A FEDERATED SYSTEM FOR MULTI-SENSOR GEOINFORMATION DATA
Thomas Bahr1 and Michael Ehrlich2

discovered and visualized. Jagwire supports any end-user –through its web-based interface, anywhere – from data
centres to the tactical edge, any data – multiple modalities
including Full Motion Video (FMV), imagery, Moving
Target Indication (MTI), Light Detection And Ranging(LiDAR) and more, and at any time – whether it is real-timeor on demand.
Jagwire was designed around seven tenets:• Deploy next to the sensor and data sources• Leave the data where it was collected• Move the data only when it is required• Move the data only to where it is required• Minimize the amount of data sent
• Send the answer and not the data when possible• Anything within the enterprise can be a sensor and/or aconsumer.
At the foundation of these tenets is the support of datafederation by Jagwire. Federation for Jagwire was built withthe purpose to support the complicated nature of both datacollection and data discovery process, as well as theoperational networks and infrastructure. With a desire toprovide enhanced situational awareness, L3HARRIS
recognized the need to provide enterprise wide accessibility
to data holdings of operational systems. The inherent
challenge is accomplishing this with globally deployedsystems which contain thousands of hours of video andmillions of images. It started on the premise that federation
does not mean data replication – replicating data to all
systems is simply impractical and would not solve theproblem but rather create more of them. In taking thatapproach, Jagwire was designed to “talk” to other systems
through the federated network to provide instant awarenessand visibility to all data (both live and archive) and only moveit when required.
This approach in Jagwire allows users to quickly find anduse data anywhere in the enterprise. Additionally, theintegrated analytic platform, lets users access advanced
analytical functionalities, supporting them to rapidly find theinsights that are needed to make informed decisions.

ABSTRACT
Federated systems are a key commodity of modern mission
management, e.g. for the support of tactical operations withthe provision of relevant imaging information. Such can bemade available by the already military-proven andoperationally deployed software solution Jagwire™. Jagwire
highlights the capabilities of a federated enterprise system forthe ingestion, compression, storage, cataloguing, anddissemination of geospatial information. Compliant withindustry standards (Open Geospatial Consortium, OGC) androbust well-defined Application Programming Interfaces(APIs), Jagwire supports interoperability and integration witha wide variety of geospatial applications, including ENVI ®
and ArcGIS®. With focus on ad-hoc creation of advanced
information products from both real-time and archived
geospatial data, collected from a broad range of orbital,
unmanned and fixed-wing sources.
Index Terms— federated systems, interoperability, data
discovery, visualization, video, imagery, geospatialintelligence
1. INTRODUCTION
An essential aspect of modern mission management is theconnectivity between the stakeholders, including the sharingof relevant reconnaissance imagery, which is critical toestablish comprehensive situational awareness. For thispurpose, information from Imagery Intelligence (IMINT)
must be collected, evaluated and – together with other
Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) information – be madeavailable to the operational command with minimal delay.
Compatibility issues, however, often prevent access to
key data sources. At the same time, it is not always easy tofilter and recognize the relevant data in a timely manner fromthe growing flood of information.
To directly assist military forces in tackling current andfuture tactical challenges, L3HARRIS has developed
Jagwire. Operationally deployed and mission proven, Jagwire
transforms the way geospatial data is acquired, secured,

1
2

Harris Geospatial Solutions GmbH, Talhofstraße 32a, 82205 Gilching, Germany – thomas.bahr@l3harris.com
Harris Geospatial Solutions, Inc, 385 Interlocken Crescent, Suite 300, Broomfield, CO 80021, USA1

A federated system for multi-sensor geoinformation data

T. Bahr & M. Ehrlich

2. OVERVIEW

processing, data analytics, and powerful automatedgeospatial data federation capability. Figure 1 shows allcomponents required for such a federated software system
supporting multi-sensor geoinformation data.

