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HARTLEY CONSULTING
Solving
Complex Operational and Organizational Problems

PROJECT: SIMNET IV&V

Dr. Dean S. Hartley III


Project Metadata Keywords
Label Name Other Year DurationYrs
Client TRAC US Army
Dates 1989 1.5
Employer DOE Oak Ridge Facilities
Partner N/A
Pubs Verification and Validation of SIMNET-T, K/DSRD-117 lead author 1990
Pubs Phase I Verification and Validation of SIMNET-T, K/DSRD-116 lead author 1990
Team Kara L. Kruse, John D. Quillinan
Configuration management
Data Verification & Validation
Independent Verification & Validation (IV&V)
Metadata
Modeling, Simulation & Gaming (MSG)
Software issues
Software reuse
Training
Verification, Validation & Accreditation (VV&A)
Virtual environment
Vulnerability analysis
Warfare modeling

Challenge: Two separate, but related, challenges and projects involved the independent verification and validation (IV&V) of aspects of SIMulation NETwork (SIMNET) system. The first challenge occurred when the US Army was presented with the Defense Advanced Projects Agency (DARPA) developed SIMNET system. As the Army was expected to use and pay for the system, it was interested in determining the system's validity. DSRD was asked to perform IV&V on the system. At the time, no records of IV&V being performed on a combat model could be found. Thus DSRD both defined and executed the concept, described here.

The second challenge occurred when the Army wanted to test the concept of expanding SIMNET training from battalion training to division level training. DSRD performed IV&V on the effectiveness of the training, described in WAREX 3-90.


Accomplishment: In the first project, DSRD defined what should be meant by IV&V of a combat model and how it should be reported. DSRD investigated the algorithms used in the model, particularly in the trajectory and vulnerability areas. Several issues were determined to questions of degree, in which the size of the errors were reported to the sponsor, who was required to determine whether to accredit the algorithms. A few issues were determined to include invalid algorithms where recommendations were made to modify the algorithms. These problems involved trajectories on non-level terrain. A third category of issue involved recommendations that the model be designed to use extant data or the appropriate source be commissioned to develop the needed data.

Figure 1. Error in Modeling Trajectories

Figure 2. Error in Modeling Effect of Vehicle Cant


Technologies Employed: This project represents one of the limited number of IV&V activities ever performed on combat models and one of the earliest. It helps define the meaning of IV&V of a combat model and represents standards for future projects in the Distributed Interactive Simulation (DIS) arena.


Background: The sponsor for the this project was the US Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) Analysis Command (TRAC), Fort Leavenworth, KS. TRAC was to be analytically responsible for SIMNET.


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