Sponsored By Oxley Developments
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04 Jan 24. India’s HAL Inaugurates New Engine Design and Test Facility. Defence Secretary Inaugurates New Design & Test Facility at HAL’s Aero Engine Research & Development Centre in Bengaluru. Defence Secretary Shri Giridhar Aramane inaugurated a new design and test facility at Aero Engine Research and Development Centre (AERDC) of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Bengaluru, Karnataka on December 29, 2023. The AERDC is currently involved in the design and development of several new engines including two strategic engines – Hindustan Turbo Fan Engine (HTFE) of 25 kN thrust for powering trainers, UAV’s, twin engine small fighter aircraft or regional jets and Hindustan Turbo Shaft Engine (HTSE) of 1200 kN thrust for powering light and medium weight helicopters (3.5 to 6.5 tonnes in single/ twin engine configuration). The new state-of-the-art facility, spanning over 10,000 sq. meters, houses special machines, advanced setups leveraging on computational tools, in-house fabrication facility and two test beds for testing HTFE-25 and one testbed each for testing HTSE-1200 and upcoming JV engine for IMRH to be co-developed by Safran, France and HAL. In addition, the newly developed facility has set-ups for testing Air producer of Jaguar, Gas Turbine Starter Unit (GTSU) – 110 M2 and 127E of Light Combat Aircraft, Auxiliary Power Units of Indian Multi-Role Helicopter and Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, Gas Turbine Electrical Generator (GTEG)-60 for An-32 aircraft. Set-ups to carry out various critical tests for engine components and Line Replacement Units (LRUs) have also been established within the new facility. Hailing the work being done by HAL, the Defence Secretary stated that the government trusts the capability of the Defence PSU to deliver and make the country self-reliant. “Manufacturing sector is the future of the country and in the coming decades, the HAL should focus on mastering technologies for all types of aircraft. Think ahead as the entire paradigm of warfare is changing,” he said. Highlighting the role of unmanned aircraft in future warfare, the Defence Secretary encouraged the HAL to collaborate with other private companies to develop new platforms. He inspected the manufacturing range of various engines and test beds and also paid a visit to HAL’s Aerospace Division.
Chairman & Managing Director (Addl. Charge) of HAL, Shri CB Ananthakrishnan, said: “The development of this facility marks a key milestone in HAL’s growth trajectory. It is a testimony of our commitment towards achieving ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in aero-engine design and development.”
The Centre, established in the 1960s, holds the unique distinction of being the only design house that has developed test beds for engines of both Western and Russian origin. The Centre has successfully developed & certified PTAE-7 engine, the first indigenous turbojet engine of India powering Lakshya (Unmanned Aircraft), Gas Turbine Electrical Generator GTEG-60 for starting An-32 aircraft, Air starter ATS 37 & Air producer for starting Adour-Mk 804E/811 on Jaguar Aircraft and Shakti engine for powering ALH to support Ad804/811 engine of Jaguar aircraft. (Source: https://www.defense-aerospace.com/ Indian Ministry of Defence;)
04 Jan 24. US Army Soldiers Evaluate Long Range Assault Aircraft. Soldiers Conduct First Touch Point for Long Range Assault Aircraft. Program Executive Office, Aviation conducted a Future Long Range Assault Aircraft Soldier touch point the last week of November at the Bell Flight Research Center in Arlington, Texas.
Led by the FLRAA Project Office, the touch point was the first of up to twelve events the Army plans to conduct to optimize both human and system performance while ensuring mission ready capabilities are delivered to the warfighter. Soldier touch points involve gathering data and feedback early in the design and development process to shape future prototypes and fielded capabilities. The events are part of an iterative process to identify, refine and verify system hardware and software designs and functional capability requirements.
“Soldier touch points are key to FLRAA’s program strategy. In the past, this has included Army pilots flying both demonstrator aircraft,” said Col. Jeffrey Poquette, FLRAA project manager. “Today, the focus is on crewmembers and combat Soldiers who are representative of the FLRAA’s passengers. These interactive events provide our team with crucial feedback to build transformational capabilities for FLRAA.”
An infantry squad and two Black Hawk crews from the 1st Cavalry Division supported the event. During the STP they practiced embarking and disembarking from a FLRAA fuselage mockup in a variety of simulations and scenarios. The squad began their practice sessions without any equipment and added tactical and squad level equipment as the STP progressed.