Jagwire has consistently delivered insights for the defence
and intelligence community through state-of-the-art video

Fig. 1. Requirements for a federated system for multi-sensor geoinformation data.

L3HARRIS developed the Jagwire architecture formanaging multi-modal and multi-INT sources as well as theassociated metadata. This architecture provides the answer tothe “what”, as well as the “where” and “when”. To that regard
Jagwire delivers a system that is:• Instant, intuitive and with unified access.
Quickly provide tactical operators the informationneeded from large images and videos. Digitally stream
FMV, Wide Area Motion Imagery (WAMI), LiDAR
Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) and satellite imagery
with near real-time delivery and visibility to active
collections.
• Enterprise-wide visible to assets for greater reach ofvital information.
Manage unrelated types of content at an enterprise levelwith unified and centralized access to all imagery andvideo collections. As well as the ability to search forcontent based on location, time and other keywords –with full archived data support. Federation provides
enterprise-wide visibility, delivering access to a larger
data set of information.
• High performant on low-bandwidth and high latency
networks.
Ensure tactical operators in austere environments –where networks frequently fail – get the critical

•

•

2

intelligence needed to complete their objectives with theability to disseminate to handheld devices using the
Jagwire Media Engine and JPEG 2000 Interactive
Protocol (JPIP) streaming.
Standards-based and interoperable.
Compliance with adopted industry and defence-specificstandards including Open Geospatial Consortium(OGC), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO),
Motion Imagery Standards Board (MISB) and National
Imagery Transmission Format (NITF). This ensuresinteroperability, enabling Jagwire to consume anddisseminate data to other upstream and downstream
systems. Support OGC interfaces include Web Coverage
Service (WCS), Web Mapping Service (WMS), and Web
Feature Service (WFS). Those standards allow Jagwire
to capture and process a broad range of data sources
including Defence and Intelligence assets as well as
video from first responders, commercial and broadcast
sources.
Flexible and scalable.
Open interfaces enable integration into existing systems
to help complement or augment operational capabilities– reducing costs associated with migrations, training anddeployment. The distributed architecture of Jagwire
addresses the growing adoption of cloud computingA federated system for multi-sensor geoinformation data

T. Bahr & M. Ehrlich

environments, eliminating costs associated with moving
and managing data.

the barrier to entry is removed as end-users only need astandard web browser and access to their specific system.

3. SPECIFICATIONS OF A FEDERATED SYSTEM

3.1. Data management

With the rapid adoption and development of new systems aswell as new data types, the need for federation andinteroperability is now more critical than ever. Jagwire wasdesigned to federate and to provide unfiltered access to all thedata holdings in the enterprise. It achieves this through the
adoption of industry and community standards as well as
access to fully documented APIs. This approach allows endusers in the Jagwire ecosystem to discover data wherever it
resides, and in almost any external system, such as C2/C4ISR
systems (Command, Control, Communications, Computers,
Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) as well as
widely deployed systems developed by ESRI, BAE Systems,
and the L3HARRIS developed hC2™ and Individual Solider
System (ISS). Furthermore, with no need for client-side
software installs, as Jagwire is accessed via a web browser,

Imagery has become an important part of mission criticaloperations. Whether an organization is using satellite
imagery, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and aerial
imagery, or hand-held collected data from field operations,managing this data in a way that it is easy to discover is agame changer. Data collected and made actionable acrosssystems, across networks, and across geographies can enable
teams to better communicate, operate, and react to a varietyof changing environments.
On-demand and easy-to-find data is critical for
operations, it enables that unfolding events can be influenced
and unexpected challenges be met. Hardened data
management protocols and the ability to process large
volumes and varieties of data, enable Jagwire to quickly
provide actionable intelligence to teams in the field.

Tab. 1. Jagwire format support for data ingestion and transformation.

