Is iJBCP a viable option for Voice, Video and Position Location Information to Command and Control dismounted operations?
The suite of Team Awareness Kits (TAK) provides the ability to command and control organizations conducting operations from their vehicles down to the individual dismounted Soldier. But what if you don’t have TAK today? Don’t expect to get fielded any time soon, or maybe not get it at all. What options exist for these units? Fortunately, another option for providing command and control is under development by the Mission Command Support Center and is under testing and evaluation by the 7th Infantry Division.
The Internet Joint Battle Command Platform (iJBCP)-Unclassified is a web-based tracking platform that is designed to display Situational Awareness (SA) Common Operational Picture (COP) for single or multiple areas of operations. iJBCP-Unclassified provides unit position location information as well as element-to-element chat functionality. iJBCP-Unclassified is accessible from NIPR computers and Government Mobile Devices.
iJBCP-Unclassified web portal allows full functionality similar to JBCP systems inside a tactical vehicle or a Tactical Operations Center (TOC), to include creating and sharing graphics, intelligence, and situational awareness with unit position location information. This enables commanders at all echelons the ability to locate elements within their area of operations on the map. Furthermore, a chat functionality is available between all physical JCR/JBCP roles and iJBCP roles.
At its initial design, iJBCP-Unclassified does not have the ability to view dismounted PLI; but when combined with SHOUT Nano and Microsoft Teams, any soldier equipped would be able to project their PLI, maintain situational awareness of the operation and communicate through voice and video, all from their mobile device. When these systems are combined, leaders have the ability to command and control their formation from an unclassified government phone or tablet; watching their troops movement live, text chat with Soldiers on the ground, and call or video conference as needed.
iJBCP-Unclassified interface will seem intuitively familiar to anyone that’s used JCR/JBCP and Google products as the main portal interface and functions are laid out in a similar way to standard JCR/JBCP, while the messaging system resembles Gmail and Google Hangouts.
Mobile access on iJBCP currently uses 3 factor authentication where uses are currently required to login to the Mission Command Support Center portal via CAC authentication, login to iJBCP with personal credentials, and finally with a role name and password. In order to facilitate easier access to the system without compromising security, 7th Infantry Division is collaborating with Mission Command Support Center to test and expand the mobile iJBCP capability and features.
We are working with YubiKey to pilot soft certificates for authentication on personal mobile devices. YubiKey is an authorized form of multi-factor authentication for DoD certificates that works by plugging in a small USB drive with a USB-C or Apple Lightning connector into a personal mobile device, allowing for CAC authentication. Our goal at 7th Infantry Division G6 is to enable the use of government or personal mobile devices with YubiKey authentication so that leaders can see real time positions of their troops in operations, send messages, participate in voice or video calls, and reduce the equipment needed for communications while conducting dismounted operations.
There are some current limitations to iJBCP-Unclassified which we have partnered w/ Mission Command Support Center to find solutions for. A few of those issues are listed below:
· No ability to add graphics to the COP from a mobile device.
· No ability to send graphics from iJBCP to physical JBCP systems.
· No ability to provide preformatted reports from mobile devices.
Our initial assessment is that the unclassified version of iJBCP offers some of the capabilities found in the suite of TAK systems. Its compatibility with JCR/JBCP systems, combined with Microsoft Teams, provides an alternative option for voice, video and PLI from their unclassified mobile device at little to no cost to the organization. What are your thoughts? Is this a viable option for voice, video and PLI to command control our dismounted operations?
To our collective success...
3yGlad I ran across your post. I recently supported (from my FORSCOM Foxhole) a CORPS who is using WebTAK and loves that option. Meanwhile, in good Army fashion, there is a program in development. In the instance above, the platform worked well for C2. They had some issues with Chat and separating threads/thoughts, but overall they believe it is a viable option. Assume this would be used CONUS and OCONUS, which would encourage more cell phone usage and provide a cell signature IF there is a cell tower in the AO to ping from.
Student at U.S. Naval War College
3yThis is an excellent move. Excited to see how it plays out. I've recently wondered if the L-Band network that JBCP operates on can be used to facilitate non-traditional voice traffic. It would rely on NLP algorithms for speech to text, and then text to speech, to convey "voice messages" via data without the traditional limitations that BLOS voice networks require.
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3yRonnie Geronimo that looks like a viable option to overcome the challenges of not having the amount of JCRs that it would take to help every warfighter. I can see this used in sustainment operations as well. I would definitely use it for BSA defense positions.