Sponsored By Oxley Developments
www.oxleygroup.com
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29 Oct 20. Honeywell Releases Next Generation Of Quantum Computer.
– Commercial users include Merck and DHL
– Accenture launches ongoing collaboration with Honeywell on cutting-edge quantum applications
Honeywell (NYSE: HON) today announced a breakthrough in the early era of quantum computing with the introduction of its next-generation quantum computer, the System Model H1. The H1 generation of computer features Honeywell’s differentiated quantum charge-coupled device1 (QCCD) trapped-ion technology and is strategically designed to be rapidly upgraded throughout its lifetime.
The newest generation quantum computer from Honeywell initially offers 10 fully connected qubits, a proven quantum volume of 128 (the highest measured in the industry) and unique features such as mid-circuit measurement and qubit reuse, which were made possible through Honeywell’s heritage of precision controls expertise. This announcement further affirms the company’s commitment to rapidly increase quantum volume by at least an order of magnitude annually for the next five years.
System Model H1 is directly accessible to enterprises via a cloud application programming interface (API), as well as through Microsoft Azure Quantum, and alongside channel partners including Zapata Computing and Cambridge Quantum Computing. Access to System Model H1 is through a subscription that provides customers access to Honeywell’s most technologically advanced quantum computer on the market.
“Honeywell’s aggressive quantum computing roadmap reflects our commitment to achieving commercial scale for our quantum business. Our subscription-based model provides enterprise customers with access to Honeywell’s most advanced system available,” said Tony Uttley, President of Honeywell Quantum Solutions. “Honeywell’s unique methodology enables us to systematically and continuously ‘upgrade’ the H1 generation of systems through increased qubit count, even higher fidelities and unique feature modifications.”
Uttley offered an analogy: “Imagine if the streaming service to which you subscribed became twice as good in a few weeks, 10 times as good in a few months and thousands of times better in a few quarters,” he said.
In addition to the announced H1 computer, Honeywell confirmed it has already begun integration activities for its future System Model H2 generation as well as development activities in support of its H3 generation and beyond.
Honeywell’s novel trapped-ion qubits can be uniformly generated with errors better understood compared with alternative qubit technologies that do not use individual atoms. These high-performance operations require deep experience across multiple disciplines, including atomic physics, optics, cryogenics, lasers, magnetics, ultra-high vacuum, and precision control systems– areas where Honeywell has a long heritage of experience and expertise.
“The introduction of the System Model H1 is a significant milestone in shaping and accelerating the development of quantum computing and bringing its power to enterprises,” added Uttley. “We’ve seen demand skyrocket in 2020 and are thrilled to partner with customers seeking to solve real business problems via quantum computing.”
Honeywell is also disclosing the latest enterprise companies with access to its quantum computer. That list includes DHL and Merck as well as a collaboration with Accenture. These companies demonstrate the wide range of quantum computing use cases, which include pharmaceuticals and logistics as well as Honeywell’s own internal applications in its Aerospace and Performance Materials and Technologies businesses. Honeywell’s differentiated technology, exemplified by the high-fidelity quantum operations and fully connected qubits with mid-circuit measurement and qubit reuse, enables customers to push the frontier of quantum computing applications.
Regarding work done in conjunction with Cambridge Quantum Computing, “we believe that addressing tomorrow’s global logistics challenges requires an unwavering commitment to advancing some of today’s most promising technologies, and that includes Quantum Computing. By attempting to solve computationally complex problems with Honeywell, we have taken another step towards exploring improving operational efficiencies and leveraging quantum computing’s potential to innovate within the logistics industry,” said Justin Baird, head of innovation, Asia Pacific, for DHL Customer Solutions & Innovation.
Kam Chana, director, computational platforms at Merck said, “It was illuminating to experience the properties of real quantum hardware first-hand through Zapata’s Orquestra platform. Seeing one of Orquestra’s native QML algorithms run on Honeywell’s H1 system was an exciting moment for Merck in our journey to quantum readiness. The combination of Orquestra’s programming environment with quantum hardware opens up quantum computing widely to our data scientists and brings new approaches for development of AI/ML based models.”
Honeywell is also collaborating with Accenture on new use cases for Honeywell’s quantum technology. “At Accenture, we’re excited to be working with quantum industry leaders as well as our clients to unlock new value through quantum computing,” said Marc Carrel-Billiard, senior managing director and Technology Innovation lead at Accenture. “Working with Honeywell in this rapidly-developing space has already yielded new insights, and we look forward to exploring ways that the System Model H1 can be applied to business challenges across industries.”
