Decision Support for CBRN Avoid and Protect Missions

Modern Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear (CBRN) operations require a signi�cant reduction in the time between decision making and decision execution. This calls for effective decision support to improve situational awareness (SA) at the lowest practical echelon. Applied Research Associates, Inc. conducted a 22-month project to research Avoidance and Protection, the CBRN phase with greatest uncertainty and cognitive work demands, to determine how the Android Tactical Assault Kit (ATAK) could best support operator procedures and decision making. We con�rmed U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) CBRN doctrine, created battalion commander, medical o�cer, CBRN specialist, and Soldier or Marine use cases, developed a concept video around existing CBRN passive defense work�ows and tasking, then reviewed the concept with CBRN specialists returning from deployment as well as Integrated Early Warning and CBRN Support to Command-and-Control developers. Resulting improvement to decision support can more effectively sustain the operator’s observe, orient, decide, and act (OODA) loop while minimizing cognitive load.


Introduction
Command and control (C2) in the era of peer competition requires forward military forces to operate in contested and disconnected environments with the risk of exposure to Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear (CBRN) hazards.CBRN hazards include elements such as toxic industrial chemicals (TICs), toxic industrial biologicals (TIB), and toxic industrial radiologic materials.Their accidental or deliberate release and spreading can damage or destroy life, vital resources, or prevent mission accomplishment.Understanding such hazards helps a commander foresee how they might potentially affect operations (FM 3-11, 2022).Avoid and Protect operations monitor for CBRN hazards, detect them, assess the threat, and avoid contamination through techniques such as route planning.Mitigation operations may neutralize or remove a hazard and decontaminate persons or property that have been exposed.

Tactical Edge
Front line combatants who perform CBRN defense operate at the tactical edge: the system of platforms, sites, and personnel (U.S. military, allied, coalition partners, rst responders) who operate at lethal risk in a battle or crisis.Here, operators rely on battlespace management systems for situational awareness (SA) and connectivity to both survive and to ensure mission success.Forward deployed forces are fully engaged and highly stressed.They depend on information systems being available, providing accurate reliable information (integrity), and making the source of information evident (transparency) (NIST, 2022).
Providing timely and effective warning of a potential or actual CBRN threat enables forces to maintain freedom of action on the battle eld.

Decision Support
CBRN information density, speed, and complexity can overwhelm the decision maker.Uncertainty about information can increase duress in time critical situations (Shattuck et al., 2009).The signi cant reduction in the time between decision making and decision execution that modern CBRN operations require calls for improved decision support for better SA at the lowest practical echelon (USMC, 2017).More junior front line units do not have the resources to support such decisions that are available to more senior battle staff at a tactical operations center (TOC).
An effective new generation CBRN decision support system (DSS) would assemble various sources of information into a uni ed display.This spares the user from the cognitive work of integrating multiple data sources.Battlespace management systems such as the Android Team Awareness Kit (ATAK) can provide more junior Soldiers with decision support that captures senior level expertise that is available to higher echelon staff.Providing such usable, relevant, integrated information will improve front line SA and ensure operators can adapt to changing tactical conditions.Improved CBRN decision support can more effectively support the operator observe, orient, decide, and act (OODA) loop (Brehmer, 2005) while minimizing cognitive workload (Marshall, 2002).

Materials and Methods
We used a Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE) (Woods and Roth, 1988) mixed methods approach to both learn how CBRN decision makers confront complexity in their work settings and to model the CBRN decision support system concept.CSE is particularly suited to the study of cognitive work in a setting such as the CBRN Avoidance and Protection.CSE is part of naturalistic decision making (NDM) (Nemeth and Klein, 2011) which is the study of human cognitive performance in actual, or natural, settings.The professional literature has developed three criteria to describe research that counts as NDM study: It focuses on expertise, takes place in eld settings, and re ects the conditions that complicate our lives.
The strength of well-crafted NDM studies comes with understanding context by embracing the richness and complexity of human behavior in a natural, or " eld," work setting such as CBRN operations.It also produces ndings that re ect the complexity and nuance of how operators perform actual work.CBRN operations at the tactical edge are on the high end of complexity.Those who perform CBRN operations do not follow formal theories of behavior, but instead do what is useful (Wahlstrom, 1988) to defend against threats.
The team used methods from the CSE approach such as literature review, observations, interviews, development of a model of cognitive work, prototyping, and evaluation to understand cognitive work required for Avoidance and Protection operations.We applied ndings from those methods to identify opportunities in which technology can be used to improve decision making performance.Team members were certi ed to perform, and experienced in the conduct of, eld studies.Our application for human subject research was approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) and U.S. Army O ce of Human Research Oversight (OHRO).

