Defense Technology International - September 2007 - (Page 27) TRAFFIC SIGNALS Network-centric vehicles touted for tactical operations JORIS JANSSEN LOK•KIEL, GERMANY JORIS JANSSEN LOK/DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL PHOTOS larger Marder test vehicle, dubbed Panther, was inside a vehicle-modification dock. According to Rheinmetall, in 1998 MoveIt became the first fully digitized, triple-redundant, drive-by-wire vehicle certified and licensed for public roads. Since then, the vehicle has been equipped with a modular and distributed information technology and power-distribution architecture. The vehicle accommodates a three-man crew (commander, observer and driver) who have six LCDs and five joysticks available to work with various on- and off-board systems, says Rheinmetall. The main subsystems integrated with Move-It are a BAA electro-optical sensor head (supplied by Rheinmetall Defense Electronics of Bremen); a Telemax remotely operated, tracked, all-terrain robot system; and an AirRobot quad-rotor, vertical takeoff and landing mini-UAV. The 70-kg. (154-lb.) Telemax unmanned ground vehicle is stored in a box mounted on the back of the vehicle and lowered to the ground by an elevator. The AirRobot UAV weighs 1 kg., carries a 200-gram (6.4-oz.) video camera, flies for 20 min. and has a 500-meter (1,640-ft.) range. According to Rheinmetall, Telemax carries a 5-kg. payload, has a range of 1,000 meters and endurance of 2 hr., moving across almost erman defense contractor Rheinmetall Landsysteme is experimenting with vehicle-based networkcentric capabilities that could significantly improve tactical land operations in areas of mobility, protection, survivability and command and control. The company is preparing two system electronics (systronics) technology demonstrators: one based on a heavily modified Wiesel 2 air-mobile tracked vehicle and one on a similarly adapted Marder infantry fighting vehicle. “We’re aiming to promote vehicle-based network-centric warfare capabilities by leveraging technology in a bottom-up approach,” says a company representative. Rheinmetall will participate in two programs dedicated to testing developments in electronics and systems technologies for networked vehicles. One is called Sprint, a German operation scheduled for May 2008, at the infantry training center in Hammelburg. The other is Artist, a Franco-German effort slated for 2009, also in Hammelburg. Sprint (Systronics Project on Intelligent Network Technologies) will evaluate German developments in systronics and vetronics (vehicle electronics). The emphasis will be on integration of the two, along with cockpit technology, digital-assistant systems, sensor inwww.aviationweek.com/dti G The Move-It operator deploys Telemax robot to check simulated IED 30 meters away. tegration and fusion and broadband data communications. Another aspect will be command and control of vehicles, unmanned vehicles (aerial as well as ground) and unattended ground sensors. Mission preparation and wrap-up, embedded training and simulation will also be evaluated. Artist, which is an acronym meaning technical arrangement for an advanced realtime integration system testbed, stems from a French-German memorandum of understanding on R&D that dates back to 1986. Artist will focus on the preparation and execution of four operational scenarios: coordinated fire management, remote control of unmanned vehicles, dismounted infantry operations and distributed simulation. Other companies taking part include Diehl BGT Defense of Germany as well as Nexter, Sagem and Thales, all from France. During a visit to Rheinmetall Landsysteme here, Defense Technology International viewed a demonstration of the Wiesel 2 systronics applications demonstrator, known as Move-It (Mobile Vetronics Integration Testbed). The Images from BAA sensor and five cameras on the robot let the operator see what’s taking place outside the vehicles. any terrain using a four-track running gear. The main equipment on Telemax is a programmable arm with a seven-axis manipulator, the tools for which can be changed according to needs. In the demonstration, the Move-It operator deployed the Telemax robot to investigate a simulated improvised explosive device 30 meters in front of the vehicle. To monitor events, the operator used imagery from the BAA sensor head (comprising a thermal imaging camera, daylight TV camera and laser rangefinder), as well as from five video cameras on Telemax. I DTI’s weblog, Ares, has a post (also titled “Tra c Signals”) with more photos of Move-It in action. Go to DTI’s home page: aviationweek.com/dti and click on “Extras for this issue” under “DTI Interactive.” 27 SEPTEMBER 2007 DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL http://www.aviationweek.com/dti http://www.aviationweek.com/dti
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