What is TAK?

The Team Awareness Kit (TAK) is a comprehensive software application suite developed by the United States Department of Defense (DoD) to enhance situational awareness and communication for military and first responder teams. Utilizing geospatial mapping, tactical graphics, and real-time data sharing, TAK enables teams to visualize their locations, assets, and critical information on a digital map. In addition, TAK can be integrated with augmented reality (AR) technology, providing users with heads-up displays of tactical data overlaid onto their real-world environment through compatible devices like head-mounted displays (HMDs). By combining situational awareness and AR capabilities, TAK empowers teams to make informed decisions, improve coordination, and respond effectively to dynamic and complex situations.

As a DoD product, this system is widely adopted at the federal level through the DoD, FBI, Secret Service, Customs and Boarder Protection, along with many others.  The application allows for seamless interoperability to quickly link, or federate, TAK server systems with one another in a secure and encrypted environment.  Seeing the effectiveness of this product and the realization that the capabilities filled a desperate need within the Nation Public Safety community, the Federal Government opened this system for adoption with State and Local entities.  In Texas, the Department of Public Safety is leading the charge with the TAK platform, actively using the collaborative features to work the boarder protection activities between DPS and Customs and Boarder Protection.  Capitalizing on the headway being made from DPS, many local agencies within Texas are following adoption of TAK including: Houston, Harris Co, Texas A&M, Ft. Worth, Texas Parks and Wildlife, Texas National Guard, Hidalgo Co Emergency Management, and Austin / Travis County including the 10 County CAPCOG region.

What does all this really mean?  It's a single pane of glass, a one stop shop for anything you need.  People, vehicles, camera systems, cad date, patient locations, mapping, GIS layers, Tier II data, hazmat monitors, stream flows, low water crossing status, power outages, aircraft, drone locations, video streams, augmented realty overlaid on a video display, building floor plans, almost anything you want, if you can dream it.  Instead of logging into 50 different systems, you log into one, and get it all.  

Who can use ATXTAK?
ATXTAK was designed primarily for public safety and emergency management.  Our goal is to spread adoption throughout the CAPCOG 10 County region around Austin.  Users in this area include: Fire, EMS, Law Enforcement, Emergency Management, Government Utilities, ARES, Search and Rescue, and volunteer organizations supporting life safety and infrastructure recovery.

Secondary use includes support of Special Events within the CAPCOG region and credentialing temporary users in support of those efforts.  ATXTAK is also available to support the growth and use of the TAK platform for agencies outside of the CAPCOG region.  We consider all use cases in support of extending the TAK community.

For more information on the TAK platform, check out our resources page and Use Cases page.