Structural robustness of combat networks of weapon system-of-systems based on the operation loop

ABSTRACT

The structural robustness of the combat network of weapon system-of-systems (CNWSOS) has been widely used to characterise its operation ability and survivability in the integrated joint operations. In this paper, after introducing the concept of the operation loop, a directed CNWSOS network model is first put forward. Then, the directed natural connectivity, a new measure of the CNWSOS robustness that extends the concept of natural connectivity to the directed combat networks, is proposed to provide both a definite physical meaning and a simple mathematical formulation. Last, the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed structural robustness measure are demonstrated using both numerical experiments and an empirical case study. The directed natural connectivity facilitates a more sensitive and precise quantitative analysis of the structural robustness, which in turn provides useful insights for designing a more robust CNWSOS, including improving the accuracy of intelligence acquisition, enhancing the communication capabilities of weapon systems, and strengthening the capability of precision strikes.

KEYWORDS:

• Networked modelling
• structural robustness
• combat networks of weapon system-of-systems (CNWSOS)
• operation loop

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Acknowledgments

The work was supported in part by National Natural Science Foundation of China under grant numbers 71501182 and 71571185, and the Research Project of National University of Defense Technology under grant number S140502. The authors would like to thank Dr J. Wu for his constructive suggestions and kind assistance in improving the quality of this paper. The authors greatly appreciate the thoughtful comments and constructive suggestions put forward by anonymous referees for improving the quality of their paper.

Additional information

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant number 71501182], [grant number 71571185]; Research Project of National University of Defense Technology [grant number S140502].