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23 Sep 21. ZeroAlpha Solutions showcases new power module for Polaris tactical vehicles. ZeroAlpha Solutions Ltd has designed a lightweight, multisource power supply module for Polaris tactical lightweight vehicles and showcased it at the DSEI 2021 exhibition in London in September.
The ZAS-PM-093 auxiliary power module (APM) had been designed to provide in-service Polaris M-RZR platforms with the ability to support mission systems such as surveillance sensors, remote weapon stations, and communications, command-and-control systems as well as providing exportable DC power, Stewart Burton, ZeroAlpha Solutions owner, told Janes.
The basic M-RZR platform is unable to do this. The APM is designed to mount on the M-RZR load bed, however, it can be dismounted to deliver power independently of the vehicle. It contains lithium iron phosphate batteries, has a maximum capacity of 2.8 kWh, and can deliver up to 1.5 kW.
The APM provides an autonomous sustainable power system with minimum effect on the overall load-carrying capacity of the M-RZR platform, Burton said.
Burton said that when mounted, the APM can be recharged from the vehicle alternator. It can also be charged using a conventional 28 V DC generator, but to support silent operations an alternative method uses a methanol fuel cell. He cited the SFC Energy EMILY 3000 as an example of this, which, while consuming 10 litres of fuel, can provide constant recharging for 88 h at 3,000 Wh/day. The APM can also be connected to a solar panel. It contains a charging control system, which matches power consumption to provision by monitoring the battery state. (Source: Jane’s)
23 Sep 21. High-tech Rheinmetall pushes ahead with hydrogen strategy as partner of new Innovation and Technology Centre. Growth market for hydrogen: short-term order potential of up to €220 m for fuel cell system components. Pressing ahead with its hydrogen strategy, Rheinmetall is now taking part in a national hydrogen and fuel cell initiative with financial backing from the German federal government and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Rheinmetall is an industrial partner of the research and development consortium Centre for Fuel Cell Technology, or ZBT, in Duisburg. Known for its hydrogen acumen, the ZBT is one of four financially backed innovation and technology centres (ITZ) for hydrogen technology selected in Germany. To enable organization and expansion of the ITZ, which will focus primarily on mobility applications relating to hydrogen, up to €100 m in development funds from the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure and the government of North Rhine-Westphalia is slated to go to Duisburg and participating consortium partners in coming years.
Rheinmetall has been developing and producing products for fuel cell systems for over twenty years. In the short term, the company sees sales potential for fuel cell system components of between €150 m and €250 m for itself. In recent months alone, the company has booked orders in this field with a lifetime value of around €50 m. From now on, Rheinmetall will be drawing on its experience and expertise in this domain to position itself even more firmly as a leader in hydrogen and fuel cell technology.
Looking ahead, Rheinmetall will establish a high-performance technology and industrialization centre for mobile and stationary hydrogen technology applications at its Neuss site. Along with the safe generation and distribution of hydrogen as well as data security for hydrogen infrastructure, the prime focus will be on fuel cell systems themselves. In Neuss – located just across the Rhine from Düsseldorf – work will be carried out in synergetic tandem with the ITZ in nearby Duisburg, enabling the Group to press ahead with in-house research and development for new hydrogen technology-related products, and readying these for industrial production.
But the Rheinmetall Technology Centre for Hydrogen also serves as an environment for small- and mid-sized companies or start-ups, enabling them to bring their product ideas to market more quickly with the help of an established technology group. As a consortium partner, Rheinmetall’s role will essentially be to bring its expertise in preparing new products for production to the ITZ run from Duisburg, and to assist young companies in gaining access to the marketplace.
This way, the Düsseldorf-based technology group will contribute to establishing Germany and the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia as leading locations for hydrogen technology in Europe.
Hydrogen is a key element in the ongoing transition to a climate-neutral future energy supply and the climate-neutral transformation of industry. Experts therefore see substantial global growth potential for the production, storage, distribution and use of hydrogen. A projection based on the goals of the Paris Agreement suggests that annual market volume could expand from the current figure of around €5bn to over €100bn by 2030.
22 Sep 21. The sub story no one wants to hear. It’s the sub story no one wants to hear – the coming end of the submarine era. But we must expect it, writes Roger Bradbury, emeritus professor of the Australian National University.
There is always an arms race between opposing weapons systems forcing each of them to evolve or die. Sometimes the evolution is gradual, like the replacement of wooden warships with ironclads in response to the growing lethality of naval gunnery in the 19th century.
