Control center solutions

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Control Center follow a Purpose which - very generic - is to control and/or to apply control principles in order to affect a Target in a desired way. The purpose as such is outside the Control Center and defines its mission. Typically, the most advanced control centers operate in safety critical environments:

  • Air Traffic Control Centers (ATCC)
  • Search and Rescue Centers (SAR)
  • Space Mission Control Centers
  • Harbor Control Centers,
  • Police Dispatch and Control Centers,
  • Fire fighter Dispatch and Control Centers.

A Control Center Solution is a distinct compilation and integration of specialized services and components (equipment) which - each for itself or by mutual interaction - form part of a control loop required to follow the purpose.

Control Center Solutions Principle
Control Center Solutions Principle

A control loop consists of

  • Sensors - generate data which represent (part of) the current environment (incl. human beings: e.g. observation reports)
  • Actuators - affect the environment (incl. human beings: e.g. firefighter is an actuator)
  • Controllers - forms a picture of the current situation, compares it with the intended situation and either decides on the adaptation of the intended situation (changing the plan) or formulates and decides on an action affecting the environment. This decision making process may include human operators, but not necessarily.
  • Communications - all functional elements of the Control Loop require adequate connectivity amongst each other

Control/Decision Making can be differentiated in

  • Current Situation - representation of Target parameters relevant for fulfilling the purpose
  • Desired/Intended Situation - representation of Target parameters relevant for fulfilling the purpose
  • Decision Support (Deviation Analysis, Suggestions) and Decision Making
  • Command & Control - elements that provide access to the Actuators (voice communication,..)
  • Documentation & Analysis - generates database that feeds back into Decision Support (learning factor)

Sensors produce data which is transformed into information when presented as part of the surveillance picture. The closer the process gets to the decision making phase the more a transformation into knowledge can be observed. Completing the loop the characteristic of the content develops back into information and finally data which is operated by the actuator.

Using a fire fighter mission as an example the whole control loop would operate as follows. The purpose is to remove the fire. Front line fire fighter observe the scene and act as sensors by reporting back to the mission command. With these reports and other sources of data a picture of the current situation is generated which deviates from the intended situation which may be no fire. Considering the characteristics of the surveillance information and the quality of the deviation between now and should be mission command may decide to change the plan or order for an attack lead by fire fighter. The target is the fire.

Control Center Solutions combine and integrate the above listed elements into a virtually single system regardless of the physical layout (maybe fully distributed, fixed, dispatchable, dynamic). Control Center Solutions are not necessarily a single location or even facility. In this way, Control Center Solutions incorporate principles of Network Centric Operations. Control Center Solutions build the central technical solution of Command and Control Infrastructure.