Low-level Battle Management Language

TNO (The Netherlands) and FFI (Norway) are cooperating in extending a COTS Computer Generated Forces (CGF) tool with a Coalition Battle Management Language (C-BML) interface for executing C-BML orders and issuing reports. Due to the lack of satisfactory models for command and control (C2)/combat management in existing CGF tools, TNO and FFI have investigated the use of external agent frameworks. Two different modelling paradigms have been used: Belief-desire-intention (BDI) and Context-based Reasoning (CxBR). As part of this work a Low-level Battle Management Language (Low-level BML) has been created for communication between the C2/combat management agents and the CGF tool over High Level Architecture (HLA). The hierarchy of combat management agents decompose a C-BML order into Low-level BML commands and tasks understandable by a CGF tool. The agents also receive Low-level BML events reported by the CGF tool and make use of these for agent behaviour and C-BML reports. This paper presents the structure of Low-level BML, how it is used and the rationale behind it.