Applying management science methods for modeling decision support systems used in digitized battlefield management
Date Issued
2007
Date
2007
Author(s)
Lee, Fong-Chih
DOI
zh-TW
Abstract
Due to the fast growth in IT (Information Technology) and its broad utilization inside military community, the pace in each nation’s forces IT development and modernization has been promoted with high emphasis. The results in military command automation directly reflect the degree of a certain nation’s military IT development and modernization, also, these results are significant and fundamental prerequisite for achieving information superiority in modern warfare when conducting joint command. Theories upon command automation and applications on commanding automation systems should be general knowledge for commanders at each echelon to manage military forces and to command military operations.
This research aims to use of scientific methods, i.e., management scientific methods, to study human various management activities. For human beings to carry out anticipated objectives, a series of organizational management methods including scientific planning, organizing, leadership, controlling and collaboration are used to complete each implementation task. Although, management science is broad and complex, the utilization of management scientific methods for conducting each task, in general, has the following procedures. 1. Confirmation of management objectives and completion of these objectives with the shortest schedule, the highest effectiveness, and the least expenditure. 2. Identification related factors that will influence achieving objectives. 3. Establishment of system models (or mathematic models) for persons that are managed. 4. Analysis and evaluation of the models with the use of modern management means or theories. 5. Selection of the promising operation or direct conduct of the best decision making based on the results of analysis and evaluation. 6. Realization of the option and decision made by means of planning, controlling, collaboration, etc. 7. Inspection and supervision of various behaviors derived from implementing the option or decision to ensure the initial management objectives.
Decision making is a fundamental activity for human beings that lead human beings’ actions. Decision sciences are to provide scientific theories and methods so as to support and facilitate human beings to make decision. Decision sciences involve natural science and social science that are new and mixed subjects related to human beings’ thinking. Over the constant progress in science and technology, as well as the fast growth in social economy with the impacts that resources and ecological environment are getting worse, human beings are facing with more and more severe and complicate problems waiting for resolution.
Therefore, each nation has paid close attentions to the research on theoretic methods of decision sciences with the basis of a great amount of existing experiences, so as to ensure the accuracy and effectiveness when making decisions. Gradually, a new science is developed, i.e., decision science. The research on decision sciences has its broad content. Broadly speaking, decision sciences include decision thought, decision theories or principles, decision methods, decision support environment, etc. Particularly, in the domain of operational command, decision includes not only decision making, but also operational course of actions. Considering military operations, all commanding factors depend upon decision making. If wrong decision is made, a high value or cost will be wasteful. Additionally, the process for realization of the decision, such as proposing operational plans, deployment of forces and weapons, mission allocation and collaboration are closely related to decision making. After 1980, the level of complexity in decision problems has been increased, people recognize that merely mathematic analytic methods are not enough, a combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis is thus considered necessary. Military operation research is a military subject providing scientific methods for military decision.
Decision is an objective manner and its developing regulations reflect and logically express inside a decider’s mind. Decision is a process of recognition. To realize scientific decision, a theoretic principle regarding recognition for guidance is required. Epistemology is based on human beings social realization, mutual activity from recognition to realization scientifically expressing the formation of recognition. The essence of recognition and its developing regulation identify people’s recognition capability that develops from realization and thus changes for further development. The recognition process is derived from unknown to known, from shallow to deep, and is full of contradictory recognition process.
Scientific decision making process is a significant assurance to embody decision objectives. There are six procedures comprising of a decision making process. These procedures altogether build up a decision ring. The first procedure is to investigate situations, i.e. to fully understand and handle real situations and data, particularly, acquiring as complete and reliable statistical data as possible. The second is to ensure objectives. An ideal decision objective should be practical and feasible under all constraints (limitations). Also, the objectives have critical meanings for desired goals. The third is to propose potential alternatives. It is critical for a decision making process to come up with valuable and high quality alternatives. All these alternatives should be validated to show they are feasible. Also, each alternative has its advantages and disadvantages. This procedure is the foundation of the next one. The fourth is to analyze, evaluate, and select the promising alternative. This procedure selects the optimized (promising) alternative among the ones by means of value analysis and feasibility study. The aforementioned four procedures is a process of recognition. The first and second procedures are to investigate, identify problems, and to establish objectives. This is the preparation phase for decision. This is the perceptual phase within the recognition process. The third and fourth procedures are to analyze information, design alternatives, and evaluate to select the promising one. This is the completion phase of decision. This is the rational phase within the recognition process. The fifth procedure is to execute the decision, and the final procedure is to track decision. The last two procedures can be treated as the decision execution and inspection phases or experimental phases.
Under the contemporary conditions, the situations for operation warfare are complicate and change from minute to minute. It will be hard to adapt objective need, if only human brain is utilized. For example, tactical fire system develops decision based on the situations, including discovery of targets, identification of enemies and friends, selection of course of actions, tracking of targets, fire engagement, transfer of fires, etc. All these actions need to be completed within the shortest period. Any delay might lose the opportunity to dominate the battlefield. Therefore, upon the condition of using high technological weapon equipments, rapid response speed is expected, only relying on man power is very difficult to collect and process intelligence data in time, and to propose and select course of actions. With the development of intelligent electronic computer, real “computer staff”, “computer assistants” will be created, and this provides a sufficient and beneficial condition to deal with all these difficulties.
The term “methods of decision based upon co-existence of human beings as well as machines” means the use of battlefield management automatic command systems that commanders and decision makers utilize artificial intelligence to reach decision automation. The characteristics of using this method are that neither human brains, nor computers are used separately for decision making. Both human being and intellectual machines (computer hardware and software application systems) collaboratively, mutually, and automatically complete the decision making process. Utilizing this method both continues to benefit from human being’s initiative, enthusiasm, and creativity, and suppresses human beings disadvantages including low response and calculation capability, experience of fatigue after long working hours, and influence from psychological movement, and limited information storage capabilities. By means of the integration of human beings and information equipments, military activities related to any complicated and fast changed situations in the battlefield are tackled.
The development of C4ISR systems mainly depends upon operation architecture, technology architecture, and system architecture, as well as the concept of network centric warfare that integrates systems from command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance in both horizontal and vertical directions. War fighters and decision makers although have completed many architectures to regulate the need for information technology, system functional descriptions and problem solving approaches, the architectures are described with different definitions on terminologies and formats, and thus used with different procedures which result in the production of products that are unable to integrate and compare with. This research is to utilize modern management science method to establish a developing model to supplement original architectural operational method that has the problem that systems developed do not link with their mapping operation requirements. With the support of this research, it is aimed to develop a battlefield management decision support system that meets the desired operational requirements.
Subjects
系統分析
程序化決策方法
系統功能圖法
決策支援系統
結構化程序設計
Management Science Methods
System Analysis
Programmed Decision Method
Function System Chart
Scientific Decision Method
DDS decision support system
Structured Programming
SDGs
Type
other