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Voice Over the Future

Apr-24-2005 » Filed Under: 1/25 SBCT , General Military

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By William L. Miller

With voice communications over closed IP-based networks already being transmitted under battle conditions, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology is poised to transform military telephony.

This growing communications technology from the commercial sector, transplanted to the defense world, works more efficiently to take advantage of common infrastructures and adds advantages of share applications, ensuring that needed information is provided to all layers of end users. Its ability to scale and agile footprint work in concert with legacy applications to protect current mission-critical applications while paving a way for future evolution.

The road needed to make way for widespread VoIP is now under construction. For the military domains, the Department of Defense has adopted an architecture using IP as the networking technology for the Global Information Grid (GIG), DoD’s primary global communications network. An upgrade to GIG, known as GIG-BE (Bandwidth Expansion), will link critical DoD and intelligence capabilities around the globe.

In addition, DoD is now enhancing its current worldwide information transport system, the Defense Information System Network (DISN), emphasizing increased bandwidth. The GIG-BE will provide a high-speed transport and IP network layer reaching more than 90 key defense and intelligence sites. These will be integrated into the DISN and GIG IP network to reach hundreds of DoD locations. The DISN VoIP service will ride on this integrated, or converged, DISN transport and IP network.

The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) is driving VoIP within the military domains, and has a methodology in view for converging voice, video and data networks. Concurrently, the military services are involved in a series of pilot projects and initial deployments of VoIP technology in one form or another.

In addition, DISA has executed a policy for interoperability testing and information assurance accreditation to define platforms that are certified for use within the DSN network. This assures end users that solutions have been tested and will work seamlessly with military-unique features. The certified products are defined on an approved product list that DISA maintains for its end users.

DISA has initiated pilot networks to provide service to U.S. Central Command and Special Operations Command. For example, DISA supports Operation Iraqi Freedom with a secure VoIP pilot infrastructure. In addition, a DoD Voice over IP/Real Time Services Working Group, chaired by DISA, coordinates DoD activities in voice and video over IP. Panel members are currently laying out a DoD-wide plan focusing on architecture, critical path items, testing, schedule and funding. [...]

VoIP continues to move to the field in some notable pilot projects and has been in theatre for about two years, said network engineer John Shotwell. “When the Stryker brigades deployed, a portion of their WAN architecture was composed of VoIP. The 1st Cavalry Division also employed VoIP to integrate a portion of Command Post of the Future [CPOF],” Shotwell said, adding that the technology is currently being used in OIF with the 1st Infantry Division, 3rd Infantry Division and 2nd Stryker Brigade, as well as in Afghanistan with the Provincial Reconstruction Teams.

CPOF is a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency-based graphical user interface program allowing multiple applications, such as collaboration tools, to function from a common interface. Simultaneously, CERDEC is doing other studies to determine how programs like CPOF can transition to mobile and satellite networks.

Greg Lorenzo, program director for communications systems integration, said that three additional Army divisions will be provided with VoIP capability in 2005, including the 10th Mountain Division, the 101st Airborne and the 4th Infantry Division.

“We’re talking about an entire converged architecture,” said network engineer Dave Buleza. “Stryker was an initial and limited deployment, but these other architectures are end-to-end systems based on VoIP that are relatively seamless in their transition and implementation.”

CERDEC continues to mature the VoIP technology and prove its feasibility. A long-term schedule of deployments over at least the next decade will allow VoIP to fully proliferate within the active Army and its reserve components, Lorenzo said.


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