- Neil Siegel
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Neil Siegel 
Neil SiegelBorn February 19, 1954 Citizenship United States Fields Engineering, Computer Science Institutions TRW
Northrop GrummanAlma mater University of Southern California Doctoral advisor Barry Boehm Known for Blue-Force Tracking
FBCB2
Hunter UAV
multicast communications protocols
low-data-rate networking protocols
Tactical Operations Centers
Command and Control CentersNotable awards US National Academy of Engineering (2005)
IEEE Simon Ramo MedalNeil Gilbert Siegel (born 19 February 1954) is an American computer scientist and engineer, known for his development of many key systems for the United States military, including the Blue-Force Tracking system, the US Army's first unmanned air vehicle system, the US Army forward-area air defense system, and many others. Several of his key inventions also found their way into consumer products, such as hand-held devices (e.g., GPS user devices, the iPhone, etc.) whose map displays automatically orient themselves to align with the real-world's cardinal points.
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Early life and work
Siegel was born in Brooklyn, New York, but has lived most of his life in the area southwest of Los Angeles, California. He attended the University of Southern California, earning degrees in Mathematics. During and after this time, he worked as a professional musician, mostly performing folk and classical music from the Balkans and the Middle East. Later, he earned a Ph.D. in systems engineering (also from USC), where his Ph.D. advisor was noted computer scientist Barry Boehm.
In 1976, he began work at what was then TRW (acquired by Northrop Grumman in 2002).
Recent work and recognition
Starting in 1993, he led an organization at TRW that developed one-of-a-kind automation systems for the US military and (to a lesser extent) commercial companies. This organization achieved significant business success, growing rapidly every year during his tenure as leader (which continued until 2001). They created many new products whose general theme was automation support to decision-makers who operate in complex and stressful environments. In additional to the US Army and the US Air Force, customers during this time included the US steel industry and the movie industry.
In 1993, his team fielded the US Army's first fully automated command-and-control system, the Forward-Area Air Defense C2 System. This system is still in use today.
In 1995, his team won the contract to develop the US Army's first "digital battlefield" system, called Force-XXI Battle Command Brigade and Below (generally known by the acronym FBCB2). This has resulted in a highly regarded capability for the US, now used by the Marine Corps, as well as the Army.
Also in 1995, his team delivered the US Army's first automated command post, which has been followed by a long series of related capabilities to the present time.
In 1997, he was given responsibility for "fixing" the Hunter UAV program, the US Army's first unmanned air vehicle. The program had suffered a series of crashes during testing, and was nominally "cancelled". During his tenure, the program became one of the US' most reliable unmanned air vehicles, and is still in service. The Hunter entered operational service in 1999 in the Balkans.
His personal science and engineering contributions have centered around how to implement large, mobile, ad-hoc radio networks over relatively low data-rate carriers, focusing on what he calls "infrastructureless" networks[1] (e.g., no fixed infrastructure, such as cell-phone towers, repeaters, etc.) and techniques for achieving acceptable dynamics through what he calls "force-structure-aware" networks.[2] He has been a pioneer in large-scale deployments of GPS-enabled applications[3]][4] (like the Blue-Force Tracking system). He has also been active in the field of structuring large-scale software developments so as to match the skill distribution encountered in real-world teams.
Since mid-2001, he has been the chief technology officer of TRW's Systems (now Northrop Grumman Mission Systems). His work during this time has extended his earlier work in infrastructureless networks, force-structure-aware networks, and large-scale system engineering methodologies.
Awards and honors
Siegel has received a number of awards and honors, including:
- Election to the US National Academy of Engineering in 2005.[5]
- Selection as an IEEE Fellow.[6]
- The IEEE Simon Ramo Medal for systems engineering and systems science.[7]
- US Army Honorable Order of Saint Barbara, 1996
- iCMG award for system architecture[8]
- Northern Virginia Technology Council -- CTO of the year award[9]
Personal background
Siegel is an experienced and skilled musician who plays the târ[10] and ney.[11]
He is married to Robyn Friend, a writer, dancer, and singer, with whom he has performed all over the world during the last 30 years. He is the older brother of actor / singer Jack Black.
References
- ^ US patent 6,701,375
- ^ US patent 6,212,559
- ^ US patent 7,256,731
- ^ US patent 5,672,840
- ^ US National Academy of Engineering, member roster
- ^ newly elected IEEE Fellows
- ^ IEEE Simon Ramo recipient list
- ^ iCMG winners by category, 2011
- ^ Siegel wins CTO of the year award
- ^ www.RobynFriend.com
- ^ www.neyzen.com
Categories:- Living people
- 1954 births
- American computer scientists
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