Applicability of the integrated waveform (IW) for the integrated broadcast service (IBS)

The paper "Applicability of demand assigned multiple access (DAMA) waveforms for the integrated broadcast service (IBS)" concluded that currently defined DAMA standards could not support the time-critical requirements of UHF SATCOM intelligence dissemination. These DAMA standards were partitioned into two separate waveforms: 5-kHz DAMA (documented by MIL-STD-188-182A) and 25-kHz DAMA (documented by MIL-STD-188-183A). Since the publishing of the paper, the Defense Information Systems Agency's (DISA) Interoperability Directorate has continued work on the DAMA standards. Their Technical Working Groups (TWGs) have re-architected the waveforms to be sliced horizontally into a demand assignment layer (MlL-STD188-182B) and a multiple access layer (MIL-STD-188-183B). These efforts have standardized functions across channels sizes into an "integrated waveform", selecting the best components of each legacy DAMA waveform and allowing each layer to be developed, analyzed and perhaps certified independently. A comparison of IBS requirements to this new DAMA architecture can again ensure prudent decisions can be made regarding use of defense satellite communications resources.