Literature Review
The team used U.S. armed forces CBRN doctrine to identify Avoidance and Protection objectives and procedures across echelons.The team identi ed the battlespace management environment, stakeholders, and individual and team tasks.They developed use cases for CB decision makers (e.g., Unit Commander, Medical O cer, CBRN Specialist, and Soldier-Marine).Figure 1 illustrates the current relationships among the elements of CBRN doctrine: National Defense Strategy, Joint Publications, Field Manuals, Allied Tactical Publications, and Tasks/Standards.Chapter II, Section 4 of FM 3-11 (2022) describes the information ow for Avoidance and Protection that informed our project.

Subject Matter Expert (SME) Interview
At the start of the project, we conducted semi-structured interviews using Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA) (Crandall et al., 2006) with three experienced former CBRN non-commissioned o cers.CTA includes a variety of methods that can help humans to perform cognitive work, which is primarily problem solving and decision making.CTA methods are used to determine requirements for information needed to support cognitive work.Requirements are then used to guide the development and evaluation of products such as displays, procedures, and training that will support operator decision and control and, as a result, improve problem diagnosis and solution (Potter et al., 1998).SME interviews included review of the guide we had developed for subsequent interviews, as well the rst draft of an Avoid and Protect operational view.We later interviewed six members of the Illinois U.S. Army National Guard Civil Support Team for details on CBRN tasks they perform.

Representation
An operational view (OV-1) is a pictorial representation of a mission or scenario showing the main concepts and interesting or unique aspects of operations.Based on the literature review and SME interviews, the team developed a draft Avoid and Protect OV-1 (Fig. 2) including key decision makers.
[Figure 2 near here] Figure 2 includes the objective such as a village in need of protection during a humanitarian mission.It also shows a unit of one's own forces that would secure the site to protect a civilian population, and the location of CBRN event between the two that poses a hazard.It shows elements to detect and describe the hazard, including a reconnaissance unit, sensors, and a CBRN specialist non-commissioned o cer.Command elements include a company-level tactical operations center, and battalion-level tactical operations center, with a medical recovery center.Each perform an essential role in CBRN Avoid and Protect defense.

Observation
Observational methods can be used to study how people perform tasks and use cognitive artifacts to coordinate work.Understanding "emerges from the researcher's own observations and interviews out in the real world rather than in the laboratory or the academy" (Patton, 2002).
The team observed CBRN eld exercises including RESOLUTE DRAGON, the 2022 Chem/Bio Operational Assessment, U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) Chem-Bio Incident Response Force (CBIRF) training at Perry GA, and the Illinois Army National Guard (IL USANG) Civil Support Team (CST) training.During the events, team members took notes on procedures and artifacts such as maps and tables and spoke informally with operators to learn context.Problem detection Ability to notice potential problems at an early stage.

Coordination
How team members sequence actions to perform a task.
Developing mental models Mental imagery and event comprehension, based on abstract knowledge and domain concepts and principles.

Mental simulation and storyboarding
Use of mental models to consider the future, enact a series of events, and ponder them as they lead to possible futures.

Managing uncertainty and risk
Coping with a state or feeling in which something is unknown or not understood.

Turning leverage points into courses of action
Ability to identify opportunities and turn them into courses of action.

Managing attention
Use of perceptual lters to determine the information a person will seek and notice.
Figure 3 is an initial descriptive cognitive model of CBRN Avoidance and Protection tasks based on our literature review, observations, and interviews.Organized according to macrocognitive activities, they show how operators perform as a team to synchronize their efforts.This model helps to identify promising directions for a DSS to improve task performance.For example, anticipation involves the ability to do forward thinking, develop mental models, and do mental simulation.A DSS would make information available for such tasks.

Prototyping
Based on results from the literature review, interviews, and observations, the team developed use cases for four members of the CBRN decision network in an Avoidance and Protection phase: battalion commander, medical o cer, CBRN specialist, and Soldier or Marine.The concept integrates information that is unique to each role and needed to support decisions.We then created a video to demonstrate how the TAK interface might support cognitive work by each of the four decision makers.The video re ected the current TAK functions and TAK CB mission applications.We used the approach to garner feedback on the data type and presentation operators prefer, rather than the current TAK data display.Our goal was to understand and validate the optimal approach for future CB mission applications and data visualization to support timely and effective decision making.Figure 4 is a screen from the concept video showing an alert, route, sensor location and status, and information tabs for the CBRN Specialist.
[Figure 4 near here] The common operating picture (COP) integrates sensor data, messages across echelons, and alerts.The plan view map provides current view of unit location, route, sensors, and CBRN threats.Tabs make it possible to quickly nd information including assigned units, reconnaissance and decontamination team status, weather, known and suspected threats in the vicinity, routes planned and taken, and medical status down to the individual level (including heat stress while in mission oriented protective posture, or "MOPP," gear).The range of cognitive work and experience among those who make CBRN decisions requires tailoring displays to present information that is needed to spare user from coping with information that is unnecessary.This aligns information according to user experience and aptitude and accommodates practical considerations (e.g., Soldier/Marine operating display in MOPP gear).
Tailoring information according to each role in the decision network ensures each decision maker gets no less, and no more, than needed for mission performance.Table 2 shows how we organized tabs to manage information by role.