In addition, JPMorgan Chase has continued its collaboration with the Honeywell team. “JPMorgan Chase is pleased to continue innovating alongside Honeywell and its new System Model H1 quantum computer,” says Dr. Marco Pistoia, head of research and engineering, JPMorgan Chase.
Honeywell currently has a cross-disciplinary team of more than 150 scientists, engineers, software developers and functional professionals dedicated to advancing quantum computing and addressing real enterprise problems across industries. (Source: PR Newswire)
09 Sep 20. Mercury Introduces First in Family of Trusted, Secure System-in-Package Products. Customizable RF SiP solution redefines edge processing for Radar, Electronic Warfare and 5G communications.
Mercury Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRCY, www.mrcy.com), a leader in trusted, secure mission-critical technologies for aerospace and defense, today announced the RFS1080, the first commercially available offering in their trusted system-in-package (SiP) product family. By delivering the latest commercially developed integrated circuits at chip scale, Mercury’s SiP devices revolutionize edge processing applications by maximizing performance in a trusted, highly customizable architecture.
The RFS1080 RF SiP leverages the latest in high-speed digitization and industry-leading FPGA technology to bring near real-time processing to harsh environments, revolutionizing applications such as radar, electronic warfare (EW), and 5G communications.
“Late last year we announced a strategic investment in our custom microelectronics capabilities in support of the DoD’s mandate for trusted microelectronics and to make commercial technology profoundly more accessible to aerospace and defense,” said Tom Smelker, vice president and general manager, Microsystems. “Our customizable RFS1080 RF SiP is the first generally available output from that investment, delivering high-speed RF processing in a compact, rugged package as well as providing customers with a trusted supply of highly integrated processing modules. Through Innovation That Matters®, Mercury Systems is uniquely capable of providing solutions from chip scale to system scale.”
A Full Sensor Chain Solution
- Wideband direct-to-digital operation
- Industry-leading FPGA technology in a compact BGA package measuring less than two inches
- Multiple communication protocols available, including Ethernet and PCIe
- Optional integrated Mercury BuiltSECURE™ IP with secure boot support
- Supports a wide range of vendor-agnostic chiplets for maximum flexibility with vendor-agnostic architecture
Multifunction Radar
By bringing low-latency RF and digital processing directly to the radar sensor aperture, Mercury’s RFS1080 RF SiP allows phased array radar systems to simultaneously track multiple targets while also performing electronic warfare functions. This reduces the need for multiple, discrete systems while maximizing sensor data processing.
29 Oct 20. Blue Bear Demonstrates Simultaneous Remote Launch Swarming Technology. Blue Bear has successfully demonstrated 7 UAS simultaneously taking off with its push button ‘remote launch’ technology, which allows a remote operator, virtually anywhere in the world, to be able to command a fleet of VTOL Fixed Wing UAS to take off and transition into individual or cooperative swarming missions.
Blue Bear Ghost UAS was used as part of this demonstration and comes in both a standard fixed fuselage configuration or equipped with a plug and play modular fuselage bay. Fitted with Blue Bear’s latest generation of avionics, plug and play open architectures and SmartConnect technology, the fully autonomous Ghost UAS is one of the most advanced small UAS in the world.
The modular architecture allows it to be easily fitted with one of the plug and play payloads from the growing ecosystem of payloads providers working with Blue Bear.
The modular payload bay is now being adapted for medical delivery applications, and the fully autonomous remote launch functionality makes the prospect of fully autonomous drone delivery and centralised command and control a clear reality.
Ian Williams-Wynn, MD said, “Blue Bear can now retrofit its SmartConnect, open architectures, autopilots and other avionics to third party UAS, UGVs, USVs and UxVs to enable them to utilise the growing ecosystem of plug and play payloads, commanded by Blue Bear Centurion Command and Control software. This provides platform suppliers from air, land and maritime domains with the ability to plug their systems into any Blue Bear Centurion equipped system, providing the operator with a single command and control platform for all their multi-domain unmanned assets.”
The latest heterogeneous swarm was made up of five different types and sizes of fixed wing Blue Bear drones, including Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) fixed wing Ghost/Modular Ghost UAS, conventional fixed wing Red Kite UAS, conventional fixed wing Cobra UAS and smaller hand launched Flat Pack UAS.
