Advanced Joint Effectiveness Model (AJEM)

The Advanced Joint Effectiveness Model (AJEM) [1] development team recently announced the availability of a new AJEM release. As BRL-CAD is incorporated as an integral part of AJEM, a brief overview is provided.

AJEM is a lethality, vulnerability, and endgame computer simulation code capable of analyzing various types of threats against aircraft and ground targets. It combines elements of threat modeling, target modeling, encounter kinematics, generation of weapon burst points, propagation of damage (penetration, fire, blast, etc.), evaluating system relationships (functionality, redundancies, etc.), and evaluating remaining capability or loss of function. Supported by JTCG/ME [2], JASPO [3], and others, AJEM is the U.S. Department of Defense standard computer simulation suite for performing verified and validated trauma, survivability, lethality, vulnerability, and signature prediction analyses.

BRL-CAD is bundled into the AJEM suite and called upon by various analysis and simulation codes in order to provide a robust geometric representation, fast geometric interrogation, and highly-detailed geometry evaluation. By using BRL-CAD, the analysis codes have absolutely no license costs, recurring or otherwise, and completely uninhibited use [4]. Moreover, analysis developers gain protection against CAD industry corporate restructuring, capitalize on decades of (prior and ongoing) development activity, have unlimited extensibility potential, and do not have to rely upon any particular commercial vendor's product vitality or development priorities. It's a big win and savings all around.

A separation of responsibilities allows simulation and analysis developers to focus on their needs knowing that BRL-CAD's solid geometry engine is managing data efficiently and correctly. It's thanks to efforts like AJEM, their developers, and their sponsors that BRL-CAD can concentrate development on providing robust high-performance geometry services. While AJEM distribution is limited to authorized recipients due to the nature of the analysis codes involved, their development and integration methodology is a testament to efficient reuse, on-going development recapitalization, and collaboration. See the AJEM site for more details.

[1] http://ajem.com
[2] Joint Technical Coordinating Group for Munitions Effectiveness
[3] Joint Aircraft Survivability Program Office
[4] BRL-CAD is free open source software!