Typical Classification
Unclassified, Public Release
Typical Duration
Half-day course
Course Description
Directed Energy Systems Engineering is an introductory course, designed to provide an appreciation of Systems Engineering in the pursuit of the Directed Energy (DE) Weapons revolution. After many decades of Research & Development, emerging DE weapons systems must navigate the technology's "valley of death" through thoughtful application of Systems Engineering principles to successfully field new warfighter capabilities.
The course will introduce the principles of Systems Engineering, define DE's High Energy Lasers (HEL) and High-Power Microwave (HPM) Systems, then review DoW guidance and tools in the context of the warfighters' missions. Conceptual HEL/HPM applications will provide instantiation examples and enable interactive discussions.
At the end of the course, attendees will be better able to craft their programs to leverage proven DoW SE processes and effectively integrate into existing and future DoW weapons systems/networks. The course will cover the Systems Engineering Process throughout the Lifecycle.
Topics to be covered in this course include:
- The Big Picture/Overview
- DE Weapon Systems Definitions: HEL & HPM
- Military Requirements and User Interactions
- DoD SE Guides to include Mission Engineering (ME), Digital Engineering, System-of-Systems (SoS), Modular Open Systems Architecture (MOSA), Software Engineering (SWE), and The Software Acquisition Pathway
- Systems Architecture and its application to DE Systems
- Tools to Enable Engineering Success: Modeling & Simulation (M&S) and How M&S supports DoW Processes
- Testing as an Integral Part of SE: the Different Types of Test & Evaluation (T&E)
- SE for High Energy Laser Weapon System Integration and T&E
- SE for HPM Weapon Systems and T&E
Intended Audience
This course is open to the public and requires no specific background as it is general in nature, but rich in helping to understand the fundamental concepts of DE Weapon Systems and how to apply System Engineering processes.