Modelling a Simulation-Based Decision Support System for Effects-Based Planning
Farshad Moradi, Johan Schubert · 2009
Models constitute an important component in decision support functions of C4I systems. They improve the military commander’s abilities to create situation awareness, analyse threats and make proper decisions. Computerized models can be exploited for the purpose of simulation, which enables us to cover a much wider range of options and go deeper in impact assessments. In this paper we describe decision support and simulation techniques to facilitate Effects-Based Planning (EBP). In our approach, by using a decision support tool, a decision maker is able to test a number of feasible plans against possible courses of events and decide which of those plans is capable of achieving the desired military end-state. The purpose is to evaluate plans and understand their consequences through simulating the events and producing outcomes which result from making alternative decisions. Plans are described in the Effects-Based Approach to Operations (EBAO) concept as a set of effects and activities that together will lead to a desired military end-state. For each activity we may have several different alternatives. Together they make up all alternative plans, as an activity tree that may be simulated. The simulation of plans is designed to deliver results, indicating the (so far) best sequence, at each point of time. Hence, we have chosen to use the A*-search algorithm for traversing through the activity tree and choosing the next