“The STP was incredibly valuable and is paramount to the successful development of the FLRAA,” said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Tylor Enright, an aviator with 1st Cav. “It’s great that they are willing to hear about what Soldiers and crewmembers actually need for future missions in these aircraft to be successful.”
As the infantry squad members completed their exercises, the aircraft crew members practiced entering and exiting the mockup cockpit and stowing equipment, as required, in a series of tests that added more equipment and tasks for each iteration.
Representatives supporting the STP included the Future Vertical Lift Cross Functional Team, the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command, the Redstone Test Center and Special Operations Command.
Gathering Soldier Data for FLRAA
“These Soldier touch points are a criticality important way to ensure we get the requirements right and inform design decisions early,” Maj. Jeremiah Webb, FVL CFT Future Long Range Assault Aircraft lead.
The data gathered from the STP will directly inform FLRAA preliminary design as well as the development and delivery of virtual prototypes of the aircraft. A tiltrotor aircraft, FLRAA will have the hybrid capabilities of planes and helicopters. When fielded, it will expand the depth of the battlefield by extending the reach of air assault missions and enable ground forces to converge through decentralized operations at extended distances. FLRAA’s inherent reach and standoff capabilities will ensure mission success through tactical maneuver at operational and strategic distances while the aircraft’s speed and range will nearly double the Army’s patient evacuation capability during the “Golden Hour.” The FLRAA is intended to eventually replace part of the U.S. Army’s UH-60 Black Hawk fleet, which has been in service for more than four decades. (Source: https://www.defense-aerospace.com/ US Army)
03 Jan 24. DARPA Moves Forward on X-65 Technology Demonstrator. DARPA has selected Aurora Flight Sciences to build a full-scale X-plane to demonstrate the viability of using active flow control (AFC) actuators for primary flight control. The award is Phase 3 of the Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) program. In December 1903, the Wright brothers flew the world’s first fully controllable aircraft, which used wing warping to successfully achieve flight. Virtually every aircraft since then has used a system of movable, external control surfaces for flight control. The X-65 breaks this century-old design paradigm for flight control by using jets of air from a pressurized source to shape the flow of air over the aircraft surface, with AFC effectors on several surfaces to control the plane’s roll, pitch, and yaw. Eliminating external moving parts is expected to reduce weight and complexity and to improve performance.
“The X-65 is a technology demonstrator, and it’s distinctive, diamond-like wing shape is designed to help us maximize what we can learn about AFC in full-scale, real-world tests,” said Dr. Richard Wlezien, DARPA’s program manager for CRANE.
The X-65 will be built with two sets of control actuators – traditional flaps and rudders as well as AFC effectors embedded across all the lifting surfaces. This will both minimize risk and maximize the program’s insight into control effectiveness. The plane’s performance with traditional control surfaces will serve as a baseline; successive tests will selectively lock down moving surfaces, using AFC effectors instead.
“The X-65 conventional surfaces are like training wheels to help us understand how AFC can be used in place of traditional flaps and rudders,” said Wlezien. “We’ll have sensors in place to monitor how the AFC effectors’ performance compares with traditional control mechanisms, and these data will help us better understand how AFC could revolutionize both military and commercial craft in the future.”
The 7,000+ pound, unmanned X-65 will have a 30-foot wingspan and be capable of speeds up to Mach 0.7. Its weight, size, and speed – similar to a military trainer aircraft – make the flight-test results immediately relevant to real world aircraft design.
“We’re building the X-65 as a modular platform – wing sections and the AFC effectors can easily be swapped out – to allow it to live on as a test asset for DARPA and other agencies long after CRANE concludes,” said Wlezien.
Aurora Flight Sciences has already started fabricating the X-plane; the X-65 is scheduled to be rolled out in early 2025 with the first flight planned for summer of the same year.
“It’s thrilling to be able to say, ‘we’re building an AFC X-plane,” said Wlezien. “I came to DARPA in 1999 to work on a program called Micro Adaptive Flow Control, which help pioneer the foundational understanding of fluid dynamics that eventually led to CRANE. I left DARPA in 2003 after managing MAFC, and it’s the chance of a lifetime to come back and help see that early work come to fruition in a full-scale physical aircraft. Aerospace engineers live to see their efforts take flight.” (Source: https://www.defense-aerospace.com/DARPA)
03 Jan 24. Amprius Successfully Completes First Volume Shipment of Safe Cells for the U.S. Army. Amprius Technologies, Inc. (“Amprius” or the “Company”) (NYSE: AMPX), a leader in next-generation lithium-ion batteries with its Silicon Anode Platform, today announced the successful volume shipment of advanced battery cells in a program supported by the U.S. Army by the end of 2023 as previously committed. This marks a significant milestone for Amprius in its U.S. Army-funded Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) program, an industrial preparedness effort focused on scaling critical Army-wide manufacturing requirements.
