IBM og Forterra Systems arbeider med et nytt "våpen" i kampen mot terrorisme og andre alvorlige forbrytelser. Det nye virtuelle antiterrorvåpenet skal integrere IBMs verktøy for sanntidskommunikasjon med en nettbasert og interaktiv 3D-plattform fra Forterra.
"Babel Bridge" vil effektivisere og sterkt redusere utgiftene ved aksjoner mot terror. Teknologien skal løse den babelske kommunikasjonsforvirringen som lett oppstår når ulike instanser i sanntid skal løse en felles oppgave.
Arbeidet med Babel Bridge tar fatt om kort tid. Det er ikke satt noen dato for når systemet skal stå ferdig.
Teknologien vil forene IBMs Lotus Sametime enhetlige kommunikasjons- og samhandlingsplattform UCC, med Forterras nettbaserte og interaktive virtuelle 3D-plattform OLIVE.
Etterretning og aksjoner mot kriminelle der flere enheter er involvert hemmes ofte fordi partene anvender forskjellige kommunikasjonsplattformer som ikke spiller på lag. Myndigheter har lenge arbeidet med å finne frem til felles og enhetlige løsninger som kan brukes i sanntid, spesielt i krigen mot terror.
Den nye løsningen fra IBM og Forterra designes for å skape bedre grunnlag for samhandling, og vil omfatte alle involverte instanser, fra beslutningstakere til analytikere på bakrommet og agentene ute i felten.
IBM og Forterra mener at integrasjonen mellom deres to teknologier har et potensial til å bli foretrukket samhandlingsverktøy, så vel innad i sikkerhetstjenesten som mot ansvarlige myndigheter.
Denne 3D-animerte plattformen kan for eksempel brukes av agenter fra MI5, FBI og lokalt politi til å beskjemp en terroristcelle. Da bruker agentene OLIVE til å 3D-animere området og cellene, og gjennomføre en virtuell treningsaksjon. Ved å integrere UCC har agentene sanntidskontakt med ekspertene, kan finne tilgjengelige ressurser og sikre alle relevante kommandolinjer. Ny informasjon kan kontinuerlig legges inn i systemet, som videostreaming, bilder fra droner og radiofiler.
Orlando, FL. March 20, 2008 -- IBM and Forterra Systems are working to solve an age-old problem that challenges U.S. security and costs taxpayers millions. The partners are developing a futuristic unified communications solution code-named "Babel Bridge" that could allow US intelligence agencies to use a common graphical collaboration system to instantly communicate within a virtual world.
To meet this challenge, IBM and Forterra have entered into a partnering agreement to integrate the Lotus Sametime unified communications and collaboration (UCC) platform with Forterra's On-Line Interactive Virtual Environment (OLIVE™) 3D platform. The new system would give online collaborators instant insight through the display and discussion of multiple data forms in parallel including documents, graphic displays, and human expertise via anytime, anywhere connectivity through the Internet or a mobile phone.
It is frequently noted by leaders of U.S. government agencies -- even those charged with protecting the nation in military and intelligence roles – that their agencies often are hampered in their efforts to work together by the use of different communications systems and procedures, evocative of the language barriers erected by the Biblical "Tower of Babel." The ability to instantly share information for planning and real-time action in support U.S. interests, including the War on Terror, has become a leading objective of many government agencies.
This IBM-Forterra solution is being designed to build greater collaboration and real-time information sharing between analysts and operators within and between government agencies. The integration between Forterra’s virtual collaboration application with IBM Lotus Sametime carries the potential to become the primary collaboration platform used throughout the intelligence community, and with other branches of the government.
Imagine an example in which intelligence agents are training to take down a terrorist cell. The mission requires cooperation from MI5, the FBI and local operatives on the ground. Through OLIVE's virtual reality capabilities, the agencies are able to recreate the location of the terrorists and rehearse the mission. By integrating UCC capabilities into the virtual reality model, the team instantly knows which experts are available and their location to harness the necessary resources in real-time to gain the necessary approvals for any changes as the rehearsal is taking place. They can also share and integrate into the training new information from operatives in the field such as streaming video, images from drone planes and audio files.
