System Architechture

The core of WFTAK is its military-grade TAK Server, which is deployed in a secure cloud-computing environment and provides AES-256 encrypted connections to the TAK apps over any available internet connection including cellular service. The TAK Server uses these encrypted connections to route messages containing the GPS locations of wildland firefighters, as well as other information such as shapes or chat messages shared between resources. The end result of this system is that wildfire responders, support staff and fire management using the TAK app can see the near real-time location of other resources as well as other situational awareness information using the app.

WFTAK is designed to accommodate incident, initial attack, RX burning, and project-level work at the agency and interagency level. The system does this by dividing WFTAK into channels, which resources can turn on or off using their TAK apps. WFTAK channels do not involve voice communications; rather, when a user turns a channel on, they begin seeing the locations of every other responder who is also running WFTAK. If a user has the same channel turned on, they can interact with other connected users.

WFTAK channel access is controlled by each user’s username/password login, which grants access to authorized channels in the system. Each agency that uses WFTAK can designate one or more people as agency administrators, who can approve new users and  create channels for their use. 

One of the most powerful aspects of WFTAK is its ability to automatically create groups and channels, as well as automatically add appropriate users to those channels.  When a user initially signs up, WFTAK communicates with the IRWIN and IROC systems to determine which unit, dispatch center and GACC a user belongs in.  If a user gets a resource order to an incident, WFTAK will capture this via IROC and they will automatically be added to that incident and its respective channels.  

Users can communicate and view other users in their respective units at the agency level; however, if interagency communication and situational awareness is needed, users can turn on their Dispatch and/or GACC channels which are available based on geographic location to all WFTAK users.