Six different types of payload from five different companies were integrated into the swarm through Blue Bear plug and play open architectures and SmartConnectTM technology. Plextek DTS, IQHQ, Airbus, RFEL, Durham University, and Blue Bear all provided payloads and payload support.
The drones flew simultaneous Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) cooperative tasks, with Blue Bear collaborative autonomy ensuring they all contributed to overall mission goals.
Three operators in Blue Bear’s Mobile Mission Command System (MCCS) commanded the swarm of 20, whilst simultaneously handling different, collaborative payload analysis tasks.
Blue Bear’s Artificial Intelligence platform (BBAI) was running on a number of the UAS Swarm, and processing sensor data on the aircraft before sending only relevant data back to the ground, which helped further reduce the burden on the operator.
To help automatic deconfliction of BVLOS flights within the swarm, and to track the presence of any third party aircraft, Blue Bear Airspace Deconfliction Layer (ADL) technology was running in the background.
Throughout the two weeks of trials, Blue Bear regularly operated swarms of 10 to 14 collaborative UAS. The company flew more than 220 UAS sorties, building up to be able to operate a 20 UAS swarm. The trials concluded with a multi-vehicle ‘button click’ to launch simultaneous take off and mission deployment of four Ghost UAS in 30kt winds. (Source: UAS VISION)
26 Oct 20. DARPA battle management programme may play into US Army requirements. The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) advanced Distributed Battle Management (DBM) programme could play a vital role in the US Army’s efforts to increasingly network its arsenal of sensors and shooters on the battlefield.
The advanced autonomous capabilities within the DBM, enabled by artificial intelligence and machine learning applications, that were initially designed for use in the air domain could transition smoothly into army-led efforts under the service’s Project Convergence initiative.
“Many of these fundamental technologies bleed into each other, whether it is game theory or control theory or some of these advanced tracking methodologies, and . . . those fundamental ideas of manned and unmanned teaming and helping sets or networks of weapon systems work well together, [so that] you get into how does autonomy help you do that,” said Chris Eisenbies, director of the Autonomy, Control, and Estimation product line at BAE Systems.
Programme engineers from the company’s FASTLabs research and development directorate collaborated with DARPA on the DBM programme, which was completed in September.
The comments from Eisenbies come after army leaders in September concluded the initial capstone exercise for Project Convergence, which showcased 34 technologies including service programme priorities such as Long-Range Precision Fires and Next-Generation Combat Vehicle (NGCV) technologies, as well as the latest iteration of the army’s Integrated Tactical Network (ITN) dubbed Capability Set 21. (Source: Jane’s)
26 Oct 20. Australia commits $600m to new Navy information systems. Defence Minister Linda Reynolds and Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price have announced a $600m investment into strengthening the Australian Defence Force’s maritime communications as part of a new Fleet Information Environment.
This will include upgrades to naval systems and computer networks, enhancing its ability to securely and reliably exchange information while at sea, more than 100 new Australian high-tech jobs will be created through this investment in areas such as computer systems design and engineering, and platform and system integration.
As part of this investment, the government has committed an additional $100m to be invested in infrastructure work in Darwin, Cairns, Rockingham, Canberra and Sydney.
Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said the upgrades are part of the Morrison government’s Economic Recovery Plan, which is creating jobs while delivering Navy with vital capability: “These upgrades will provide our sailors with faster, more capable and more secure computer based information systems, which are all vital in ensuring our ADF can operate in contested, congested and degraded information environments.
“As outlined in the 2020 Force Structure Plan, decision superiority in the maritime domain is essential for Defence’s ability to conduct operations. Deploying ships to sea presents unique information management challenges and require computer networks that are designed to remain effective even in low bandwidth or congested communications environments.”
Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price explained the investment was further evidence of the Morrison government’s commitment to growing Australia’s defence industry.
“This investment in a new Fleet Information Environment will create more than 100 jobs and demonstrates our investment and plans, creating new opportunities, jobs and skills for Australians. We are backing Australian workers and Aussie businesses, creating a stronger defence industry on the road ahead,” Minister Price explained.
The project will deliver new software and hardware, based on a design which allows the system to be continuously updated and upgraded with the latest available technology out to 2040. A Deployed Network Integration Centre will be established in Canberra where Australian companies will be able to work in a collaborative environment with Defence on testing their products for future upgrades.
Minister Price added, “We are backing Australian workers and Aussie businesses, creating a stronger defence industry on the road ahead.”
