From HQ to the edge: Enabling tactical 4G/5G for military operations

February 23, 2024 | 4 minute read
Kashif Mahmood
Executive Architect
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Military operations are often conducted in locations that lack consistent network connectivity, making it difficult to instantly analyze data and make real-time decisions. Oracle Cloud Infrastructure has developed a tactical 4G/5G solution that overcomes these challenges with a portable, ruggedized, and localized-in-field network using Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure. This solution enables you to gain insight on the spot from mission-critical applications that need to perform in remote locations.

Run applications with disconnected operations at the network edge

Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure is a cloud-integrated service that runs mission-critical, time-sensitive applications at the edge. Roving Edge provides an ecosystem of Oracle infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) products deployed outside the data center that allows you to run virtual machines (VMs) from your cloud tenancy. This setup enables low-latency processing closer to the point of data generation and ingestion, resulting in more timely insights into your data.

Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure can independently store, collect, and process large datasets to accelerate tactical decision-making for today’s modern missions even in the most remote and austere environments. When deployed, customers can synchronize object storage between the edge nodes and cloud when a network connection is available.

4G/5G mobile core platform for mission-critical applications

You can use Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure to host both mission critical applications and a complete 4G/5G mobile core from Druid Software.  Raemis™, Druid’s cutting-edge core network platform, offers high-speed and low latency voice over new radio (VoNR), data, and video communications. Because of its interoperability, Raemis™ can be paired with a multitude of 4G/5G radios and legacy TETRA-based private narrowband networks.

From power-up, the Druid core can be operational in less than five minutes, and users can be configured and managed locally via an onboard GUI. The Raemis™ platform is differentiated by its ability to easily prioritize and “slice” devices, providing assured quality of service. Druid provides a scalable solution, enabling the setup of small or large tactical 5G networks which enables solutions in enterprise communications, IoT, mobile edge computing, neutral host, and public safety.

Deploy secure private networks quickly in the field

When Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure is enabled with tactical 4G/5G capabilities, it offers portable connectivity quickly in remote and disconnected areas to give you reliable, low-latency, and secure end-to-end communications across devices in the field. This tactical solution comes in two form factors and is designed to be ruggedized, scalable, and easy-to-deploy from anywhere.

The Druid capability running on Roving Edge Infrastructure offers a complete standalone solution that includes management, provisioning and reporting in a single software platform. Furthermore, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure has a unified customer experience with Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure that makes adoption, control, and management of workloads at the edge effortless and easy. This combination provides low-latency, intensive data processing and artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) capabilities at the edge, removing data upload bottlenecks and ensuring data sovereignty.

The power of AI on the battlefield

The powerful capabilities in the Roving Edge Infrastructure, including its embedded graphics processing unit (GPU), allow you to run time-sensitive, mission-critical applications, such as target identification, video processing, battle management systems, push to talk, and gunshot detection systems. Let’s look at how this system can bring tactical advantage on the battlefield.

A target identification operation requires a rapidly deployable communication system for coordination and real time streaming for enhanced situational awareness as depicted in Figure 1. Oracle’s integrated tactical 4G/5G mobile solution deployed on a military vehicle can become the keystone of communication, data processing, and coordination for the operation.

A Roving Edge Infrastructure solution in the field.
Figure 1 : Roving Edge Infrastructure enabled tactical 4G/5G solution

In this scenario, the drone swarm (1) is equipped with high-resolution cameras to conduct aerial surveillance and transmit live video footage to the 4G/5G radio (2) mounted on the military vehicle. The radio establishes a high-bandwidth, low latency connection to the 4G/5G core (3) to transmit high-definition video. The transmitted video is then directed to the video processing and streaming server (4), which enables you to instantly analyze the video using AI algorithms. The processed video is available to view in the military vehicle and is distributed to both the remote command center (5) and highly mobile units. Your squads or special operations team can then view and interact with the video stream or data analysis to identify the relevant targets.

This example is just one of many where Oracle’s integrated tactical 4G/5G mobile solution can provide a tactical advantage for your warfighters. This solution provides actionable insights and threat assessments to give you real-time decision making on the battlefield.

Conclusion

To engage successful military operations in the field, ground personnel require enhanced situational awareness and coordination. Rapidly deployable communications systems can provide resilient and secure voice, high-speed data, and high-quality video communications while meeting the military’s operational needs. Oracle offers a tactical 4G/5G solution, a portable and ruggedized, localized-in-field network using Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure that solves challenges often faced in military field operations.  

To learn more, visit the Oracle Roving Edge Infrastructure site and explore the following resources:

Kashif Mahmood

Executive Architect


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