Image scientists, image analysts, and war fighters all needtimely information, and to do their jobs well they need proventechnologies that let them discover crucial data sets andprepare it for analysis. Being able to extract features, and tobetter analyse terrain and objects, is crucial. Jagwire is provento transform and deliver data for obtaining strategic andtactical advantage. Table 1 shows the extensive support fordata ingestion and transformation which is foundational inestablishing utility and effectiveness of data management
systems.
Video provides a unique challenge for data management
systems as they can be ingested as live streams, which means
new data is created over time and space in real-time. Jagwire
handles these challenges in a few different ways. The first isa robust centralized web-based management tool for
configuring all incoming live captures. This tool is coupledwith an interface designed to show real-time status of all
3

A federated system for multi-sensor geoinformation data

T. Bahr & M. Ehrlich

captures being collected. By this combination Jagwire
provides a powerful solution to see the complete operational
picture.
Additional, but essential characteristics include:• User communities are enabled to enrich content throughthe creation of annotations, which are shared across thesystem.
• Chat messages can be captured and synced to individual
frames of video.
• Support of non-traditional data types tied to spatial
products• (PowerPoints with flight details, reports generated forsupport or maintenance, etc.).
• Embedment of advanced analytics.

investment in new and emerging technologies such as
HTML5, DASH (Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP),High Efficiency Video Coding (H.265), and more, Jagwire
provides a unique experience and feature set for consumersof data. Functionality like dynamic and controllable overlays,
video zoom, colour correction, transcoding on the fly,
integrated annotator, and more are available out of the box
and work for both high-bandwidth consumers as well as users
with limited bandwidth:• Auto-detection and configuration of parallel live feeds
for near real-time delivery.
• Access to FMV metadata.
• Map-based visualization of FMV sensor, target andflight path to ensure the mission captured the criticalintelligence needed.
• Overlay of Video Moving Target Indicator (VMTI) on
FMV.
• Add context and enhance understanding withannotations and associated chat text.
• Out of the box support for almost any scenario (low- /high-bandwidth delivery):On-the-fly transforming data types, transcoding video
sources, routing to any destination using any number ofstandard protocols.
For other modalities, Jagwire provides robust options forvisualization. This includes a feature rich JPEG 2000
Interactive Protocol (JPIP) client for imagery as well as a
web-based 3D tool for LiDAR (see Figure 2).

3.2 Data discovery and visualization
Discovery and visualization are core to L3HARRIS andfinding the critical data that you need and then visualizingthat data to better operate and make informed decisions is aparamount feature in Jagwire. Access to data across the value
chain of a scientist, analysts, to the tip of the spear is achieved
with high precision and advanced visualization techniques.
Available on mobile and radios, over low bandwidth
networks, Jagwire delivers critical intelligence. Teams andfield operatives can acquire real time imagery and analytics
at the tactical edge via remote access and data connections.
Jagwire remains a best in class tool for visualizing multimodal data. With the advancement of the native tools andFig. 2. Interactive 3D visualization tool showing a LiDAR point cloud.

For data discovery, Jagwire has earned a reputation as a
top tier solution. The user experience allows searching fordata based on geospatial information, time, platform, mission

ID, and other metadata and keywords. The geospatial searchrequest can be entered in coordinate systems including World
Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84) Latitude/Longitude and4A federated system for multi-sensor geoinformation data

T. Bahr & M. Ehrlich

Military Grid Reference System (MGRS) for areas of interestor drawn on customer specific reference maps using a box,
radius, or a point search. The search can be performed overthe entire enterprise or any specific Jagwire node using one
single interface. In addition, Jagwire provides the user withthe ability to navigate through the archived flight path using
temporal scrubbers to pick the location within the mission andthe duration.

centre can quickly locate critical intelligence with advanced
discovery and filtering capabilities.
Conserving enterprise infrastructure, whether it is disk
space or bandwidth, keeps a system up and running, and costs
under control. The Jagwire architecture is designed to get themost out of existing infrastructure. Therefore, Jagwire was
optimized to working in almost every network environment,from high speed to low-bandwidth networks coupled withhigh latency.
Specifically, this includes low-bandwidth radio andtactical communications, satellite communications, as well as
ad-hoc mesh and Long-Term Evolution (LTE) networks.
Jagwire has no external dependencies, so running inenvironments where internet access is unavailable (e.g.
private or secure networks) poses no problems for the system
to operate. JPIP streaming enables delivery of imagery
without loss of resolution, and FMV can be transcoded onthe-fly at lower bit rates. Table 2 lists the standards andprotocols used to ensure effective data dissemination.

