A methodology to enhance Urban Reconnaissance UGV requirements through simulation

Regarding to the increasing complexity of military systems, the development of initial system requirements matching with the user expectations, the architectural constraints and the technical standards is critical for the final performance and the global cost of the system. Computer simulation offers an efficient, fast and cheap way to evaluate, and even enhance, some of these user requirements at the earliest steps of the design process. Based on the example of a Reconnaissance Unmanned Ground Vehicle concept issued from the UK MOD, this research proposes a methodology to enhance and validate military systems’ requirements through a suite of appropriate simulation tools. The modelling approach proposed consists of three successive phases, each phase providing new insights used to complete and refine the initial user requirements captured in a Requirements Management tool (Doors) database: - The validation of the operational requirements, of which the aims are to simulate the specified capabilities of the UGV in a realistic scenario and to generate insights about new possible capabilities, - The modelling of the UGV’s environment in a standard architecture framework (DoDAF) in order to identify all the assets of the system of system and its functional breakdown, - The behavioural modelling of the vetronics (Vehicle Electronics) architecture, leading to identify the most appropriate architectural and technological standards to support the UGV functionalities. While existing tools and methodologies were identified to support the system’s environment and the behavioural models, a Computer Aided War Gaming (CAWG) tool was developed to implement the modelling of the operational capabilities. The qualitative and quantitative results obtained on a reconnaissance scenario tool were used to improve the initial UGV requirements. The CAWG itself got positive feedbacks after a demonstration to the UK MOD.