Sponsored By Oxley Developments
www.oxleygroup.com
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18 Oct 18. DARPA seeks proposals for third swarm sprint. DARPA is seeking proposals for its third swarm sprint, which will focus on the topics of human-swarm teaming and swarm tactics, the agency announced on 12 October. The proposals are being sought under DARPA’s OFFensive Swarm-Enabled Tactics (OFFSET) project, which envisions swarms of 250 collaborative autonomous systems providing critical insights to small ground military units in urban areas where vertical structures, tight spaces and limited sight lines constrain communications and mobility. Swarm sprints allow for the incorporation of emerging technology throughout the life of the programme. Each of five core sprints focuses on one or more of the key OFFSET topic areas: swarm tactics, swarm autonomy, human-swarm teaming, virtual environment, and physical testbed. Together these topics aim to enable breakthroughs in swarm capabilities. The first of two topic areas covered in the third sprint is human-swarm teaming, which refers to the design, development and demonstration of novel frameworks to enhance how humans interact with autonomous swarms. This topic area recognises and seeks to address the complexity of the swarm systems themselves, as well as the cognitive, physical and contextual needs of human teammates or tacticians when conducting urban operations.
The third swarm sprint also seeks to increase the collection of swarm tactics found in the OFFSET swarm tactics exchange, a repository of tools and tactics sprinters can employ. Selected swarm sprinters will design and implement additional sophisticated swarm tactics employing a heterogeneous swarm of air and ground robots and addressing the mission context of conducting an urban raid within four square city blocks over mission duration of one-to-two hours.
Swarm sprinters in either topic area, whether for human-swarm teaming or advanced swarm tactics, will integrate their technologies into one or both of the OFFSET swarm systems architectures and will have the chance to further develop and demonstrate their innovative solutions in relevant field tests to showcase breakthrough swarm capabilities in urban settings. (Source: Shephard)
18 Oct 18. UMISOFTTM – A fully integrated, performant and secured tool for MCM operatives. ECA Group releases a new generation, fully integrated software suite for MCM applications, relying on its 60 years expertise in providing the most performant unmanned systems for MCM missions at sea (USVs, AUVs, MIDS ROVs…) and in the air (UAVs).
Benefitting on this experience in MCM management and data processing, UMISOFTTM enables to ensure a full operational MCM cycle in a strongly integrated way, from mission orders reception to final report edition. Thus, a MCM mission can be planned, prepared, run, supervised and analyzed with one software suite.
UMISOFTTM includes three interconnected modules allowing a comprehensive management of the entire MCM mission:
- UMISOFTTM MM for the Mission Management, (planning, supervision, and evaluation),
- UMISOFTTM DC for Drones Control (programming, preparation and control command of drones)
- UMISOFTTM DM for Data Management (payload data analysis and classification).
All of these modules share services and data with centralized storage and automated transfer, in order to obtain for each operative the most up-to-date situation in real-time ensuring integrity, security and control of the entire system. UMISOFTTM is compliant with standards such as IHO (International Hydrographic Organization):S57, S63, S100, AML, etc., and OGC (WMS/WFS). The cyber security of this system is ensured through communication encryption and authentication/authorization.
Moreover, UMISOFTTM software system is able to manage several drone missions in parallel, in order to save time, costs and minimize risks for crews during clearance missions at sea. It is able to retrieve and process the gathered data in real-time, giving a global and dynamic overview of the tactical situation, and allowing to analyze the georeferenced data in order to obtain the best coverage and clearance rate.
UMISOFTTM – Configurable and modular
Thanks to its open architecture, UMISOFTTM can integrate any kind of payload (sonars, sweeps, Side scan sonar, Synthetic Aperture sonar, Multibeam, SBP, Video, etc.) and connect an unlimited number of ECA Group or third-party drones: USVs, AUVs, ROVs or UAVs… The user can easily configure and set automatic registration and description of drones which can complete the unmanned system progressively and without any storage space limit.
