Defense Technology International - October 2007 - (Page 61) Read Hockmuth’s posts on DTI’s weblog, Ares, updated daily: aresblog.net U.S. NAVY UAV Catcher The U.S. Navy has technology that enables a moving unmanned surface vehicle (USV) to launch and “catch” an unmanned aerial vehicle, according to a patent (U.S. 7,264,204 B1) issued on Sept. 4. The difficulty of launching and recovering fixed-wing UAVs from conventional surface ships has limited their operational capabilities, the Navy says. The patent describes a lifting-body assembly connected to a towline. The lifting body, hoisted by a stream of ambient air generated by the USV, has two finned aerostats that separate laterally, extending a wire between them. A UAV snags the wire with a tailhook. Tension sensors in the towline detect the trap and transmit signals that slow the UAV below stall speed, slow the USV and trigger a winch that reels in the line. The UAV glides during recovery. The system can also be used to recover UAVs launched from conventional surface ships. I 1 OVER THE EDGE U.S. ARMY Palm Readers Fujitsu’s new PalmSecure vein identification system got a boost last summer when the company teamed with Siemens to integrate the device with Siemens ID Center, software that will administer the data. So far, they don’t have orders from the military, which has focused on fingerprints and iris-scanning to authenticate identities in Iraq and Afghanistan. But they do have PalmSecure maps of distinct vein patterns beneath the skin. The device uses nearinfrared rays to radiate veins in the palm, causing them to appear as a black pattern, which is verified against a pre-registered pattern. The deep position of the veins beneath the skin makes forgery unlikely. The company says the system protects privacy because people volunteer to have their palms read, so to speak, and is noninvasive. PalmSecure received a performance certification from the International Biometric Group and the developer claims a failure rate of just 0.08%. I www.aviationweek.com/dti FUJITSU 2 Power Rangers The Pentagon’s office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDRE) wants soldiers to carry their power sources around, but only if it isn’t a burden. DDRE will award $1 million to a team that develops a wearable electric power system prototype. The winning technology must operate continuously for 96 hr., provide 20 watts of average power and up to 200 watts peak power, weigh no more than 8.8 lb. and attach to garments. The power demands of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have prompted a surge in funding for alternatives to batteries that soldiers haul with them in combat. The Defense Dept. estimates that soldiers carry about 20 lb. of batteries to complete a 96-hr. mission using the DC dry-cell batteries that are state-of-the-art in power supply for dismounted troops. Soldiers typically discard partially used batteries because of the dangers of starting a mission with half-charged batteries. I OCTOBER 2007 DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL 61 3 http://aresblog.net http://www.aviationweek.com/dti
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