Method for sustaining radio frequency (RF) based communications connectivity during network outages

• US 7,082,296 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2002
• Issued: 07/25/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Northrop Grumman Corporation
• Inventors: Zavidniak, M. Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelin, Jean
• Assistant Examiner(s): Miller, Brandon J.
• Application Number:
  US10/125,448
• Publication Number:
  US 20030199266A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,558 Days
• Field of Search: 455/1, 455 8- 9, 455/63.1, 455/63.3, 455/410, 455/67.13
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72511 Searching for available channels

Abstract

A method and system are disclosed for ensuring data availability for a plurality of programmable radios that are waveform agile and that are capable of operating over a plurality of different data links. An enterprise network management tool makes a determination of the threat states for each waveform supported on the programmable radios, and the enterprise network management tool communicates with the programmable radios to advise the programmable radios that a waveform has been compromised. The threat states determined by the enterprise management tool are used to identify which channels are available for dynamic reassignment and which are not. The identity of the available channels and the comprised channels are communicated to a gateway. The gateway establishes a plurality of virtual networks for the programmable radios, and the gateway transitions a programmable radio from one virtual network to another, when service has been denied on the intended delivery path that has been compromised.

Claims

1. A method for ensuring data availability for a plurality of radios through waveform agility, comprising the steps of:

determining the threat states for each waveform supported on the radios;

using the threat states to identify which channels are available for dynamic reassignment and which are not; and

facilitating the transition of data from a compromised channel to an available channel, for subsequent transmission to the recipient, when service has been denied on the intended delivery path that has been compromised,

wherein the step of determining the threat states includes communicating with the plurality of radios to advise the radios that a waveform has been compromised.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the radios are programmable and the format of the data on a compromised channel is converted to the format of data on an available channel.

3. A method according to claim 2 wherein the step of facilitating the transition of data from a compromised channel to an available channel includes a gateway that establishes a plurality of virtual networks for the programmable radios and is capable of transitioning a programmable radio from one virtual network to another.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of using the threat states to identify which channels are available for dynamic reassignment includes an enterprise network management tool that communicates the identity of the available channels and the compromised channels to the gateway.

5. A method according to claim 4 wherein the determined threat includes at least one threat selected from the following group of threats;

noise jamming, net jamming, passive eavesdropping, or deceptive active transmissions.

6. A method according to claim 5 wherein noise jamming is characterized by either jamming noise or loss of communications services.

7. A method according to claim 5 wherein net jamming is characterized by appearance of unusually high traffic levels, duplicate participants or appearance of rogue units.

8. A method according to claim 5 wherein passive eavesdropping is characterized by duplicate participants, rogue units, excessive over the air rekeying requests, false synchronizations or cryptoseal failures.

9. A method according to claim 5 wherein deceptive active transmissions are characterized by appearance of uncharacteristically high traffic patterns, faulty header structures, incorrectly formatted data, negative acknowledgements or cryptoseal failures.

10. A method for ensuring data availability for a plurality of programmable radios through waveform agility, comprising the steps of:

determining the threat states for each waveform supported on the programmable radios with an enterprise network management tool that communicates with the programmable radios to advise the programmable radios that a waveform has been compromised;

using the threat states determined by the enterprise management tool to identify which channels are available for dynamic reassignment and which are not, and communicating the identity of the available channels and the compromised channels to a gateway; and

facilitating the transition of data from a compromised channel to an available channel, via the gateway that establishes a plurality of virtual networks for the programmable radios and that transitions a programmable radio from one virtual network to another, when service has been denied on the intended delivery path that has been compromised;

wherein the format of the data on a compromised channel is converted to the format of data on an available channel.

12. A network according to claim 10 that further includes a plurality of link management systems for coupling the waveforms of the programmable radios to the gateway.

11. A network for ensuring data availability for programmable radios through waveform agility, comprising:

a plurality of programmable radios each having a software core and each being capable of handling a plurality of different waveforms;

an enterprise network management tool for determining the threat states for each waveform supported on the programmable radios, identifying which channels are available for dynamic reassignment and which are not and advising the programmable radios that a waveform has been compromised; and

a gateway, that includes a plurality of virtual network for the programmable radios, for facilitating the transition of data from a compromised channel to an available channel, when service has been compromised on the intended delivery path to a programmable radio;

wherein the format of the data on a compromised channel is converted to the format of data on an available channel.

13. A network according to claim 11 wherein the gateway includes a human/computer interface, and at least a tactical interface for communicating with a tactical data link or a network interface for communicating with a data network.

14. A network according to claim 11 wherein the programmable radios are capable of operating over one or more legacy or future waveforms including but not limited to waveforms supporting the following group of data links, Link-11, Link-16, SADL, Link-22, EPLRS, SINCGARS.

15. A network according to claim 11 that further includes a hostile event correlator responsive to either the enterprise network management tool or the gateway for deriving or updating an electronic order of battle.