DARPA Tackles Spectrum Issues With SSPARC

Image courtesy DARPA.

By Danielle Lucey



Last week, DARPA announced its Shared Spectrum Access for Radar and Communications, or SSPARC, program, which has the goal of improving radar and communications capabilities for both military and commercial users through technological advancements that would allow for spectrum sharing.



Currently, military and commercial networks both desire a portion of bandwidth in the 2 to 4 gigahertz spectrum, but this means a balancing act between national security and growing commercial wireless spectrum needs. SSPARC aims to support to allow military radars to share the spectrum with both military and commercial communications networks. 



“We see a technical approach based on cooperation between radars and communications networks as a win-win for the military and commercial communities,” says John Chapin, DARPA program manager. “A key goal is to enable increased spectrum access for the systems while ensuring military security needs are protected.”



A DARPA press release says the program will tackle both long- and short-term solutions, with the rapid adoption portion, like the development of software and upgrades to existing systems, deployed within five to eight years. 



“The longer term vision of the program is to create clean-sheet designs for radar and communications systems that push the state of the art in both areas, while incorporating spectrum sharing as a basic requirement,” Chapin says.



DARPA is hosting a Proposers’ Day conference in Arlington, Va., on 26 Feb. in conjunction with SSPARC.