Different configurations of UMISOFTTM are available. The optional modules can be combined with the others. Therefore, the offer covers the complete range of MCM needs from the isolated standalone UMISOFTTM DC to operate a single drone up to a full system configuration able to manage an entire MCM drones fleet from a mothership as well as from a shore shelter.
UMISOFTTM will be demonstrated on ECA Group booth at EURONAVAL exhibition to be held from October 23rd to 26th.
17 Oct 18. Marlborough Communications Ltd (MCL), the UK-based military technology company, has achieved Design Approved Organization Scheme (DAOS) accreditation from the Military Aviation Authority (MAA), enabling it to design equipment for UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) aircraft.
Organisations working with the MoD in the design of aircraft systems, associated equipment and airborne explosive ordnance and armament equipment must be assessed by the MAA and have their competencies rigorously tested and endorsed prior to becoming an approved DAOS organisation. The scheme provides the framework and associated guidance that governs military aviation activity and against which air safety is assessed – requiring accredited companies to record and keep detailed information on all equipment supplied.
MCL is one of very few small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to have achieved DAOS status, and was sponsored by the MoD to work towards approval – including undergoing appropriate training – as part of an ongoing contract.
Shane Knight, Managing Director for MCL said, “Being awarded DAOS accreditation is a significant milestone for MCL. It will enable us to grow our business within the aircraft communications systems sector by undertaking our own research and development work, complementing our market-leading position as a vendor of existing cutting-edge military technology.
“We have already begun key projects under DAOS including designing systems for use by almost all Air Force pilots to protect hearing.”
17 Oct 18. Boeing Launches New Organization to Unleash the Power of Advanced Computing and Networks in Aerospace. Boeing [NYSE: BA] today announced a new Disruptive Computing and Networks (DC&N) organization to develop computing and communications solutions for advanced commercial and government aerospace applications. By leveraging core technologies in quantum communications and computing, neuromorphic processing and advanced sensing, the new organization will enable Boeing to develop breakthrough solutions in secure communications, artificial intelligence and complex system optimization. In addition to building internal capabilities, DC&N will also work closely with Boeing HorizonX, the company’s innovation cell, to identify external partners for collaboration to accelerate growth.
“Advanced computing and communications technologies are increasingly at the core of all aerospace innovation,” said Greg Hyslop, Boeing’s chief technology officer and senior vice president of Engineering, Test & Technology. “We’re excited to stand up the Disruptive Computing and Networks organization because it will help us develop new businesses and partnerships in this rapidly-expanding field, delivering more value to our customers and helping further define our second century of aerospace leadership”
DC&N will be based in Southern California and operate as a part of Boeing Engineering, Test & Technology. Charles Toups, formerly the vice president and general manager of Boeing Research & Technology (BR&T), will lead the organization as vice president and general manager.
Prior to leading BR&T, Toups served in a number of senior engineering management and business positions at Boeing, including vice president and general manager of the Network and Tactical Systems division at Boeing Defense, Space & Security, vice president of engineering for Boeing Defense, Space & Security, and vice president of Boeing Satellite Systems, where he led multiple commercial and government communication satellite businesses. Toups earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the University of California at Irvine, master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and master’s degree in business management from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
Naveed Hussain will serve as the new leader of BR&T, the company’s advanced central research and development organization. BR&T is comprised of nearly 4,000 engineers, scientists, technicians and technologists who create and collaborate with research and development partners around the world to provide innovative systems and solutions to the aerospace industry’s toughest challenges. Hussain will have oversight of five facilities in the U.S. and six international research centers.
Hussain is currently vice president of Aeromechanics Technology and leads the BR&T facility in Southern California. He has held a number of key leadership roles at Boeing since joining the company as a Howard Hughes Doctoral Fellow nearly 30 years ago. His accomplishments include leading Platform & Networked Systems Technology for BR&T, launching the BR&T-India research center in Bangalore and directing BDS Flight Engineering. Hussain earned his undergraduate degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, as well as a master’s degree and PhD in mechanical engineering from Stanford University. He also completed his MBA at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
09 Oct 18. Sikorsky testing autonomous technology on Black Hawk in preparation for FVL. Key Points:
- Sikorsky is testing autonomous technology on its Black Hawk helicopter in preparation for testing on its FVL aircraft
- The company looks to help pilots better perform mission in challenging environments
Sikorsky is testing autonomous technology on a UH-60A Black Hawk helicopter in preparation for eventually using the technology on its Future Vertical Lift (FVL) platform, according to a company official.
