Command & Control
AEGIS
Real-time counter-drone command interface
Designed the complete C2 interface for a counter-drone platform deployed across military installations, airports, and critical infrastructure. The product keeps the map at the center, while hardware control, threat tracking, and countermeasure activation stay accessible in seconds.
Role
Lead UI/UX Designer
Platform
Desktop Command & Control
Scope
11 screens + design system
Tool
Figma
Status
Delivered to client
On this page: Overview • Lifecycle • Brief • Command Hierarchy • Response Timelines • Threat Framework • IA • Decision Ledger • After-Action Review • Outcomes
Project Snapshot
Users
Tactical Operators, Supervisors, Admins
Hardware
Radar, EO/IR, RF scanner, jammer, spoofer, interceptor
Primary design problem
Map-first control with hardware overlays
Outcome
Delivered C2 UX for integrated hardware deployment
Opening
A platform designed for seconds, not minutes
When a hostile UAV appears in the airspace, the operator has seconds to classify the threat, select a countermeasure, and activate it. The design needed to keep the map as the permanent primary interface while making every hardware control and threat action immediately accessible.
Discovery & Constraints
The operational lifecycle that shaped every decision
01
Detect
Radar, RF scanner, EO/IR, and ADS-B sensors pick up airspace activity. Every unknown object triggers an alert on the live map.
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02
Track
The system maintains continuous flight tracks, feeds threat scoring, and displays movement on the operational map without replacing the operator's view.
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03
Assess
Operators classify the object — hostile, whitelist, or unknown — and select a response. Classification is one-panel, never requiring navigation away from the map.
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04
Respond
Countermeasure activation — jammer, spoofer, or interceptor — is executed with intent confirmation, logged for incident records, and visible on the map in real time.
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Research context
No formal personas or generative interviews were possible under the hardware-led timeline. The product was designed in an environment that prioritized operational delivery over a separate research phase.
Discovery inputs
Hardware manuals, operator procedure summaries, domain expert conversations, and program leadership alignment. Support ticket themes and live equipment constraints were part of the discovery lens.
Assumptions & checks
The map must remain the primary interface and urgent actions must be accessible within one interaction. Validated via rapid design reviews and client feedback loops during proof-of-concept.
The Brief
Mission parameters
Brief
AEGIS Counter-Drone C2 Platform
Objective
Translate existing counter-drone hardware capabilities into a usable command and control platform for both single-operator and multi-workstation deployments.
Constraint
The UI had to scale from a single workstation to a multi-site command center without becoming too sparse or too cluttered.
Non-negotiable
Map must remain the primary operational workspace at all times. No panel or workflow may replace the live map view.
Delivery
Hardware-led timeline. Design reviews ran in parallel with development, not before it.
Command Hierarchy
Three roles across the command structure
Platform
AEGIS C2
Tactical Operator
Threat Response
Mission: neutralize in <45 seconds
Operates under high-stress, time-critical conditions. Needs the map, threat state, and hardware activation in one glance without navigating away from the operational picture.
Live map with threat overlay always visible
One-panel hardware activation
Instant countermeasure controls
Operations Supervisor
Health & Awareness
Mission: situational awareness across all sites
Monitors multi-site device health and incident status without digging into device-level detail. Routes escalations and tracks resolution across workstations.
Compact multi-site dashboard
Critical alert visibility without detail overhead
Escalation routing to tactical operators
Super Admin
Hardware Integration
Mission: configure hardware with spatial context
Configures device placement, detection ranges, and system parameters. Needs all configuration expressed in the operational context — not abstract data forms.
Device management with map-visible placement
Coverage zone visualization on configuration
Workstation and device group hierarchy
Response Timelines
How each role moves through the system
Tactical Operator
Threat response
Target: <45 seconds
Detection→
Identification→
Assessment→
Countermeasure
Sees hostile drone on map → opens Drone panel (map stays visible) → selects target and jammer → presses START JAM. No navigation away from operational picture.
Operations Supervisor
Health awareness across all sites
Target: <5 minutes
System status→
Alert review→
Escalation→
Resolution
Opens System Monitoring → reviews device health at all 8 workstations → identifies critical threat → routes alert to tactical operator at affected site → logs escalation. All visible in one compact dashboard.
Super Admin
Hardware onboarding with spatial context
Configuration is spatial, not abstract
Device info→
Position→
Configuration→
Visualization
Opens Device Management → selects workstation and device group → enters device name, IP, position coordinates → sets detection range and azimuth → new device appears on map at correct position with coverage zone visible.
Threat-Management Framework
Five design problems rooted in operational risk
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Design Problem
Constraint Type
01
The map must never be replaced
All controls and panels must appear as layers, not full-screen replacements, so spatial awareness is preserved.
Spatial
02
Hardware control without context switching
Jammer, radar, and countermeasure actions must be accessible while the operator still sees the threat movement.
