Thursday, July 28, 2011

Large Unmanned Ground Vehicles about to make their combat debut...

via Lockheed Martin Press Release...
u.s. Army selects lockheed martin’S SMSS Autonomous vehicle for afghanistan deployment
 
DALLAS, July 28, 2011 – The U.S. Army Rapid Equipping Force, through the Robotics Technology Consortium, selected the Lockheed Martin [NYSE:LMT] Squad Mission Support System (SMSS) to deploy to Afghanistan for a first-of-its-kind military assessment.  SMSS will deploy as the winner of the Project Workhorse Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) competition sponsored by the Army.
 
The largest autonomous vehicle ever to be deployed with infantry, the 11-foot-long SMSS can carry more than half-a-ton of a squad’s equipment on rugged terrain, easing the individual soldier’s burden, which can often exceed 100 pounds.
 
“SMSS is the result of more than a decade of robotic technology development, and we welcome the opportunity to demonstrate this capability in theater, where it can have an immediate impact at the squad level,” said Scott Greene, vice president of ground vehicles in Lockheed Martin’s Missiles and Fire Control business.  “The Army has tested the system’s capabilities in three domestic user assessments, and SMSS has been deemed ready to deploy.”
 
As part of the three-month Military Utility Assessment (MUA), four vehicles and a field service representative will support light infantry in theater as the service evaluates how autonomous vehicles can support or ease the equipment burden for deployed troops.  A fifth vehicle and an engineering team will remain in the U.S. for analysis and additional support.  The Army plans to begin the Afghanistan assessment late this year, after a period of evaluations and training.
 
“An in-theater assessment is the next logical step in the process of informing the requirements for the Army’s future squad-sized UGV developments,” Greene said.
 
A fully-loaded SMSS is internally transportable on board CH-47 and CH-53 helicopters, providing new logistics capability to light and early-entry forces.  The SMSS Block I variant, which will be deployed, has a range of 125 miles and features three control options: supervised autonomy, tele-operation or manually driven.  The SMSS sensor suite allows it to lock on and follow any person by recognizing their digital 3-D profile (captured by the onboard sensors), and it can also navigate terrain on its own following a trail of GPS waypoints.
 
In addition to a month-long MUA at Fort Benning, Ga., in 2009, SMSS has been selected for further evaluation as part of the Army’s Expeditionary Warrior Experiment (AEWE) Spiral G in November this year.  While SMSS has already demonstrated its ability to reduce soldier loads and provide portable power, the November experiment will evaluate its ability to field a reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition mission equipment package.
 
Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security company that employs about 126,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The Corporation’s 2010 sales from continuing operations were $45.8 billion.
So this is finally becoming reality.  I remember the studies that were done that indicated that systems like this that could play the mule for a platoon on patrol could be a life saver, but I never thought that it would make it to the field.

Glad I was wrong.

3 comments :

  1. i wonder if as more of these get deployed will these be used the supply FOB's? i know thats been a huge problem in Afghanistan, roads are sparse, i wonder if these are off road enough to not need as much helo support? i think this will do great, glad to see it fielded.

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  2. Hello Solomon,

    this is impressive technology but why not just use a truck?

    It doesn't go anywhere a truck can't go and surely it can't be as cheap as a truck and driver?

    Unmanned technology has a lot of potential but I'm not sure about this application.


    GrandLogistics.

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  3. agreed on this tech not providing anything that a manned truck doesn't.

    and thats the problem with both unmanned ground vehicles and unmanned surface water craft.

    only in the air and under the water does unmanned vehicles make sense.

    but this is really a hold over from the Army's FCS program so it is what it is.

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