Chris Dowse, Sikorsky director of army systems, told Jane’s on 8 October at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) conference in Washington, DC, that Sikorsky is using the Black Hawk as a testbed to develop an optimally piloted vehicle where challenging tasks are taken out of pilots’ hands so they can focus on the mission at hand. Sikorsky is focusing on environmental missions such as difficult landings, degraded visual environments (DVE), and rescue missions in hostile areas.
Dowse said Sikorsky installed its technology on one of its S-76 aircraft and is retrofitting a UH-60A with the autonomous technology. While the company is not yet flying the optimally manned aircraft, Dowse said it will fly within the next year.
As Sikorsky modernises and upgrades the Black Hawk, Dowse said that aircraft will serve as the testbed for technologies the company wants to add to its SB>1 Defiant FVL aircraft, which it is developing with Boeing. Dowse said challenges involved with installing autonomy on helicopters is getting the crew comfortable with taking functions out of their hands and using this technology properly.
Dowse said Sikorsky has been developing the autonomous software for several years. In addition, Dowse said parent company Lockheed Martin is working on an open architecture (OA) cockpit that will utilise autonomy as well as health and usage monitoring. (Source: IHS Jane’s)
16 Oct 18. Racer high-speed demonstrator passes preliminary design review milestone. Paving the way to the manufacturing of key components. Airbus Helicopters continues to progress with the development of its Racer (Rapid And Cost-Efficient Rotorcraft) technology demonstrator, funded by European Union’s H2020 framework through the Clean Sky 2 program, and aiming to provide the best trade-off between speed, cost-efficiency, sustainability and mission performance.
After the validation of the demonstrator’s aerodynamic configuration last year, key sub-systems have now successfully passed their preliminary design review (PDR) giving way to the launching of first components manufacture. Final assembly of the prototype is planned to start in Q4 2019.
“I want to thank all of our European partners for the excellence of their work and for their commitment in this fantastic project”, said Tomasz Krysinski, Head of Research & Innovation at Airbus Helicopters. “The PDR marks a major achievement for the Racer program as it allows to freeze interfaces and 3D definitions of the main subsystems, prior to detailed design and manufacture of key components.”
Long-lead items are the first ones to be manufactured. Airbus Helicopters teams already launched production of the lateral drive shaft, one of the Racer’s most innovative components. Among key subsystems, Italy’s Avio Aero, a GE Aviation Business, is launching procurement and manufacturing for the aircraft’s lateral gear boxes housing, while Hamble UK based GE Aviation Integrated Systems is taking care of the wing’s titanium cradle part. Romania’s INCAS/Romaero has already started manufacturing the Racer’s composite side panel and Spain’s Aernnova the tail parts primary structure.
Together with its partners, Airbus Helicopters is currently refining the content of the future Racer flight demonstration in Clean Sky 2 which will begin in 2020 and include about 200 flight hours. The first part will focus on the progressive opening of the flight envelope and on assessing key performance objectives as well as speed, handling qualities, stability and aerodynamics. The second phase will aim at demonstrating the aircraft’s suitability to carry out potential missions where increased speed and efficiency would bring significant added value, such as emergency medical services (EMS), search & rescue (SAR) and private transport. This second flight testing phase will also allow to mature low-noise flight procedures, unique to the Racer demonstrator formula.