3.3 Data dissemination
Jagwire is a browser-enabled solution that delivers an
integrated platform for the processing, storing, discovery, andexploitation of geospatial data. Jagwire can disseminate
FMV, satellite and aerial imagery, Synthetic Aperture Radar(SAR), LiDAR, and even mission chat sessions to ensure thatworkflows and systems are ready at the right time to thepeople who need it most. Users in the field or in an operation

Tab. 2. Standards and protocols used within Jagwire to ensure effective data dissemination.

3.4 Data security
Confidence in security and data control is at the heart of
Jagwire. Based on the most secure digital environmentalarchitectures, Jagwire is deeply rooted in data security.

•

3.4.1 Encryption
Jagwire implements third party encryption libraries toprovide secure communications for Secure Shell (SSH), SSH
File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), Hypertext Transfer Protocol
Secure (HTTPS), and Simple Object Access Protocol(SOAP) web services. The software does not add any
additional pre‐processing methods to the data prior to
encryption and does not perform any post‐processing of thedata after it has been encrypted.
• Open source Secure Sockets Layer (OpenSSL):•

5

Utilizes SSL and Transport Layer Security (TLS)
protocols. Provides secure network communications
when connecting to HTTPS, JPEG 2000 Interactive
Protocol Secure (JPIPS), or File Transfer Protocol (FTP).
Oracle Java Platform, Standard Edition Development
Kit 7 (JDKTM):
Provides Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP)
message level security, used by Oracle’s Metro JAX-WS
SOAP web services framework.
Transport level encryption is used to protect SSH, SFTP,
and HTTPS communications:
All three transfer protocols make use of OpenSSL toperform the actual encryption. Each application that
implements one of these transports has its own
configuration files which are protected using operating
system level file permissions that specify the details of

A federated system for multi-sensor geoinformation data

T. Bahr & M. Ehrlich

the algorithm used. The system also has Tripwire® andAdvanced Intrusion Detection Environment (AIDE)
available to be able to detect and notify when files arechanged. For HTTPS and SFTP, a Privacy-Enhanced
Mail (PEM) formatted private key and x509 certificatesare installed on the system and protected using the same
file level protection described above.
• Message level encryption is used within SOAP based
web services:
The software uses Oracle’s Metro JAX‐WS SOAP web
services implementation to handle all web services
specifics including the message level protection. Metromakes use of the built-in encryption capabilities
provided by Oracle JDKTM. The configuration of theprotection is stored in files and protected using the same
operating system level protections described above. The
private key and certificate along with the TrustChain are
stored with Java keystone files.
In addition to the third-party encryption components, Jagwire
provides the ability to receive encrypted instant messaging
chat through Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol(XMPP) and Internet Relay Chat (IRC) clients. The XMPP
client utilizes Simple Authentication and Security Layer(SASL), TLS, and SSL. The IRC client can be configured touse SSL.

