Integrated Terminal System Development: The HC3 Reference Architecture

Recent communication system projects within the U.S. government have been driven by the Software Communications Architecture (SCA). While the SCA provides software architecture guidelines, it does not address the overall communications system architecture. Consequently, benefits such as waveform portability, hardware upgrades, and use of Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) hardware and software have not been realized to the extent anticipated. The High Capacity Communications Capability (HC3) project is defining a common reference architecture for a high-capacity terminal system. This paper presents a design approach utilizing the Systems Modeling Language (SysML). SysML supports traditional systems engineering activities and integrates with the Unified Modeling Language (UML). This enables a single, integrated view of the system hardware and software architecture heretofore not easily achieved. This paper explores the application of these modeling technologies from the context of the HC3 system.