SINCGARS system improvement program (SIP) specific radio improvements

The SINCGARS system improvement program (SIP) ground and airborne radios target specific improvements to address the need for improved position awareness, improved data throughput, and speed of service on the battlefield. This paper specifically discusses the implementation of these improvements in the radios. First, it discusses the implementation of Reed-Solomon forward error correction to increase throughput while improving range and significantly improving the interference protection of the radio against cosite and jamming. The discussion includes the investigation of several coding approaches and implementations, and the results of the analysis which led to the selection of a family of the Reed-Solomon codes. The second area of discussion is the implementation of a new frequency hopping waveform that increases the probability of synchronization and reduces transmission overhead. Thirdly, the implementation of an improved channel access algorithm that allows mixed voice and packet data operation on a common net with minimal impact of voice operation at high packet data throughput rates is discussed. In addition, the implementation of an efficient data interface, per MIL-STD-188-220 A, to ITT's Internet controller (INC) which provides for packet radio relay nodes across the battlefield is discussed. Finally, the implementation of the embedded GPS position information, and user ID, in voice and data messages to provide reporting of friendly force positions for situation awareness is discussed.