At other times, there is just sudden extinction – the dominance of battleships lasted just a couple of decades, with the last major engagement between battleships being the Battle of Jutland in 1916. The invention of the torpedo made the battleship unviable as a weapon of war.
Whether a weapons system collapses with a whimper, like wooden warships, or a bang, like battleships, is primarily a function of the evolutionary flexibility of the system. If the system is a generalist one – like a traditional warship – then evolutionary pathways are likely available to it to adapt to the changing environment and survive.
However, if the system is highly specialised then there may not be evolutionary pathways to survival in a changing world. Battleships were highly specialised. They had one big trick – they could survive and fight through a long-range naval gunnery duel with other battleships because of their astonishingly heavy armour.
But they were no match for the newfangled small and fast destroyers armed with torpedoes.
Subs too have only one big trick. They are stealthy. But if, in a conflict, a sub can be detected, it is dead. As a result, over the last century there has been an arms race between subs seeking to become stealthier and their adversaries seeking to detect them. And for the last half-century at least, subs have become so stealthy that they have become one of the most lethal weapons systems available to any state.
Stealth, this highly specialised capability, may be coming to end as the technological environment of subs changes.
There is a huge and growing push of science and technology into sensing the oceans. This is being driven not only by military needs, but also by economic and environmental needs. And it is leading to a considered view that the oceans will become ‘transparent’ over the coming decades.
A transparent ocean will be the result of a coming integration of sensing systems not yet developed, and it is likely to come together, when it does, quickly. The submarine era will likely end with a bang not a whimper.
Subs will remain highly effective and lethal weapons systems until, because stealth – their one big trick – no longer works, they suddenly aren’t.
But when will that be? This is a first-order strategic question. And I recently led a group of scientists and technologists at the ANU to attempt to answer it.
We had a wide range of skills and experience in ocean science, nuclear science and materials science as well as in the technology of the high frontier – artificial intelligence, autonomous drones and battery technology.
Our time horizon was the 2050s, as the next generation of nuclear-armed submarines become deployed through the 2030s and beyond. Our analysis identified broad areas of future science and technology – rather than specific ‘hot’ areas of the moment – that might have an impact on submarine detection as well as on counter-detection.
Our analysis used the estimative intelligence software tool, Intelfuze, created by Australian AI specialists Houston We Have. It’s used in the intelligence community to provide probabilistic assessments that are rigorous, transparent, defensible, and able to be updated.
It is particularly suited for problems where the data are poor, uncertain and perhaps even speculative, and where there may be strongly divergent opinions on the quality and significance of those data. It was perfect for this problem, allowing us to focus on the science and avoid the arm-waving typical of so many futuring exercises.
Our assessments showed very clearly that the oceans are, in most circumstances, at least likely and, from some perspectives, very likely to become transparent by the 2050s.
Even allowing for a generous assumption of progress in counter-detection in our analyses, we cannot see how counter-detection can possibly be as effective in the 2050s as it is today. In simple terms, the submarine era will likely come to an end in the 2050s. (Source: Defence Connect)
22 Sep 21. Plymouth Rock Technologies to Test BVLOS in UK. Plymouth Rock Technologies Inc., a supplier of developing detection apparatus and unmanned technologies, has announced the sale of custom drones and training services to Cranfield University in collaboration with the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) National Beyond Visual Line of Sight Experimentation Corridor (NBEC).
The goal of the NBEC is to provide a safe, managed environment to test and develop concepts, principles, and the related technologies to enable flying unmanned aircraft systems beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) in non-segregated airspace.
“From the outset, the differentiator of the PRT UAS operation was to create a product portfolio designed and engineered for autonomous and BVLOS flight as the primary function, while having a fully manual piloting capability as a secondary function” stated Ben Pickard, VP of UAS Development at PRT. “Our UAS platforms are currently being used in demanding BVLOS missions with critical value humanitarian and civilian missions which include the UN, Oil & Gas and Environmental agencies. We are honoured to be supplying products and services into this program and further to share any data from operational deployments that will assist not only the CAA in the UK, but also the FAA in the United States” concluded Pickard.
“Being chosen by Cranfield University to be the supplier of UAS and training services for this globally recognized program is a positive endorsement of the Company and its products,” stated Carl Cagliarini, Chief Strategy Officer of PRT. “The requirement for Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) capabilities to ensure flight safety systems, electronic redundancy and constant communication must be rigorously tested if drone technologies are ever to be deployed over urban environments for commercial operations. This program takes our proven technologies to a higher level by assessing UAS capabilities towards the goal of introducing drones into non- segregated airspace. This will require drones to sense, communicate and work with manned aircraft across general aviation and military operations” concluded Cagliarini. (Source: UAS VISION)
20 Sep 21. AFSOC plans to demo amphibious MC-130J by end of next year, commander says. A rendering of a twin float amphibious modification to an MC-130J Commando II is shown here. Air Force Special Operations Command plans to demonstrate an amphibious version of the MC-130J Hercules by the end of next year, AFSOC’s commander told reporters Monday morning at the Air Force Association convention.
