Unattended black side data link relay

US10158416B1 · kind B1 · utility

Assignee

• BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integration Inc. · US

Inventors

• David A. Cooper · Douglasville, US
• John H Chongoushian · Emerson, US
• Bruce Eteson · Hackettstown, US
• Jeffrey P Pincus · Emerson, US
• John A. Tranquilli, Jr. · Merrimack, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Nov 30, 2017
• Grant date: Dec 18, 2018
• Expiry date: Nov 30, 2037

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H04L25/0202
• WIPO field: Telecommunications
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

An unattended apparatus and method for isolating and relaying secure communications under adverse circumstances without awareness of encryption keys uses known and/or inferred characteristics of received transmissions to identify, isolate, and retransmit only friendly communications without decryption or re-encryption, and in embodiments also without awareness of applicable TRANSEC algorithms and keys. A channelizer digitizes energy received within a bandwidth of interest, which is then analyzed to detect chip timing, identify and demodulate pulses, and assemble secure messages for retransmission. In embodiments, the retransmissions use the original frequencies and TRANSEC parameters, and/or otherwise adhere to applicable TRANSEC and MSEC constraints so that the relayed messages are accepted by intended recipients. Embodiments provide interoperability with existing secure communications such as Link 16 and CDL. In embodiments relay nodes communicate via an out-of-band transport to determine which link has the best reception and which should retransmit a message.