Evaluation
The team reviewed the concept demonstration videos with 5 members of the 190th Chemical Reconnaissance Detection Unit, Montana ARNG 631st Chemical Company over a teleconference platform.All had recently returned from deployment, performing CBRN tasks in support of operations in Eastern Europe.Sessions included a primary and secondary interviewer, and one or two participants.
Each session followed an interview guide and lasted roughly 45 minutes.

Interface Concept Design Features
The established requirements and minimum capabilities for a new prototype DSS based on data collected during the initial interviews, the literature review, and observations of CBRN eld exercises.A new DSS needs to improve upon existing systems that CBRN Specialists use and be compatible with systems the Specialists must use to report.Used by the U.S. DoD as an information transfer system to support CBRN reporting during operations.

Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG) app
Used by CBRN Specialists to provide background data and reference information to support operational planning and response.
Blue Force Tracker (BFT) / JBC-P (Joint Battle Command Platform) The U.S. Army's communication system for battlespace management that provides a platform to submit and track CBRN reports.
Command Post of the Future COP (Common Operational Picture) A map system used with the BFT or JBC-P that allows operators to share overlays to multiple commands and command echelons.

Prototype Evaluation
Reviews with members of the 190th Chemical Reconnaissance Detection Unit yielded observations as well as recommendations shown in Table 4. Quotes are taken from interviews with members (from most to least senior) at the rank of Chief Warrant O cer (CWO), Sergeant First Class (SFC), Staff Sergeant (SSG), and Sergeant (SGT).
"Something like this would be really useful to them [infantry units] because if that one guy that was actually up there working with them had access to this and could communicate between the two, that would actually work really well."(SFC) "This is de nitely… it would be helpful to get it up to the Battalion Commander for sure."(SFC) "They'd de nitely want to just make all those up on the same screen instead of trying to import them from something else.It'd be a lot easier."(SFC) "They got this, 'Hey, this is what's up, what should we do?We're going to do this.'It's all pretty much there."(SSG) "The integration of the sensors I'm very interested in…If you guys have that way of integrating, I think that'd be pretty awesome."(CWO2) "I think it would probably make the Soldiers a lot more con dent just because they have that information at their ngertips."(SFC) "I think it ts in very well and allows the ability for that CBRN Specialist to provide that mobile commander information and the around them." (CWO2) "This being an all-in-one compass on an Android phone I think looks very good and very applicable to a CBRN NCO." (CWO2) "I also like the possibility that you're pointing out from Army to Marine …having that common point of being able to operate together I think is a very good point, and I think you hit that nail on the head."(CWO2) "Trying to get a new soldier to understand BFT sometimes is really complicated.So, I think bringing it into the platform to where it's on a cell phone is going to be easier for them to pick up." (SFC) "So, the Battle Captain or the Battle NCO, depending on who's in charge during that shift, is really where you're going to have to look at placing these."(SFC) "This COP is something that we've mock set up ourselves, so this being in an all-in-one encompassed on an Android phone, I think looks very good and very applicable to a CBRN NCO." (CWO2) "I think it's just going to be an upgrade in technology really… If it's going to look similar to this, this is going to be for sure ideal.It's going to be a vast upgrade."(SFC) "I think the weather is really going to be helpful on this…If this has a real time weather, you can almost estimate where the contamination's going to go depending on the density of the contaminant and different stuff like that.I think all the real time information that you guys have on here is going to be super helpful."(SFC) "I like the platform of it.I mean it's going to be really user friendly and what soldier doesn't have a cell phone?"(SGT) "…think the more information the better for sure…as long as it's not crowded… as long as it's easy to access with these little tabs…you don't have to dig through to nd it."(SGT) "It's just going to be a good upgrade for us, especially with the real time.It's going to be faster, quicker, and way, way more user friendly.Save lives."(SGT) The research team also con rmed work ows across multiple TAK plug-ins (additional software components), from sensor integration (Source Term Estimation Tool), hazard prediction modelling (Effects Tool), route planning (Route Planning Tool), and protection (MOPP Tool).