Temporal
03
Autopilot must prevent accidental activation
A clear persistent state and explicit confirmation are required to protect against dangerous mode changes.
Safety
04
Multi-device architecture must not create overhead
Supervisor and admin views need hierarchical grouping to avoid scrolling through 85+ devices.
Scale
05
Threat classification must be instant
Track, whitelist, blacklist, or ignore must be actionable from a single panel view.
Speed
Operational Doctrine
Five principles that governed every screen decision
Design Doctrine — AEGIS C2
The map is the interface
Every control, panel, and status indicator is layered over the live map. The operational picture is never replaced, only augmented.
Threat state drives priority
Visual hierarchy is dynamic. Hostile classifications surface above all other information automatically, requiring no manual re-sorting.
Hardware activation requires intent
Countermeasure actions carry explicit confirmation steps. Accidental activation is architecturally prevented, not just warned against.
System health is always visible
Device status and site health are persistent elements of the interface. Supervisors are never more than one click from a degraded state.
Configuration is spatial
Hardware setup is expressed in the operational map context. Coverage zones, azimuth, and position all render geographically during configuration.
Information Architecture
ANTI DRONE SYSTEM
Single unified counter-drone operations platform
Detection Layer
Radar
RF Scanner
EO/IR
ADS-B
Threat Intelligence
Drone Identification
Classification
Threat Scoring
Whitelist
Blacklist
Operational Workspace
Live Map
Flight Tracks
Geofencing
Mission Layers
Airspace Monitoring
Countermeasures
Jammers
Spoofers
Interceptors
Engagement Controls
Incident Management
Alerts
Evidence
Recordings
Reports
Administration
Devices
Operators
Permissions
Settings
The AEGIS system organizes detection, threat intelligence, and operational control into distinct layers. Operators interact with the live map as the primary workspace while threat data flows from detection sensors through scoring to countermeasures, with full incident tracking and administrative oversight.
Design System
Ant Design dark theme extended for operational context
Component library
Buttons, forms, modals, and status indicators tuned for C2 interaction.
Coverage visual language
Radar, jammer, and detection zones use calibrated opacity and color hierarchy.
Threat iconography
Consistent classification colors for drones, aircraft, and alerts across every panel.
Decision Ledger
Five architectural choices and their operational reasoning
01
Floating panels over map
Context
Operators needed hardware and threat controls without losing the live operational picture.
Decision
All control panels float as overlay layers — the map never goes below the interaction layer.
Outcome
Spatial awareness is maintained during every hardware interaction.
02
Persistent Autopilot indicator
Context
Mode confusion in Autopilot could lead to accidental engagement or missed manual overrides.
Decision
Autopilot state is always visible in the top bar, color-coded, and requires a confirmed toggle to change.
Outcome
Eliminates mode confusion risk; operators always know the system's current engagement state.
03
Dual EO/IR feed panel
Context
Operators needed visual confirmation alongside electronic detection data to classify threats accurately.
Decision
A resizable dual-feed panel shows EO and IR simultaneously as a floating overlay.
Outcome
Supports rapid visual classification without leaving the map workspace.
04
Hierarchical device tree
Context
Deployments can include 85+ devices across multiple workstations and sites.
Decision
Device management uses a collapsible site → workstation → device group → device hierarchy.
Outcome
Supervisors and admins can navigate large deployments without scrolling through flat lists.
05
Offline map tile confirmation
Context
Operational sites may be in low-connectivity environments where live map tiles are unavailable.
Decision
Admins can pre-cache tile sets for specific geographic areas with a clear confirmation and status indicator.
Outcome
Map-first control is preserved even in fully offline or air-gapped deployments.
What the System Enables
Operator
Single-screen threat response
Operators manage live airspace, tracking, and countermeasures without leaving the map.
Supervisor
Multi-site health awareness
Supervisors see device health and alerts across multiple workstations in a compact view.
Admin
Spatial device setup
Admins configure hardware with geographic placement and coverage visualization, avoiding abstract forms.
After-Action Review
Operational learnings and next steps for AEGIS
AAR
AEGIS C2 — Post-Delivery Review
Outcome
Operational success with map-first control
Map-first control preserved spatial awareness while exposing critical hardware controls in the flow. The operator can act quickly without losing sight of the live threat picture.
Challenge
Visual hierarchy under operational load
Layered panels needed a clearer hierarchy and lighter visual states to avoid overwhelming operators during high-intensity threat response.
Follow-on
Docking, search, and filter support
Introduce docking zones and search/filter controls for deployments with many workstations, reducing friction and making large-scale monitoring more manageable.
Impact & Outcomes
Designed for live operations
Built a map-first control interface that keeps threat context visible while operators act.
Hardware-aware delivery
Aligned UI design with real device and workflow constraints to reduce implementation risk.
Internal reference pattern
Established a visual and interaction model for future counter-drone deployments.
Stakeholder confidence
Refined decisions through direct operational review rather than a separate discovery phase.