3.5.1 Integrated advanced analytics
Directly from the browser interface of Jagwire, end-users canrapidly transform Big Earth Data into information using
scientifically proven analytics of ENVI. With access to themost up-to-date data in near real-time, multi-INT fusion forIntelligence and Map product generation enables more
informed decisions based upon all the information available.
Analysing areas of unrest, deciphering topography, or
responding to growing threats, stakeholders need to quickly
analyse imagery and unstructured data types to quickly
develop strategic intelligence and deliver it to those who needit, when and where they need it. As Jagwire is combined witha cloud-deployed version of ENVI, the analytics are moved
to where the data resides – making it possible to quickly
create on-the-fly geospatial products with thin and mobile
clients. Some examples of supported image analytics
capabilities include:• Anomaly detection: Search an image for statistical andspectral distinctions from the background landscape.
• Pan sharpening: Automatically merge a low-resolution
colour, multispectral, or hyperspectral image with ahigh-resolution panchromatic image.
• Change detection: Look for areas of change bycomparing two images from different dates using band
ratio or feature index techniques.
• Classification: Classify terrain automatically or withuser defined specifications.
• Feature extraction: Find objects of interest usingparameters based on spatial, spectral, and texturalcharacteristics.
• Spectral analysis and target detection: Allows for using
pixel responses at different wavelengths to obtain
information about the materials within each pixel.
In addition, Jagwire has harnessed the advanced analytics tomultiple modalities, including FMV, LiDAR, and SAR. Here,radar reconnaissance is of special relevance. Satellite-based
radar reconnaissance systems such as SAR-LUPE use SAR
technology to provide high-resolution images of the Earth's
surface by day and night, regardless of the current light andweather conditions.
With ENVI SARscape analytics, SAR data from all
spaceborne and selected aircraft-based sensors can be easily
processed and analysed to generate advanced information
products. The automated workflows include Time Series
Analysis, Moving Target Detection (MTD), and Ship
Detection combined with Automatic Identification System(AIS) traffic information. It also supports the processing ofdata to create high-resolution DEMs, as well as thematicmaps, e.g. Coherence Change Detection (CCD) and Terrain
Deformation maps.
Or, ENVI and ENVI SARscape can act as completelyinteroperable, stand-alone solutions within existing products
and infrastructure. With native access to ENVI analytics,
users can generate customized workflows on demand using
the more than 200 different tasks that are already available
out of the box. Integrated in Jagwire, customers can easily

3.4.2 Security and information assurance
L3HARRIS recognizes the criticality of maintaining thesecurity posture of operational systems and the constant needto protect access to data and the system. Cyber threats
continue to grow in sophistication and Jagwire has madeSecurity and Information Assurance one of the highest
priorities for system sustainment and support. Some key data
points as it relates to this topic:• Jagwire is certified and accredited to be deployed onsome of the most highly classified and operational
networks, for example the Joint Worldwide Intelligence
Communications System (JWICS).
• Jagwire is configured per US Defence Information
Systems Agency (DISA) and the US National Security
Agency’s (NSA) technical guidance.
• Jagwire supports standard US Department of Defence(DoD) Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) server and user
certificates.
• Jagwire constantly monitors for vulnerabilities and isInformation Assurance Vulnerability Alert (IAVA)
conforming.
3.5 Data analytics
The purpose-built architecture of Jagwire is designed tosupport large volumes, variety and velocity of data – “Big
Earth Data” from traditional and non-traditional sources (Big
Earth Data refers to big data associated with Earthobservation).

6

A federated system for multi-sensor geoinformation data

T. Bahr & M. Ehrlich

apply homegrown analytics across their enterprise allowing
for wide access and adoption of valuable tools.

solutions for cluster and cloud computing are alreadyavailable to create a scalable system.
Jagwire continues to advance and adapt to support theevolving mission and technology landscape. Innovation willcontinue to be a driving factor on Jagwire. Future forward
leaning innovations include the exploration into the following
areas:• Collaboration: User to User and System to User.
• Suggestive and predictive services: Harvesting
information not only from data, but also involving user
behaviours and interactions across the enterprise.
• User and system relationships: Mining data about users(i.e. the data collected, utilization and consumption) tocreate new opportunities for features, interactions andgeneration of derived products.
• Advanced visualization: Multi-INT displays andaggregation, rich product interaction and consumption.
• Advanced search: Social and quality metrics.