16 Oct 18. Softil Joins TCCA To Continue Advancing Interoperability of Mission Critical Communications Solutions. Forum defining world class interoperability standards key in driving transition to MCC deployments and implementations over LTE and 5G. Mission critical communications (MCC) enabler Softil today announces that it is joining The Critical Communications Association TCCA to assist in the development of open interoperable standards for next generation products in mission critical or business critical environments. The announcement heralds Softil bringing its vast experience in leading industry standards bodies and its participation and organization of interoperability testing events to TCCA initiatives, and helping to drive transition to the MCC over LTE and 5G eras.
“Softil’s decision to become a member of TCCA is welcomed. We look forward to the benefits that Softil’s expertise can bring to the development of open, interoperable standards for critical broadband to enhance public safety,” says Tony Gray, TCCA’s Chief Executive.
“Any revolutionary technology such as MCC over LTE/5G combining a variety of products from various vendors can only advance through open standards, interoperability of market solutions and wholescale industry education,” adds Pierre Hagendorf, Softil’s CEO. “This explains why Softil sees joining leading critical communications organisations such as TCCA as critical.”
Technology standards a referred to as open standards mean they are openly published and available to all and provide a foundation for products from different companies to work with one another.
“The foundation of open standards can be summarized as practicality and enables developers to have access to best available, interoperable components from different vendors,” stresses Hagendorf. “Interoperability is not a destination, but a journey – every new release of a vendor’s product and every update in applicable standards requires interoperability with all competing or complementary products to be established.”
Interoperability is achieved through an extensive testing process and requires the cooperation of multiple companies and organizations.
Softil’s rich pedigree in the development of global standards
Softil’s history in the development of global industry standards dates back to 1995 when it was first known as RADVISION and contributed to the works of the ITU-T, IETF, 3GPP, ETSI and other standards bodies over the years. It was on the board of IMTC (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium) for more than 20 years, and was President of the body for more than 11 years. As IMTC was the leading organization in interoperability of multimedia technologies, Softil also chaired multiple IMTC Activity Groups, such as H.323, Conferencing over IP, 3G-324M and IMS.
Softil also held Board positions in the SIP Forum, IMS Forum and UC Interoperability Forum and participated in the work of OMA, GSMA, oneM2M, GCF and many other organizations and has also participated in hundreds of interoperability testing events including IMTC SuperOp!, IMS Forum Plugfets, SIP Forum SIPit and SIMPLEit and ETSI Plugtests.
About TCCA
TCCA represents all standard mobile critical communications technologies and complementary applications. Our Members are drawn from end users, operators and industry across the globe. We believe in and promote the principle of open and competitive markets worldwide through the use of open standards and harmonised spectrum. We maintain and enhance the TETRA Professional Mobile Radio (PMR) standard, and drive the development of common global mobile standards for critical broadband. TCCA is a 3GPP Market Representation Partner and a member of the Mission Critical Open Platform (MCOP) project, and our Members actively contribute in 3GPP working groups. To find out more, please visit www.tcca.info.
15 Oct 18. Astronics LSI Granted Parts Manufacturer Approval for New Aircraft LED Landing and Taxi Lights. Next-gen lights approved to bring improved reliability and long life operation to commercial and business aircraft. Astronics Corporation (Nasdaq: ATRO), a leading provider of advanced technologies for the global aerospace, defense, and semiconductor industries, announced today that the FAA recently granted Parts Manufacturer Approval (PMA) for the next generation of LED Landing and Taxi Lights, provided by its wholly owned subsidiary Astronics Luminescent Systems Inc (LSI). With this designation, these advanced LED lights are approved for use on commercial, business, and general aviation aircraft.
“Our newest generation of LED landing and taxi lights deliver a host of unprecedented advantages over filament-based lights (incandescent and halogen) in terms of performance and value,” explained James Kramer, President of Astronics LSI. “Airframe manufacturers, airlines, and private owners can now incorporate these lights onto new and retrofit aircraft to take advantage of the lifecycle cost savings these lights deliver through high efficiency, low power, and long life operation.”
