Command and Control Systems Engineering: Integrating Rapid Prototyping and Cognitive Engineering

The study of systems engineering and its applicability to command and control (C2) systems reveals that the basic models support incremental development of multiple systems that necessarily will be integrated into a holistic C2 system. As the battle space for C2 has grown more complex, technology is necessary to enable the human to understand the battle space, plan successful courses of action to achieve desired military goals, monitor the tactical/operational environment, and react to any situation or threat that may interfere with achieving the commander's intent and guidance. To enable commanders and their staffs to achieve effective and efficient work processes, C2 systems must be well designed. A fully holistic approach to systems engineering will help ensure that a C2 system is well designed. Combining rapid prototyping with cognitive engineering is one way to achieve a more holistic view of the system. This article describes each of these disciplines and shows how the combination of these varied approaches may provide a key to good systems engineering practices in C2 systems.