Background
The Boeing Company, in conjunction with our partner Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), together acting as Future Combat Systems (FCS) Lead Systems Integrator (LSI) for the Army, is pleased to announce a new Request for Information for network technologies related to networked voice communications. FCS is a networked "system of systems." It utilizes advanced communications and technologies to link soldiers with unmanned air platforms, ground platforms, and sensors. The FCS network is a mobile ad hoc network that will be primarily IP based, but will also support legacy technologies with high levels of information assurance.
In addition to this RFI effort, the FCS LSI is working on different but related networking technologies that may impact voice performance. The LSI has the task to determine the tolerable voice quality limits for MANET (Mobile Ad Hoc Network) performance parameters in terms of delay, packet-loss, and jitter for end-to-end voice packet transportation. A part of this effort takes into account other sources of voice quality degradations stemming from acoustic design (handset/headset/microphone etc.) and environmental noise (such as inside a manned combat vehicle). In addition, the Quality-of-Service design in the FCS network will provide some degree of preferential treatment (in terms of per hop behavior) to voice packets from the QoS assurance and contention perspective in contrast with other data and media services sharing the converged FCS IP network.
Description
Boeing is sending out this RFI to identify and understand ongoing work in networking technologies with the focus on fields that may assist the LSI's SDSI (Software and Distributed Systems Integration) IPT in the following tasks as applied to tactical MANET networks:
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) Applications:
Before the transport mechanism gets involved, there is a basic need for a VoIP (Voice over IP) application running outside the radio. This application prepares and transmits IP packets to the radio subsystem for subsequent wireless transmission. The FCS LSI is looking for emerging technology approaches for VoIP applications optimized for use in the tactical MANET environment. This application would make use of the SIP protocol which has been selected for use on FCS. The VoIP application must be capable of supporting unicast (point-to-point) voice, multicast between many users, and be able to emulate the combat net radio function of Push-to-Talk (PTT) voice. Novel approaches are encouraged to maximize throughput and minimize network overhead while providing quality intelligible voice to the user. A man-machine interface is assumed as a part of the VoIP application.
Low bit rate CODECs for deployment in MANET environment:
As a separate capability (or integrated as a part of the VoIP application), a CODEC is required. This RFI is seeking information on current breakthroughs of speech CODECs and CODEC compression. Of special interest are efforts for robust voice low-bit rate CODECs (preferably less than 2.4 kb/s) that can operate within acceptable voice quality limits in tactical MANET environment experiencing 25% or more packet-losses and approximate 1.5 second end-to-end delays. As discussed above, the CODECs of interest need to be optimized for use in MANET environments or at a minimum shown via test or simulation that they will perform well in these environments.
Loss Concealment Techniques:
Due to the inherent challenges in MANET networks and the unavoidable signal intermittence, the operating scenarios for FCS will induce high BERs for the communication networks, This high BER maps directly into high IP packet error rates (PER). The FCS LSI is looking for loss concealment techniques that will aid the network in lowering the expected PERs while at the same time minimizing any additional network overhead. It is understood that these techniques realistically will add overhead to the network. The goal is to add a loss concealment technique(s) to the voice packets that will help to avoid the need for packet/message retransmittals and reduce the associated overhead, i.e. the loss concealment overhead should be less than that required if packet/message retransmission was required. This will guarantee an overall reduction in network overhead.
Multicast applications
The VoIP deployment for the FCS voice architecture needs robust multicasting capabilities in MANET environments to support Push-To-Talk (PTT) and conferencing modes of communications.
Due to factors such as failures and degradation of wireless links and/or network hosts, routing delays (the time between when a multicast message is sent and when it is received) may vary among the recipient processes. Moreover due to errors and/or failures in the network, the machines, or the runtime support, a message may not be received by one or more of the processes at all. Therefore, when employing a multicasting mechanism for an application such as voice, it is important to define the appropriate measures that the application must handle when anomalies occur during message delivery. Given that the basic multicast is connectionless and unreliable, the messages are not guaranteed to be safely delivered to each participant. A reliable multicast system ensures that each message sent to a multicast group is delivered correctly to each participant. A reliable multicast protocol needs to be defined that is applicable in the FCS network.
Also, the traditional multicast protocols based on shortest path algorithms may not work well in the wireless environment of the FCS network and may require QoS-aware multicast protocols to meet the performance requirements for PTT and conferencing services.
Thus, LSI wants to understand more about the current promising cost-effective proposals and techniques for solving multicast in a MANET environment.
Technology Demonstrations
As part of the RFI response, the responder may be requested to demonstrate their proposed capabilities in the FCS Systems Integration Lab (SIL) in Huntington Beach, California or in their own system laboratory environment.
RFI Response Outline
The responder to this RFI is requested to submit a comprehensive data package which is to include the following information.
- Technology White Paper (no more than 15 single-sided pages) The white paper should respond to the request for information outlined in the "Description" section above, including the offerer's existing and near-term products and technologies applicable to VoIP in a MANET environment.
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Experience and Capabilities (no more than 10 single-sided pages) In addition to your white paper, please address the following items as they relate to this RFI, as appropriate:
- Research areas (past and current)
- Applicable experience (past and current)
- Customer experience (past and current work with Army or other DoD)
- Program experience (i.e., other FCS involvement)
- Workforce experience and capabilities (e.g., in design, analysis, development, testing)
- Small or Disadvantaged Business Status, if applicable
This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. Responses to the RFI will not be returned. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with this RFI. The LSI reserves the right to issue no awards arising out of this RFI.
The responder can choose to address only one or more of the above technical areas depending on their expertise. The solutions provided will be evaluated on their merits and different responders may be chosen for each of the technical areas.
The deadline for RFI package submittal is 15 August 2007. Information contained in the RFI response may be utilized for future FCS Requests for Proposals.
In addition to the technical and program information requested, the respondent is requested to complete the attached questionnaire and send their response to the email address fcsee@boeing.com or the address listed below.
Point of contact:
Dr. Arun Arunachalam
Phone: 714-896-1108 (office) or 949-677-2819 (cell)
The mailing address is:
The Boeing Company
Future Combat Systems
5301 Bolsa Ave. MC H017-D626
Huntington Beach, CA 92647-2003
Attention: David Williams
Phone: 714-896-2398 (office) or 714-625-5532 (cell)
RFI Respondent should not include in its response any classified information in the preparation of its response unless appropriate advance arrangements have been made as evidenced by authorized instruments. RFI Respondent should contact the appropriate Boeing Subcontract Manager immediately if RFI Respondent intends to submit classified information in its response to Boeing. See paragraph below entitled "Classified Information" for further information.
Proprietary Information
In the event the respondent to this RFI wishes to provide and protect proprietary information, the respondent is requested to sign and return the two-way, Proprietary Information Exchange Agreement (PIEA) . To ensure proper safeguarding of Proprietary Information, do not send such information until the PIEA has been executed by both parties.
Proprietary Information Exchange Agreement (PIEA) & Questionnaire download page.
Classified Information
Contact Dr. Arun Arunachalam using the contact information provided above prior to submittal of any classified information to Boeing in response to this RFI.