Scheduling Observations on the LCOGT Network

LCOGT is deploying a world-wide telescope network to enable near-continuous coverage of variable or transient sources. We desire the telescopes in this network to be scheduled for efficiency with respect to a coherent set of science goals. To achieve this, we are developing a software structure to carry observing programs from initial proposal through data acquisition and feedback to the schedule. Key elements in this structure are a database of observation requests, requirements, and status, a protocol to describe observations, and a set of planners that work by successive refinement of the schedule.