The first stage of the upgrades to Navy platforms will commence in 2021 with HMAS Leeuwin in regional far north Queensland. (Source: Defence Connect)
27 Oct 20. CSIRO supercomputer contract to support next-gen Aussie research. The Pawsey Supercomputing Centre has selected Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) to deliver its new supercomputer, which will power future high-impact Australian research projects ranging from the fight against COVID-19, to working with the precursor telescopes of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project.
Pawsey’s new system will be built using the HPE Cray EX supercomputer, with expanded data storage capabilities through the Cray ClusterStor E1000 system, significantly increased compute power and more emphasis on accelerators with future-generation AMD EPYC CPUs and AMD Instinct GPUs.
The new supercomputer will be at least 10 times more power efficient than its predecessors Magnus and Galaxy. For the 30-fold increase in computing power, Pawsey expects the new system’s energy requirements will only increase by 50 per cent once the system is fully commissioned.
Today, more than 1,600 researchers use Pawsey’s supercomputers directly to support their computing-intensive projects, including discovering new galaxies, developing improved diagnostic tests for coronaviruses, and finding AI-enabled ways to reduce herbicide use.
Mark Stickells, director of the Pawsey Supercomputing Centre, said the new system will help propel the position of Australian research on the global stage, explaining, “Supercomputers like those at Pawsey are increasingly crucial to our ability to conduct world-class, high-impact research. The upgrades we’re announcing are a critical move in strengthening Australia’s position in the global research environment and playing a part in major global research projects, from helping in the fight against COVID-19 to working with the precursor telescopes to the Square Kilometre Array.”
John Langoulant, chairman at Pawsey Supercomputing Centre, echoed the impact of the new supercomputer for the state, the country, and the world.
“Today’s supercomputer upgrade will significantly boost the national effort, elevating the role of Australian research on the global stage and creating opportunities for new high-impact research that benefits Western Australia, the nation and the world,” Langoulant said.
The new supercomputer will help meet the exponentially increasing computing needs of Australian researchers in fields such as medicine, artificial intelligence, radio astronomy and more.
Dr Chenoa Tremblay, postdoctoral fellow in dark magnetism at CSIRO, is using Pawsey’s existing supercomputing systems to analyse extremely sensitive radio telescope signals that could give us our first potential evidence of life outside our solar system. Her team’s work requires scanning more than 10 million stars and analysing hundreds of terabytes of data, a herculean task that will be accelerated with the new supercomputer.
“Doing this on my laptop would take 25 years. Pawsey’s supercomputing systems have brought some of our research timelines from years down to days, giving us the power we need to analyse hundreds of thousands of images quickly. With the signals being very weak, finding new ones will require even more data to crunch,” Dr Tremblay explained.
Nick Gorga, general manager, HPC and AI, APAC-India at HPE, added, “Scientific breakthroughs made by leading research centres, such as Pawsey Supercomputer Centre, inspire us to continue empowering the community with powerful supercomputing solutions that combat the broadest range of challenges.”
The new supercomputer is part of Pawsey’s Capital Refresh Program, which is being delivered under a $70m grant from the Australian government announced in 2018 to upgrade Pawsey’s supercomputing infrastructure. This is in addition to the $80m granted in 2009 to establish the petascale supercomputing facility.
In 2018, the Australian government awarded $70m to upgrade Pawsey’s supercomputing infrastructure, on top of the $80m granted in 2009 to establish a petascale supercomputing facility. The Pawsey upgrade, as a major part of the national HPC infrastructure, is ensuring Australia continues to enable computationally-intense research.
Pawsey capital refresh is a complex upgrade will be a staged process. Some ancillary systems, including storage and network infrastructure, have been procured prior to the main system.
The new MWA Compute Cluster is named “Garrawarla”, meaning spider in the Wajarri language; whose land the Murchison Radio Observatory is on. The new 78-node cluster will provide a dedicated system for astronomers to process in excess of 30 petabytes of MWA telescope data using Pawsey infrastructure.
The new cluster will provide users with enhanced GPU capabilities to power AI, computational work, machine learning workflows and data analytics. Stress testing has been successfully completed and users are now being migrated to the new system.
The ASKAP ingest nodes procurement was awarded to HPE in July 2020. The ASKAP ingest nodes are one of the most critical components of the pipeline between the ASKAP telescopes and the data store which houses the final data products. They receive the data from the correlators located at the Murchison Radio Observatory and write them to disk ready for post processing on the Galaxy supercomputer.