“I can say with certainty that our plan is to conduct a demo by the 31st of December next year.,” AFSOC commander Lt. Gen. Jim Slife said in a roundtable with media on Sept. 20. Slife emphasized that a flying demo would most likely feature a single aircraft and would be aimed at validating digitally engineered models that the program has run so far on the aircraft’s capabilities.
The variant of the MC-130J capable of landing on water the aircraft would be better equipped for a wider breadth of missions as the Pentagon shifts focus to littoral regions, per a Sept. 14 statement. The development has been dubbed the MC-130J Amphibious Capability, or MAC.
The latest rendered illustrations of the proposed model feature large, removable floats that would allow the aircraft to take off and land on both bodies of water and runway independent locations. In allowing significantly greater to non-traditional takeoff and landing areas, MAC would also help curtail aircraft vulnerability by avoiding easily-targetable locations.
“This capability allows the Air Force to increase placement and access for infiltration, exfiltration, and personnel recovery, as well as providing enhanced logistical capabilities for future competition and conflict,” said Lt. Col. Josh Trantham, AFSOC Science, Systems, Technology, & Innovation Deputy Division Chief in the Air Force’s statement.
The Air Force had previously announced it’s intention to develop the water-capable aircraft at the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference in May of this year, as reported by The Drive in May. Though the ept. 14 AFSOC update doesn’t provide a significant amount more detail than May’s announcement, it does note that a task force of unspecified collaborators are working with AFSOC and the Air Force Research Lab’s Strategic Development Planning and Experimentation directorate to create a prototype. The Air Force estimates an operational capability demonstration could come in as little as 17 months.
This isn’t the first time plans for an amphibious aircraft with the built-in versatility of the C-130 has come to light. Lockheed toyed with the idea of a Hercules Amphibian for the Navy as early as the 1960s, according to Tyler Rogoway’s 2015 analysis for Jalopnik, pointing out that such an aircraft would have wide-reaching applications beyond strictly battlespace operations, like rescue missions and firefighting.
While the U.S. military currently has zero seaplanes in its fleets, David Alman noted last year for War on the Rocks, that Japan, Russia, and China each operate a modest number of their own. Readiness in the Indo-Pacific could be vastly improved by the operational benefits of seaplanes’ versatility, Alman wrote, citing previous American seaplane development and operation in the early 1900s and through World War II.
Slife stressed, however, that the MAC would not be a “seaplane” per se. (Source: Defense News)
14 Sep 21. BAE and Dell Technologies innovate for UK Naval Defence. BAE Systems is working with Dell Technologies on delivering innovative digital capability for the new City Class Type 26 frigates.
The first three frigates in this class include HMS Glasgow, a cutting-edge UK-designed ship currently being built on the Clyde in Glasgow.
The collaboration will deliver a Shared Infrastructure to host the ship’s essential systems, including a number provided by third parties, on a single, reliable digital platform. It will take full advantage of scalable, open, and coherent technology while providing enhanced durability, state-of-the-art security, and data protection. Additionally, the reduced footprint of the solution will provide environmental benefits.
The integrative approach of these two industry leaders builds on the successful deployment of a Shared Infrastructure solution across numerous other front-line naval platforms, including the Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers. It has already demonstrated exceptional operational reliability and reduced through-life costs, helping to future-proof the fleet and allow rapid capability deployment.
Amelia Gould, Naval Ships Combat Systems Director at BAE Systems, said:
“We’re delighted to continue our work with Dell Technologies. Our combined solutions provide the Digital Backbone to the Carrier Strike Group and Type 26. The collaboration reinforces our digital capability and provides mutual benefit by allowing us to have first-look access to the latest digital technologies and provides Dell with useful insights on complex uses for their solutions.”
Dayne Turbitt, senior vice president and general manager at Dell Technologies for the UK said:
“Our collaborative development approach with BAE Systems on the next generation of world-class naval ships reflects the strength of our successful and long-standing relationship and reinforces our mission to provide a vital advantage in protecting what matters. Together we’re driving leading-edge, secure technology that can be deployed and integrated fast and delivered in the most demanding environments—ultimately supporting BAE customers to make faster and better decisions and improve Defence outcomes.” (Source: ASD Network)
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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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