Amprius has successfully completed its scale-up manufacturing initiative under ManTech (a $3m development program grant), which included the delivery of safe cells for soldier-worn battery packs that merge technology for mass production with a mission-critical product, thereby facilitating large-scale deployments. Amprius, while working closely with its partner, Inventus Power, has fulfilled the shipment of the silicon anode safe cells to support delivery of the Conformal Wearable Batteries (“CWB”) packs to the U.S. Army.
“We are honored to have collaborated with ManTech on this critical initiative to meet the U.S. Army’s manufacturing needs for power sources,” said Dr. Kang Sun, CEO of Amprius Technologies. “Our cells, which have passed the nail penetration test, provide safe power solutions for U.S. Army batteries while more than doubling their energy. Amprius’ silicon anode batteries provide significantly higher energy density and double the mission time compared to existing power resources. We’re dedicated to providing battery technology advancements that transcend current limitations and chart the course for future military power sources that supply game-changing performance for our soldiers.”
These shipments are also part of a larger program as outlined in a briefing on a U.S. Department of Defense Contract from May of 20211, which outlined Inventus Power as a participant in a competition to supply conformal wearable batteries to the U.S. Army. The wearable battery market represents a significant market opportunity for Amprius, with a total value of $1.25 bn through 2030. This accomplishment further reinforces Amprius’ position as a leading provider of advanced battery solutions for mission-critical applications.
In addition to expanding the Company’s relationship with the U.S. military, Amprius’ ManTech grant provided the Company with an opportunity to further optimize the process for Amprius’ silicon nanowire technology mass production. Today, Amprius is finalizing its automation, testing and manufacturing process cost-reduction initiatives in order to prepare for large-scale production in Colorado targeted to be operational in 2025.
For more information, please visit the Company’s investor relations website at ir.amprius.com.
1 “Contracts for May 12, 2021,” U.S. Department of Defense, May 12, 2021, https://www.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract/Article/2605292/#ARMY051221.
About Amprius Technologies, Inc.
Amprius Technologies, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of high-energy and high-power lithium-ion batteries producing the industry’s highest known energy density cells. The company’s commercially available batteries deliver up to 450 Wh/kg and 1,150 Wh/L. The company’s corporate headquarters is in Fremont, California, where it maintains an R&D lab and a megawatt hour (MWh) manufacturing facility for the fabrication of silicon anodes and cells. To serve customer demand, Amprius entered into a lease agreement for an approximately 774,000 square foot facility in Brighton, Colorado. For additional information, please visit amprius.com. Also, see the company’s LinkedIn and Twitter pages. (Source: BUSINESS WIRE)
02 Jan 24. Japan and USA Sign Joint Agreement for AI and UAS Research. The U.S. Department of Defense and the Japanese Ministry of Defense signed a project arrangement for joint research on Overwhelming Response through Collaborative Autonomy, Dec. 22, 2023. The project’s objective is to revolutionize airborne combat by merging state-of-the-art artificial intelligence and machine learning with advanced unmanned air vehicles and is a direct result of the December 2022 MoD-DoD joint statement on cooperation for Japan’s future aircraft. The AI developed in this joint research is expected to be applied to UAVs operated alongside Japan’s next fighter aircraft. Japan MoD and the U.S. DoD will continue to coordinate and expand bilateral cooperation on UAVs. Japan-U.S. efforts in this endeavor are beneficial for maintaining the interoperability and technological advantages of the Japan-U.S. alliance. (Source: UAS VISION)
13 Dec 23. Top five technology investment trends to watch in 2024. What are the technology themes keeping senior executives up at night? And what are their investment priorities for 2024? Despite geopolitical turmoil and economic uncertainty in 2023, technology investment continued to grow significantly, underlining a common belief that the world’s greatest innovations have been born in times of great economic and political stress. With this in mind, Verdict looks at some of the top technology investment trends to watch in 2024.
