduce risk to tactical aircrews, remotely operated surveillance and targeting platforms will reduce the risk to ground combat units, particularly scouts. Weapon systems being developed will engage incoming adversaries, reducing their effectiveness, while providing enhanced offensive capability. New Power and propulsion systems will increase range and maneuverability, which will be exploited through increased autonomy from knowledge-based control systems. 9. The Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Targeting Vehicle will be the scout platform of the future ground battlefield. Transportable by V-22 Osprey, it will incorporate structural, propulsion, sensor, and weaponry systems to increase capabilities by orders of magnitude. It will access more terrain, collect more combat-relevant data, avoid counter-detection, and prevail in engagements. 10. To truly take advantage of enhanced performance unmanned or "e-manned" battlefield systems will require a leap forward in autonomy and knowledge-based decision making. Programs such as adaptive computing, dynamic databases, and automated ISR management will reduce processing power requirements, increase throughput, and reduce latency. TTO is making major commitments to the hardware, software, and architecture advances necessary to meet the challenge. 11. ISR databases have traditionally been static entities which provide only for user "pull" of catalogued information, and provided no feedback to the information sources. The TTO Dynamic Data Base program will use knowledge to create synergies between information sources -- for example, DTED geographic information predictions of MTI shadow zones -- thereby enhancing effectiveness of information collection. The Dynamic Data Base will "push" information in the form of maps, tracks, images, and classifications to users based upon their profiles. The result will be a revolution in the battlefield utility of ISR information. 12. Each of the TTO development programs will result in high performance, affordable, knowledge - enhanced systems for revolutionary warfighting effectiveness. It is exciting to consider the additional capabilities and extensions which will result from using several of these systems synergistically. "E-manned" systems will multiply the assets available to the commander for battlefield preparation, interdiction, security, and peacekeeping operations, as well as reducing risks to U.S. servicemen at the front lines.