"The value of Unified Communications and Collaboration does not come from singular features like click-to-call," said Bruce Morse, Vice President, IBM Unified Communications and Collaboration. "The true value of UCC is realized when multiple collaboration capabilities are well integrated within a business task or process -- like bringing several organizations together to share, review, approve and take immediate actions for national security. Managing communication and collaboration effectively within business processes can make all the difference between the success and failure of critical projects."
Under the terms of the integration agreement, Forterra will deliver plug-ins to the Lotus Sametime platform and integration to the Lotus Notes calendar that allow easy access, scheduling and launching of meetings in the virtual world. Forterra will also embed key services, such as presence and location information, document, whiteboard, and application sharing, from the Lotus Sametime platform into the virtual world to enable faster, more effective communication and collaboration within the context of a situation or a meeting.
With integrated location information, any meeting that requires the most appropriate experts can be instantly initiated at the click of a button, pulling all the relevant resources into the virtual world meeting. Lotus Sametime Unified Telephony integration will allow any landline PBX, VoiP, or mobile phone caller to join a virtual meeting. In addition, Forterra intends to resell Lotus Sametime through an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) model with its virtual world solutions focused on its top business processes which include collaboration, training, product lifecycle management, and operations management.
Forterra announced in September 2007 a strategic investment and technology advancement agreement with Washington, DC-based In-Q-Tel (IQT), the strategic investment firm that works to identify, adapt, and deliver innovative technology solutions to support the mission of the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC). IQT historically makes investments in new technologies that meet current and future Intelligence Community needs and also exhibit the potential for broader commercial appeal.
“Member agencies within the U.S. Intelligence Community and private sector organizations have distinct but also overlapping challenges in monitoring global or regional situations and then pursuing real-time analysis and problem-solving," said Steve Bowsher, Executive Vice President of Investments at Washington-based investment firm In-Q-Tel. "We believe secure virtual worlds integrated with unified communications and collaboration will enable users to engage the right subject matter experts within and between organizations to analyze complex situations. The goal of unified communications products that provide a crucial, distributed collaboration platform for both the public and private sectors offers the potential to help the agencies of the U.S. Intelligence Community collaborate more effectively with one another, with other federal groups, with state and local law enforcement, and with international partners."
“Forterra is thrilled with the work program and relationship that In-Q-Tel awarded our company last year,” indicated Dave Rolston, CEO of Forterra Systems. “Our partnership with IBM and forthcoming integration to Lotus’ leading UCC technologies enables us to deliver critical functionality that builds on that strategic investment. We are committed to meeting the requirements of both public and private sector organizations for an easy-to-use, trusted, secure collaboration platform, and we are confident that this announcement allows us to take the lead in meeting the demands of a new market trend. We feel this program will develop the advanced collaboration capabilities that are just starting to be in high demand with our commercial customers, which is an important end goal for In-Q-Tel as well.”
The integrated IBM-Forterra solution will deploy behind and through firewalls so enterprise IT departments can achieve the security needed to conduct private, by invitation only, or public discussions and document sharing.
Forterra Systems is a venture backed software company providing online distributed virtual world technology for the corporate, healthcare, government, and entertainment industries. The company’s investors include Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP), Sutter Hill and private investors. “IBM's Venture Capital Group facilitated Forterra’s introduction into IBM's ecosystem”, said Erel N. Margalit, founder and managing partner of JVP. "The result is that we were able to quickly integrate Forterra's breakthrough platform with IBM's deep technical and business prowess to bring to market an unprecedented and innovative set of new workplace collaboration tools."
“Babel Bridge” is part of IBM’s ongoing efforts to build enterprise ready 3D Internet solutions. The solution is planned for development beginning in the second quarter of 2008.
About Forterra Systems
Forterra’s software and services enable organizations to build their own virtual worlds to train, plan, rehearse, and collaborate in ways previously considered impossible or impractical. Using the OLIVE (On-Line Interactive Virtual Environment) platform and industry standard PC hardware, customers can rapidly generate realistic, collaborative, 3D Internet solutions. http://www.forterrainc.com
For more information on IBM’s unified communications platform:
http://www.ibm.com/lotus/sametime
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IBM, Lotus, and Sametime are trademarks of IBM Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both.