About the Astronics LED Landing and Taxi Lights
The Astronics LED lights replace the traditional filament-based lighting systems used for landing and taxi lighting on aircraft, delivering a MTBUR (mean time between unscheduled removal) in excess of 30,000 hours compared with some traditional incandescent configurations that are rated at only 100 hours, saving maintenance time and effort and plane down time. Additional features include:
- 3 standard sizes – PAR 36, PAR 46, and PAR 64
- Maximum performance – shock and vibration resistant with no filaments to break and a robust glass lens construction with special anti-fog coating
- Power savings – comparable luminance at 80% less power than legacy systems
- All aircraft use – approved for use on hundreds of aircraft models from Airbus and Boeing to Embraer and Gulfstream
- RTCA DO-160 certified
- Versions of these lights already flight proven on aircraft around the world
Astronics Luminescent Systems Inc. (LSI) is the supplier of choice for lighting systems for aircraft cockpits, cabins, and exteriors. With products ranging from avionics panels and light plates to anti-collision and formation lights to emergency cabin lighting and passenger information signs, Astronics LSI collaborates with customers to create reliable, optimal solutions. Forerunners in the industry with the innovative use of LED, HID and electroluminescent lighting technologies, LSI products provide illumination and safety for commercial and military aircraft worldwide. (Source: BUSINESS WIRE)
16 Oct 18. PhD projects to support NSW Defence Innovation. The Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI) has announced a new partnership with the NSW Defence Industry Network (DIN), which will invest $230,000 to place 30 specialist PhDs in defence over three years. Co-funded under APR.Intern’s National Research Internship Program (NRIP), the internships will match PhDs to NSW defence companies to develop skills and deliver innovative technology. As well as equipping PhDs to engage with commercial research, AMSI director Professor Geoff Prince said the placements would transform NSW university engagement with defence innovation.
“These placements provide a powerful platform for NSW universities to complement specialist PhD training with industry experience and essential soft skills, while delivering real defence innovation solutions,” said Professor Prince.
NSW Minister for Trade and Industry Niall Blair said the PhD internships would enhance DIN’s capacity to deliver high-level STEM skills to the defence industry.
“This partnership with AMSI is a fantastic opportunity to help our defence companies acquire the skills and expertise they need to deliver next-generation defence solutions. This latest investment will add to 14 defence-focused PhD projects already being hosted across the seven university members of the Defence Innovation Network,” Minister Blair said.
The NSW government has committed $5m to DIN, and the Commonwealth’s Defence Science and Technology Group and the NSW university partners are also providing investment and funding support.
These internships will contribute to placements to be delivered by APR.Intern under the Australian government’s $28.2m ‘Supporting more women in STEM careers: AMSI – NRIP’.
Minister Blair said, “Having our best university brains working together with our defence companies will help develop new technologies and protect our armed forces in a range of key areas like autonomous systems, sensors, aerospace, artificial intelligence and more.” (Source: Defence Connect)
16 Oct 18. Safran signs new partnership with Aussie companies to enhance transfer of sub tech. Safran has announced the expansion of its partnerships with two Australian companies, Advanced Navigation and Thomas Global Systems, to further the domestic development of next-generation submarine technology.
To support Safran’s commitment to Australian industry capabilities, Safran Electronics & Defense Australasia (SEDA) has recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Advanced Navigation to co-operate on the development of inertial navigation systems for land and maritime defence applications. This MoU represents the first step towards close co-operation on the navigation market between Safran and Advanced Navigation (an inertial navigation expert with a proven export record).
The first phase of this co-operation is focused on the navigation subsystem of the Future Submarine Program, and would see Safran and Advanced Navigation’s engineers working together as part of a combined project team.
Alexis de Pelleport, chief executive of SEDA, “We believe this approach will have a positive and enduring effect on Australia’s defence industry.”
The MoU has also intended that Safran’s strategic partner, Sydney-based Thomas Global Systems, will also play a significant role in Safran’s future submarine activities. The scope of the partnership – signed in early 2018 to manufacture the PASEO sighting system for LAND 400 and 907 – has been extended to cover the production of hardware for Safran’s naval systems, including submarine optronics and navigation systems.
