DARPA CPOF SI Support Information
Co-PIs:
Ken Forbus
Brian M. Dennis
NWU Command Post Laboratory
The Command Post laboratory will be a room at the Computer Science Department set up as an always-operating local laboratory for exploring integration and usability issues. The computational infrastructure will consist of a wall-sized projection display, two workstations, a server, plus several tablet computers (i.e., pen-based notebooks) and PDAs. This range of devices, combined with speakers, microphones, and earphones, will enable us to explore presentation and visualization design for the range of devices expected in the CpoF, with the exception of 3D displays and wall-sized high-resolution displays. Wireless networking within the building will also be deployed, so we can explore mobility issues. Being able to test our summarization, visualization, and interaction techniques across the range of PDAs, tablets, and workstations, with wired and wireless networking, will help ensure that what we develop will be useful in the Battle Labs.
To ensure that we create prototypes that are robust and usable, we will use the CP laboratory for several kinds of activities, in addition to formal experiments. We will use it for knowledge acquisition sessions, which often involve our Army interns teaching the rest of us about doctrine and tactics. We will conduct simulated war game exercises, to explore work flow issues and test interfaces for COA generation and evaluation. We will use it for software design meetings. In other words, we will make this infrastructure a critical component in our project work, in daily use, just as it will be for the ultimate users in the Command Post of the Future.