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) was the most talked about technology investment trend of 2023 and will continue to attract investment throughout the coming year. Research company GlobalData estimates the total AI market will be worth $908.7bn in 2030. In particular, the rapid adoption of generative AI (GenAI) throughout 2023 is set to continue and impact every industry. According GlobalData’s Thematic Intelligence 2024 TMT Predictions, the GenAI market will grow from $1.8bn in 2022 to $33bn by 2027, implying a spectacular compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 80% during this period. Of the five advanced AI technologies, GlobalData cites GenAI as the fastest growing, accounting for 10.2% of the overall AI market by 2027.
Cloud computing
The cloud computing market will be worth $1.4trn by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 17% between 2022 and 2027, according to GlobalData forecasts. Software-as-a-service will continue to dominate, comprising 63% of cloud services revenue in 2023. Platform-as-a-service will be the fastest-growing cloud service growing at a CAGR of 21% between 2022 and 2027. Businesses will continue to outsource IT infrastructure to the cloud for cost reduction and greater flexibility. As well as its growing importance to enterprise operations, cloud computing will be a significant driver, coupled with AI, for emerging technologies such as robotics and IoT, which require continuous access to large swathes of data.
Cybersecurity
Rapidly increasing adoption of GenAI will increase the risk of social engineering attacks and employees will face a greater risk of spear-phishing attacks aimed at gaining access to an organisation’s systems through AI-powered social engineering, according to GlobalData’s Thematic Intelligence 2024 TMT Predictions. The coming year will place chief information security officers worldwide under extreme pressure as cyber-attacks become increasingly sophisticated against the backdrop of a widening cyber-skills gap. According to the EU’s Agency for Cybersecurity, the ransomware business model has grown exponentially in the past decade and is projected to cost businesses more than $10trn by 2025, up from $3trn in 2015. Addressing the challenge will require increased investment and GlobalData forecasts that cybersecurity revenues will reach $344bn worldwide by 2030.
Robotics
AI and cloud computing are both driving the development and adoption of the robotics industry. According to GlobalData forecasts, the global robotics market was valued at $63bn in 2022, and will grow at a CAGR of 17% to reach $218bn by 2030. The service robot market will reach $67.1bn by 2024, according to GlobalData, up 28% from 2023 and will be the biggest factor driving the growth of robotics in 2024, according to the research company. The drone market will play a key role with commercial drone delivery becoming more widespread in 2024. However, GlobalData expects the exoskeleton market to see the highest growth rate, followed by logistics. Exoskeletons are wearable mobile machines that allow for limb movement with increased strength and endurance. The main use cases are in healthcare, defence, and manufacturing.
Enterprise internet of things (IoT)
The global enterprise IoT market will generate $1.2trn in revenue by 2027, according to GlobalData. The enterprise IoT market comprises two key segments: Industrial Internet and smart cities. The industrial Internet refers to using connected sensors and actuators to control and monitor the industrial machinery environment, according to GlobalData. The Industrial Internet market will grow at a CAGR of 15.1%, from $374bn in 2022 to $756bn by 2027, according to GlobalData forecasts. Smart cities are urban areas that use connected sensors to enhance the quality and performance of urban services such as energy, transport, and utilities. The smart cities market is expected to grow from $234bn in 2022 to $470bn by 2027 at a CAGR of 15%. (Source: airforce-technology.com)
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Oxley Group Ltd
Oxley offer a range of Military Marine NVG friendly LED lighting that includes navigation lights and controls, flight deck landing lights and interior compartment lighting. Our lighting products are used by Navies around the world including our own Royal Navy on UK Aircraft Carriers, Canadian Frigates, Swedish Submarines, Australian Surface vessels and Submarines, on board French Naval Carriers and in Naval Gun Turrets.
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The technology is extremely energy efficient and built robustly, with proven long life. The lighting is NVG friendly, dimmable and programmable to allow for operations with aircraft pilots using military night vision goggles. They offer superior design giving high reliability for the most demanding environments with high sealing and the ability to meet the most stringent EMC standards.
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Oxley are proud to say that we are working in partnership with SeaKing to enable a control panel to be offered with our LED Navigation Lighting. All of Oxley navigation lights have been specifically developed for vessels over 50 metres.
Contact Marcus Goad on 07850 917 263 for more information or to arrange samples.
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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