“We see this as the most effective path to bring cutting-edge submarine technology to Australia, and it will make real progress towards establishing sovereign capability for the Australian Defence Force,” de Pelleport said.
These two partnership agreements contribute to reinforce Safran’s strategy, which comprises two key components: the first is to grow the local subsidiary, SEDA, by increasing its capabilities to better support the ADF; the second is to partner with Australian companies to facilitate the exchange of technology and thereby enhance the capabilities of the country’s defence industry.
Safran is an international high-technology group, operating in the aircraft propulsion and equipment, space and defence markets. Safran has a global presence, with more than 58,000 employees and sales of €16.5bn in 2017. Safran is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange, and is part of the CAC 40 and Euro Stoxx 50 indices.
Advanced Navigation is a privately owned company that specialises in the development and manufacturing of navigation technologies and robotics. The company has a focus on generating products of the highest quality standard, both in terms of hardware and software.
Thomas Global is an industry leader in the design, production and support of innovative electronic systems solutions for aerospace and defence applications. The company delivers expertise in advanced flight displays, armored vehicle electronics and mission system solutions supported by dedicated service and support teams operating around the world. (Source: Defence Connect)
16 Oct 18. NSW launches Defence Innovation Network to support synergy. The NSW government, in conjunction with industry and a number of institutional partners, has officially launched the NSW Defence Innovation Network (DIN) to increase the state’s position as a defence industry hub.
Officially launched by NSW Minister for Trade and Industry Niall Blair and Assistant Minister for Defence David Fawcett, DIN will provide a range of support and collaboration opportunities for the defence industry in NSW.
The network provides a single door contact point for trouble free access to member universities in NSW. DIN also facilitates easy links to appropriate skills and capabilities to drive innovation and technology development towards commercially focused solutions for defence.
DIN brings together key industry and education institutions, including the University of Sydney, the University of NSW, Macquarie University, University of Wollongong, University of Newcastle, Western Sydney University and University of Technology Sydney to provide support and collaboration across a variety of capability areas, with specific focus on:
- AI, cyber, autonomous systems and electronics;
- Aerospace, radar, sensors, antennae;
- Signal and image processing;
- Materials sciences and prototyping;
- Mathematical and statistical modelling;
- Quantum technologies and intelligence; and
- Advanced human performance.
“We need to be able to look at how we form partnerships and in this case a network with universities, research organisations and the private sector to be able to work together to capitalise on the opportunities that are presented in the defence sector in Australia at the moment,” Minister Blair said.
Minister Blair highlighted the importance of NSW identifying its areas of natural comparative advantage when compared with the other states to maximise the synergies that NSW industry and institutions can provide the maximum benefit to both the economy and defence capability.
“NSW is a defence state, defence is good for NSW, we have many different organisations right across the state which are benefiting from the defence footprint that we have, and we as a government are [looking] how we leverage upon that and take not just the capabilities we have here in NSW to obviously the Commonwealth and Australian Defence Force, but also export that potential and expertise worldwide,” he explained.
The launch provided an opportunity for technical and research showcases from both tertiary institutions and key industry stakeholders, including Sydney-based Solutions from Silicon (SfS) who discussed in detail the role research plays in improving defence capability, through specific examples, namely the Oberon Class submarines.
Following this, key topics discussed included next generation drone platforms with the Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG) and Neuromorphic Engineering and Technologies for enhancing the performance of personnel.
The NSW government has committed $5m in total to DIN, with Minister Blair announcing an additional $2.4m today and the Commonwealth’s DSTG and the NSW university partners are also providing investment and funding support.
“I’m pleased to announce today that another $2.4m has been allocated to continue the NSW Government’s support for this vital initiative,” Minister Blair said.
NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte said the DIN had already provided $650,000 in project funding to solve problems in areas such as drone detection and the use of artificial intelligence systems for mine detection.
“NSW universities have diverse capabilities in defence-related technologies including artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, aerospace, radar, sensors, signal processing, material sciences, quantum sensors and advanced human performance,” Professor Durrant-Whyte said.