As part of the capital refresh, the sixteen ASKAP ingest nodes are being replaced with nodes with the latest AMD processors designed for I/O. They have twice as much data bandwidth as the previous generation and more memory channels, ensuring that they can keep up with the torrents of data that are produced by the telescopes. Along with three dedicated nodes for providing ancillary services, they will have dedicated storage in the form of the ClusterStor E1000. Approximately half a petabyte of NVMe storage will be dedicated to the ingest process, capable of speeds in excess of 150 GB/s. (Source: Space Connect)
23 Oct 20. Saab signs partnership agreement with Canada’s CRIAQ. Saab and the Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Quebec (CRIAQ) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU).
Saab and the Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Quebec (CRIAQ) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU).
The partnership agreement is expected to boost collaboration with Canadian industry, universities and other research organisations.
CRIAQ CEO Alain Aubertin said: “We are very pleased with this signing as we continue to develop our aerospace industry, adding a new global player to our ecosystem.
“I am convinced that CRIAQ’s academic, industrial and SME community, and the Quebec economy as well, will clearly benefit from this international collaboration.”
This agreement also deepens the commitments of Saab to the Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) Policy of Canada in the future.
Introduced in 2014, ITB is an economic commitment made by bidders to the country. It requires companies that are awarded defence procurement projects in invest and undertake business activity in the country.
In July 2019, Saab submitted a proposal to include 88 Gripen E fighters for Canada’s Future Fighter Capability Project (FFCP).
Saab Aeronautics business area vice-president and head Jonas Hjelm said: “The quality and breadth of aerospace research and innovation in Canada is globally recognised, with the Quebec region home to many excellent companies and institutions.
“Therefore, it was natural to reach this agreement with an important organisation like CRIAQ. We look forward to working together to benefit research and the fostering of talent in Quebec.”
In March, Saab partnered with several Canadian aerospace companies for the FFCP deal.
Known as the ‘Gripen for Canada Team’, the companies include IMP Aerospace & Defence, CAE, Peraton Canada and GE Aviation. (Source: airforce-technology.com)
23 Oct 20. Naval Group reveals the SMX 31 E, its 2020 concept ship. The SMX31E is Naval Group newest submarine concept. She integrates the latest digital technologies for reinforced operational efficiency and significant versatility of use. Stealthier thanks to her biomimetic covering, the ship also benefits from an unmatched electrical energy storage capacity and a new propulsion concept.
Naval Group seeks to build a long-term vision, consistent with the operational needs expressed by its customers in order to invest in systems which will remain technologically superior over the 30 to 40 years of ships’ lifecycles.
Naval Group naval architects project themselves in the future. On the horizon of 2040, in a context of permanent surveillance of oceans, navies will have to navigate in very intricate environment. The objectives for submariners will be to operate freely, to share information safely and to be able to act firmly and swiftly.
The SMX31E offers a stealthier, more autonomous and flexible solution. More than a smart ship, the SMX31E constitutes a smart naval force to gain superiority in future underwater battlefields.
The increased invulnerability is the result of the biomimetic shape and the skin material making it stealthier against active sonar emissions. Endurance is the other asset of the SMX31E –it allows the crew to be submerged for months thanks to the high energy capacities and efficient energy management system.
Using advanced artificial intelligence technology, this submarine offers maximal connectivity to interact with the rest of the fleet in a distributed underwater network. This new IT design enables the crew to collect and process data efficiently with remote sensors allowing them to master underwater tactical situation. At the end of the day, the SMX 31E can monitor areas 10 times larger than today with the same efficiency.
This smart ship always keeps human decision in the loop and becomes a force multiplier thanks to the integration of all kinds of drones including large sized drones. Connected to each other, these vectors contribute to better control an extended underwater battlefield.
Technical characteristics of the SMX 31 E
- Submerged displacement: 3 200 tonnes
- Length: 80 metres
- Armament: 24 heavy-weight weapons (naval cruise missiles, F21 torpedoes, anti-ship missiles)
- Up to 6 UUV (533mm) + 2 XLUUV
- Special Forces dedicated facilities (trunks, storage rooms, vehicle and weapons, grouping areas…)
- Two rim driven electric propulsion motors
- Crew: 15 crew members + 12 to 20 pax
- Submerged mission: > 40 days at speed of 8 kts.
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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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