MIP Baseline 3 - ESG

MIP service for automated updating of joint operational pictures
The success of multi-national missions
involving different armed forces
branches requires a common relevant
operational picture and interplay between
the deployed command and
control equipment.
In 1998, the Multilateral Interoperability
Programme was created in order to
fulfil these requirements. The aim of
the programme is to define an interface
for the exchange of information
between the command and control
information systems of the 28 na-
BL3 BL3.1
In-service period 4 plus 4
MIP roadmap, source: MIP CP v0.97
tions and organisations taking part in
the programme. This interface can be
used at all command levels - MIP has
no technical restrictions.
Since its beginning, MIP has developed
into an essential standard for
information exchange in the military.
The currently available MIP Baseline
3 (BL3) is based on operational demands
for a „joint“ exchange of data,
„Plans and Orders“ and a Data Exchange
Mechanism (DEM) much simpler
than that of MIP BL2. The service
years
TURNING SYSTEM EXPERTISE INTO VALUE
life of MIP BL3 is at least 4 years (inservice
period 4 plus). The 3.x version
improvements to the MIP baseline
are intended as incremental „service
packs“ for the MIP BL3 solution.
ThE MIP SOLUTION
MIP Baseline 3
Multilateral
Interoperability
Programme
ESG has been a reliable partner to
the German Armed Forces since the
beginning of the Multilateral Interoperability
Programme, both providing
consulting services and taking responsibility
for realising the project.
The core element of the MIP solution is the common NATO JC3IEDM (Joint
C3 (Command, Control and Consultation) Information Exchange Data Model),
which defines the information space. There are two systems available to
the user for the exchange of data between the systems:
DEM the Data Exchange Mechanism, which works on the basis of database
replication, and
MEM the Message Exchange Mechanism, which is comparable to a
standard e-mail application.
With the realisation of the German MIP experimental system BL3, ESG has
proven the MIP interface to be a highly viable option for achieving multilateral
interoperability. The aim is to integrate the MIP functions into the different
national systems. To achieve this, the comprehensive ESG interoperability
solution MIP DEMCenter was developed as a standardised MIP gateway.

Award for MIP
In 2008, the Multilateral Interoperability
Programme MIP received the
“Network Centric Warfare Award”
from the American Institute for Defense
and Government Advancement
(IDGA) for winning the “Outstanding
NCW Program from a Coalition Partner”
category. This award underlines
the special significance of MIP for interoperability.
MIP DEMCenter
The demand for a system-wide interoperability
solution was realised with
Technical possibilities with the MIP DEMCenter
Much simpler DEM “connection management” for the user
Implementation of the core software components as a service
Optional incorporation of different user interfaces via realisation of an
API interface
Automation of MIP DEM business processes
Interfaces for new technologies are already set up
The MIP DEMCenter user interface
the implementation of the MIP DEM-
Center as a national MIP gateway. The
architecture of the MIP DEMCenter
uses standardised technology and
has a modular design. The operating
system of the MIP DEMCenter has
been simplified greatly with the aim of
achieving “one-button” operability.
MIP DEM
The MIP BL3 DEM is the interoperability
mechanism for the databaserelevant
exchange of information. The
main focus in its further development
was on optimising the connection protocol.
In addition to this, the MIP BL3
DEM’s initialisation phase for establishing
a connection between MIP
systems has been accelerated significantly.
This has helped to achieve an
even stronger overall focus on the operational
usability of the system.
“Plans and Orders”
With MIP BL3, database-relevant exchange
of NATO STANAG 2014 plans
and orders via the MIP DEM has been
realised. This new “Plans and Orders”
section significantly increases the operational
importance of the MIP interface.
In the ESG MIP BL3 solution, the
“Plans and Orders Web-Editor” has
been implemented as a comprehensively
usable web application based
on a Java application server. This web
application is intended for editing and
presenting plans, orders and “fragmentary
orders” (FRAGOs). This has
enabled the technical requirements
for efficient use of the new “Plans and
Orders” section to be fulfilled.
The software technology used includes
open source components, and
uses the advantages of both standardised
interfaces and operating system
independence, thus offering the
advantage of simple integration into
command and control information
systems.
Quality standard
The scope of technical and operational
testing in the development of MIP BL3
was increased significantly in compar-
PDF view of a STANAG 2014 warning
order in the „Plans and Orders Web-
Editor“
ADVANTAGES Of MIP BL3
Joint data model with data
model expansions from the air
and naval forces domain
Information exchange expanded
with “Plans and Orders”
Stronger focus on operational
use
Increased quality through use
of a test and reference system
and increased scope for System
Level Tests (SLT)
ison to previous baselines. In addition
to this, a test instance was established
for performing technical tests over the
Internet – the MIP Test Reference System
(MTRS). This made it possible to
further increase the level of quality.
tacMIP – tactical Multilateral
Interoperability Programme
For the exchange of command and
control information via MIP right down
to the tactical level, ESG has created
the tacMIP solution. With this system,
operational information for the relevant
command levels and mission
types is filtered out of a command and
control information system and converted
to a compressed format. This
filtering and compression enables
transfer of the information over networks
with a very narrow bandwidth.
As a comprehensive MIP gateway, the
MIP DEMCenter can take on tacMIP
functions as modular expansions, thus
realising a comprehensively usable
solution for the exchange of information
right up to the tactical level.
ESG Elektroniksystem- und Logistik-Gmbh4Livry-Gargan-Str. 6482256 Furstenfeldbruck4Germany4Tel. +49 89 9216 - 04mip@esg.de4www.esg.eu