For Fawcett, the key focus was upon capability through collaboration. With a heavy emphasis placed upon the changing strategic environment, Australia finds itself in and the resulting need for innovation and non-traditional responses to emerging state and non-state actors, the changing nature of counter-insurgency and cyber security contingencies.
“We as a government have looked at industry and rather [than] holding industry at arms length, we recognise that industry is actually a fundamental input for capability development in defence and we need to find ways to partner with industry,” Minister Fawcett said.
Fawcett expanded upon this, recognising the importance that innovation and collaboration has played in the history of the nation’s defence capability and the role it is playing today, as the ADF brings into service key, next-generation platforms like the MQ-4C Triton.
“The sort of network that we are launching today, along with the broader collaboration with industry, so we have stood up the Centre for Defence Industry Collaboration (CDIC), backed it with $1.6bn over the next decade through the Next Generation Technologies Fund, Defence Innovation Hub, those are the ways we are seeking to facilitate and grow into the future,” Fawcett explained. (Source: Defence Connect)
11 Oct 18. Raytheon adds GaN to GEM-T to improve reliability. Raytheon announced it will begin using gallium nitride (GaN) computer chips in new production Guidance Enhanced Missile-TBM (GEM-T) interceptors to replace travelling waveform tubes (TWT) currently used in the missile’s transmitter. By upgrading GEM-T’s transmitter with GaN chips, Raytheon expects to see improved reliability and efficiency with the interceptor. Additionally, transitioning to GaN in new production missiles will mean the transmitters will not need to be replaced for the life of the interceptor, Bob Kelley, a senior manager at Raytheon IDS, told Jane’s on 8 October at the annual Association of the United States Army (AUSA) symposium in Washington, DC. (Source: IHS Jane’s)
11 Oct 18. New small-sized processor from Logos can handle big tasks. Logos Technologies, best known for developing sensors for aerostats and unmanned aerial vehicles, has developed an image processor small enough to fit into a Group II unmanned aircraft system, yet capable of processing about a billion pixels per second. The company has combined graphics processing units (GPUs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and standard-purpose processors into a 960 g box. The multimodal edge processor can handle the processing for any sensor, John Marion, Logos Technologies president, told Jane’sat the annual Association of the United States Army (AUSA) exhibition held from 8 to 10 October in Washington, DC.
Soldiers and operators have to deal with huge data sets just from airborne and space-borne sensors. A 100-megapixel wide-area motion imagery (WAMI) system running at 2 Hz can generate more than 1 terabyte of data per hour.
The high-performance multimodal edge processor permits operators to process data on board an aircraft in real time, and enables immediate reaction to the data.
For WAMI, the multimodal edge processor can process about a billion pixels per second; for hyperspectral bands, up to 3 million spectra per second; and for Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) returns, up to 6 billion points per second, Marion noted.
“This is a very adaptable processing unit,” he added.
During the 18 months Logos developed the multimodal edge processor, the company incorporated the latest GPU or FPGA upgrades, Marion said.
He continued that the system – as built – is very nearly space qualified. “That is the advantage of the new systems, they are already radiation tolerant. There are a couple of small steps and a little bit of testing that would need to be done. But this could be a processor for space when we are done.” (Source: IHS Jane’s)
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Oxley Group Ltd
Oxley specialises in the design and manufacture of advanced electronic and electro-optic components and systems for air, land and sea applications within the military sector. Established in 1942, Oxley has manufacturing facilities in the UK and USA and enjoys representation worldwide. The company’s products include night vision and LED lighting, data capture systems and electronic components. Oxley has pioneered the development of night vision compatible lighting. It offers a total package incorporating optical filters, equipment modification, cockpit and external lighting along with fleet wide upgrade services including engineering, installation, support, maintenance and training. The company’s long experience of manufacturing night vision lighting and LED indicators, coupled with advances in LED technology, has enabled it to develop LED solutions to replace incandescent and fluorescent lighting in existing applications as well as becoming the lighting option of choice in new applications such as portable military hospitals, UAV control stations and communication shelters.
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