Discussion
Battle staff, operators, cognitive artifacts, and information systems at the tactical edge make up a joint cognitive system (Woods and Hollnagel, 2006) that can be studied and modelled using scienti c methods such as CSE.The CSE approach is used to design technology, training, and processes that help people to manage cognitive complexity in such systems (Militello et al., 2010).We used CSE methods to develop an in-depth understanding of the operators, tasks, and work contexts (including the information systems) that are designed to support SA and decision making.Integration of ve CSE phases (preparation, knowledge elicitation, analysis and representation, application design, and evaluation) produces a solution that is ecologically valid: based on data drawn directly from rigorous systematic study of the CBRN work setting.
Conrath (1967) de nes uncertainty as any moment in which a decision needs to be made based on an incomplete set of information.While senior commanders have the bene t of time to analyze and compare alternatives, front line operators need to rely on intuition based on experience to commit to a course of action.An integrated DSS that provides needed timely, accurate information that can be trusted mitigates the effects of uncertainty across echelons.A design prototype can help to make a novel concept easier to envision (Woods, 1998).As an envisioned world problem, participants need to foresee a condition such as using a new generation DSS that they have not experienced.The project's video (Fig. 3) illustrates how ATAK might operate in support of Avoidance and Protection.We used the video to elicit responses, grounded in the participants' own experiences, as to how the unit and procedures need to be designed.

Participatory
Participatory Design (PD) is the close collaboration between system developers and intended end users.
We used PD during the project, assuming that those who perform skilled work are in the best position to improve it and are the best resource to attest to how work is actually performed (Van der Velden and Mörtberg, 2015).The use of PD can facilitate "a more humane, creative, and effective design relationship between those involved in technology's design and its use."A product's quality depends on how well it supports "…the continually expanding and developing work practices of skilled practitioners" (Suchman, 1993).PD offers a direct link between information technology and interventional research.Clemensen (2007)

Limitations
While U.S. Army and National Guard SMEs have reviewed the ATAK prototype, the concept needs to be programmed as interactive software to be evaluated for usability with CBRN support units from various services.

Conclusion
The project team identi ed the commander's critical information requirements to avoid hazards and make protective posture decisions, captured the TAK CBRN mission decision-making process, work ow and data representation, and modelled and evaluated a concept prototype.Future work can extend this pilot project through analysis of procedures that the Avoidance and Protection mission requires, characterization of Avoidance and Protection tasks and TAK application work ows, comparison between CBRN Avoidance and Protection tasks and TAK apps to determine t and gaps, collection of data from deployed maneuver units to reveal and describe CBRN mental models, and development of new TAK applications for Avoidance and Protection and evaluation with maneuver units.

Figure 2 :
Figure 2: Notional Operational View (OV-1) CSE techniques can be used to produce a model of cognitive work that represents how people perform it in actual settings.Creation of a model draws from individual accounts to describe behavioral patterns that a DSS can support.Cognitive work includes whatCacciabue and Hollnagel (1995) have termed "macrocognitive" activities, that are "the cognitive functions that are performed in natural (rather than arti cial laboratory) decisionmaking settings."Klein et al. (2003) described macrocognition as "the mental activities that must be successfully accomplished to perform a task or achieve a goal."The macrocognitive activities in

Figure 3 :
Figure 3: Descriptive Model of Cognitive Work in Avoidance and Protection

Figure 4 :
Figure 4: ATAK interface concept for CBRN Specialist recommends development project teams to "Give the participants [the] possibility to explore potential futures by trying out or creating prototypes."Consultation with users through each phase of the project ensured the best understanding of the work domain: what is required, what is di cult, and how can a solution improve performance?The PD approach can also build support for the result among end users, as they can recognize a solution that re ects their needs and desires.Project team members' prior development of a real time Burn Intensive Care Unit (BICU) DSS further illustrates how PD works (see Nemeth et al., 2015).

Figure 1 Elements
Figure 1

Table 1 ,
Crandall et al. (2006)al.(2006), support development of descriptive models of these activities to identify and understand how they occur.

Table 2 .
Interface Information by Role

Table 3
lists current U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) CBRN reporting systems.

Table 4
're driving on that route and you're looking at the route right then [driver point of view].You'd almost want a... "Google Maps" type view where you're looking at it from the top.That way if an indicator pops up, even a click out, you can see it coming as opposed to when your convoy gets closer to it."(SFC) Hutchins (2002)rtifactsHutchins (2002)describes cognitive artifacts as "physical objects made by humans for the purpose of aiding, enhancing, or improving cognition.Examples of cognitive artifacts include a string tied around the nger as a reminder, a calendar, a shopping list, and a computer."Cognitive artifacts are typically used to support important, di cult activities and can externalize information, capturing details that cannot easily be held in memory.Artifacts such as a CBRN DSS can be used to sort through large amounts of data to present only what is most important, or salient, and help to synthesize data into a cohesive whole.