Traditionally, Unmanned Vehicles (UxVs) were procured with their own stovepipe control segment (Ground Control Station or GCS). These GCS were, and in many cases still are, typically closed systems utilizing proprietary interfaces. The proliferation of stovepipe control systems on a single C2 system raises issues concerning interoperability, training, capital investment, adaptation work, footprint and logistic support among others. Therefore, it becomes essential for end-users to develop the ability of commanding and controlling multiple UxVs as well as other sensors and delivering complex services (such automatic asset tasking, mission planning and re-planning or 3D representation of threats to name a few) using the same systems and environments (to rationalize costs and improve efficiency). This enables future capability upgrades in cost effective fashion and reuse of selected C2 components which can be sourced from multiple vendors.

Although there have been several efforts and work done in the domain of command and control systems (in particular control segments for UxVs in the defence domain), a lot remains to emerge into a single widely supported standard. Furthermore, it makes little sense for end-users and practitioners to develop and maintain their own large software repositories associated with the C2 capabilities (it would be easier to maintain a list of available services with associated metadata). Industry also has incentives to adopt such standards: namely that services or modules developed on an industry wide accepted model would be easier to integrate with a standard compliant system. Specialist providers (in particular SMEs) can supply niche components without the need to invest in gaining expertise on the complete range of system interactions. This model has proven to work before, for example the adoption of NATO standard STANAG 4586 (UAS interoperability) by component suppliers of vehicles and sensors.

CAMELOT (C2 Advanced Multi-domain Environment and Live Observation Technologies) aims at addressing the challenges and fill this gap by carrying out a number of activities to prototype, test and demonstrate different advanced command and control service modules for multiple platform domains based on a state-of-the-art architecture. The overarching purpose will be to validate the technical and financial viability of the modules (which will be based on modifications and maturing of previous work from partners) as well as to achieve an exploitable model based on a standardized architecture with well defined and specified interfaces. In addition to multiple testing of the different modules, a final demonstration involving a great number of the modules is envisaged, involving end users and relevant stakeholders. This will allow CAMELOT project to achieve TRL6 maturity levels.

The practitioners of CAMELOT have identified common challenges in the evolution and adaptation of existing assets and systems to the evolving challenges witnessed across EU:

• Employing unmanned systems in support of surveillance activities – The engagement of manned aircraft, ground vehicles and/or vessels to carry out surveillance is expensive, dangerous and resource heavy. The capability to engage unmanned systems (of whichever type) to perform surveillance can increase the range and coverage while reducing operational costs and enabling manned assets to perform more vital activities such as interception and rescue.

• Integrating new assets and sensors into existing communications and information infrastructures – As the range and type of sensors increases, the variety of assets and the area of operations grow, the need to integrate new types of data coming from heterogeneous sources and the capability to adequately control and command assets grows accordingly. This is problematic if sensors and platforms all use different (and often proprietary) data models, protocols and control segments.

• Assimilating increasingly complex situational pictures in 3 dimensional space – As the size, type and capability of assets increase and become more varied and as the same happens with potential threats, it becomes even more important to be able to present information in simple, accurate ways, allowing decisions makers and operators to correctly interpret situations, assess risks and determine best reactions

CAMELOT intends to fill these gaps in terms of standards for C2 systems for heterogeneous platforms and sensors (with an emphasis on UxVs) by validating enhanced capabilities and new functionalities built upon frameworks following open and well defined interfaces. This will help practitioners and member states rationalize their investments in new C2 infrastructure (allowing for either a “pick and mix” type of approach or completely new developments supported by a large set of EU industry) and take advantage of niche components developed by specialist companies. CAMELOT will achieve this by prototyping service modules exploiting partners’ background that complying with an architecture that will be chosen during the project. This selection will be based on a survey of existing standardization efforts. All modules support directly needs expressed by at least one CAMELOT practitioner. The proposed CAMELOT modules and scope is represented in the schematic of Figure 1 and will be explained in the next paragraphs.