3.5.2 Analytics with machine learning
While military tactics are being continuously improved, there
also needs to be an improvement in the way geospatial
information is analysed. The Big Earth Data collected bysatellites, airborne and ground systems, needs to be exploitedin the operational area in an organized manner to make theinformation insightful. Imagery, terrain information, and datafrom multiple sensors can be used to create situationalawareness by applying deep learning, statistical analysis, andprobabilistic algorithms to such data.
L3HARRIS has developed a suite of state-of-the-art, deeplearning-based tools called Mega™ that are designed
specifically to work with imagery to solve geospatialproblems.
Mega™ excels in in automated target detection, land
cover classification mapping, and automated scene state
detection. Highly tuned processes are employed that rely on
high-performance computing to train a Convolutional Neural
Network (CNN) which in turn can help identify and extract
objects of interest or discover specific conditions across vastquantities of images. Our deep learning technologies obtainnear ceiling performance on Pan, RGB, MSI, HSI, SAR,
LiDAR, and derived point cloud data sets.

5. REFERENCES[1] Motion Imagery Standards Board [Ed.], “Video Moving Target
Indicator and Track Metadata”, MISB ST 0903.4, Edition 4, 23
October 2014.
[2] NATO Standardization Agency [Ed.], “NATO Secondary
Imagery Format (NSIF)”, Standardization Agreement STANAG
4545, Edition 2, 6 May 2013.

4. CONCLUSIONS AND OUTLOOK[3] NATO Standardization Agency [Ed.], “NATO Ground Moving
Target Indicator Format (GMTIF)”, Standardization Agreement
STANAG 4607, Edition 3, 14 September 2010.

Jagwire highlights the possibilities of a federated enterprisesystem for the ingestion, compression, storage, cataloguing,
and dissemination of geospatial information and data. To
support tactical operators in austere environments, theJagwire architecture is optimized for low-bandwidth andhigh-latency networks, including dissemination to thin clientsand mobile devices. Furthermore, it is designed to support“Big Earth Data” and enables the ad-hoc creation of advanced
information products from both real-time and archived
geospatial data.
However, near-real-time geospatial data must be
analysed in a short time so that time-critical decision support
can be provided. Particularly the integrated data mining
algorithms for advanced radar reconnaissance and deeplearning-based target detection involve high computational
complexity. Unfortunately, the optimization of thosealgorithms will not be sufficient to obtain the required andexpected performance.
Therefore, High-Performance Computing (HPC)
techniques, which are characterized by parallel processing
capabilities such as multiple-core Central Processing Units(CPUs), Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), cluster, or cloudcomputing are essential to overcome the latency of advanced
analytics. The implementation of such computing devices
should be considered when configuring the optimal hardware
for a Jagwire federation. On the software side, L3HARRIS[4] NATO Standardization Agency [Ed.], “NATO Digital Motion
Imagery Standard”, Standardization Agreement STANAG 4609,
Edition 4, 19 December 2016.
[5] Open Geospatial Consortium Inc. [Ed.], “OpenGIS® Web
Coverage Service (WCS) Interface Standard – Core”, OGC®
Standards and Supporting Documents, OGC® 17-089r1 version 2.1,
16 August 2018.
[6] Open Geospatial Consortium Inc. [Ed.], “OpenGIS® Web
Feature Service (WCS) Interface Standard – With Corrigendum”,
OGC® Standards and Supporting Documents, OGC® 09-025r2
version 2.02, 10 July 2014.
[7] Open Geospatial Consortium Inc. [Ed.], “OpenGIS® Web Map
Server Implementation Specification”, OGC® Standards andSupporting Documents, OGC® 06-042 version 1.3.0, 15 March
2006.
[8] US Department of Defence [Ed.], “National Imagery
Transmission Format”, Department of Defence Internet Standard,
MIL-STD-2500C, version 2.1, 1 May 2006.

7