Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) technologies, once viewed with skepticism by the Defense Department and military services, are rapidly becoming mainstream tactical communication devices, as well as trailblazing new form factors, functionalities and procurement processes.
COTS devices are increasingly influencing tactical radio design, according to retired MG Dennis Moran, vice president of government business development for Harris Corporation in Rochester, New York.
"There's always going to be a uniquely designed tactical radio designed for the war fighter, but that doesn't mean that the capabilities that you get in consumer products don't migrate into those devices," Moran said.
"The military has a unique mission with unique requirements and commercial off-the-shelf products can provide a cost-effective starting point for continuous improvement in tactical radio performance," said Chris Marzilli, president of General Dynamics C4 Systems in Scottsdale, Arizona. "The key is to leverage COTS capabilities that enable both the radios and the network, while providing more survivable performance in a tactical environment."
"COTS devices continue to drive the objective design and functionality of tactical radios," said Tom Kirkland, senior director of DoD programs and pursuits for Thales Defense and Securities in Clarksburg, Maryland.
Military services are now looking for tactical radios that have the same capabilities and extended services found in consumer smartphones and high-speed Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks, he said, an objective that has driven Thales to leverage the use of COTS components in the radios.
"It has allowed the significant investment from the commercial sector in the development of reduced size weight and power devices to be leveraged for use in tactical radios, providing greater features and functionality for our soldiers," Kirkland said.
COTS devices are also creating new and more efficient types of tactical communication services. "COTS networked devices ... have been used successfully for tactical networking infrastructure," said David Cooper, technical director for BAE Systems in Alexandria, Virginia. "COTS cellular systems are finding their way into tactical systems."
Radios using open COTS standards, particularly Google's Android platform, are generally more attractive for tactical communication applications than radios based on closed systems, such as Apple iOS. Tactical radios "mimic or take advantage of the Android environment, and it gives the war fighter an app to interact with," Moran said. "You allow the soldier, sailor, airman, Marine or special operators to essentially use a commercial device that has been hardened to the appropriate level to not only interact with the data that is coming to him, but also to control the device."
The COTS concept of competitively developed and marketed devices is also influencing the way that tactical radios in general are designed, acquired and deployed. For example, to quickly field radios to troops in Afghanistan, the Army purchased ANC/PRC-117G
software-defined combat-net radios though a rapid acquisition process. By procuring the radios as a COTS-type product, soldiers were able to receive the devices much sooner than if the systems had been acquired through a traditional bidding process.
"It's not so much COTS," Moran said. "The word you're looking for is nondevelopmental item." He noted that the best way of bringing tactical radio capabilities to troops is through competition and allowing nondevelopmental commercial-type producers, such as Harris, to bring their products to the market and compete in a marketplace. "Create an environment where innovation and cost savings are rewarded," he said.
