WASHINGTON, April 27, 2009 – A lot of questions are likely to rush through your head when you’re out on the battlefield and the enemy projectiles come flying. The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency is making big strides on a program to respond with life-saving speed and accuracy.
The goal of DARPA’s CROSSHAIRS – or Counter Rocket-Propelled Grenade and Shooter System with Highly Accurate Immediate Responses -- program is to develop a threat detection and countermeasure system for light tactical vehicles, program manager Karen Wood explained.
As envisioned, Wood said, CROSSHAIRS will be able to detect and locate enemy shooters firing threats ranging from bullets to rocket-propelled grenades to anti-tank guided missiles to direct-fired mortars. In addition, it will engage the shooters and notify other friendly forces of the threat.
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Sunday, May 3, 2009
Future Nano-Satellite Constellation to Extend Tactical Communications Beyond the-Horizon
The first batch of eight SMDC-ONE nano-satellites developed and built by Miltec Corp. for the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC) was delivered this week to the Army customer at Huntsville, Alabama. The program's goal is to demonstrate how a constellation of miniature, low-cost nano-satellites spacecraft, each costs about $400,000 perform six months in space, effectively extending tactical communications over-the-horizon.
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Northrop Grumman Delivers First Production Center Fuselage for F-35 Program
PALMDALE, Calif., April 30, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On April 22, Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) reached a major milestone in the development and production of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter by delivering the center fuselage for the first production F-35 aircraft.
The first production F-35 is designated AF-6. It is the conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant for the U.S. Air Force.
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The first production F-35 is designated AF-6. It is the conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant for the U.S. Air Force.
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Pulse Detonation Engines
One of the newest and most exciting areas of pulse-jet development is the Pulse Detonation Engine (PDE).
While they work on similar principles to a regular pulsejet, the PDE has one very fundamental difference -- it detonates the air/fuel mixture rather than just allowing it to simply deflagrate (burn vigorously).
When we cause an air/fuel mixture to deflagrate in a semi-enclosed space (such as a pulsejet or auto-engine) then pressure is generated and that pressure can be harnessed to perform some work -- eg: create thrust or turn a crankshaft.
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While they work on similar principles to a regular pulsejet, the PDE has one very fundamental difference -- it detonates the air/fuel mixture rather than just allowing it to simply deflagrate (burn vigorously).
When we cause an air/fuel mixture to deflagrate in a semi-enclosed space (such as a pulsejet or auto-engine) then pressure is generated and that pressure can be harnessed to perform some work -- eg: create thrust or turn a crankshaft.
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Saturday, May 2, 2009
DHS tests bomb-proof CCTV by blowing up bus
Depressing news for extremist privacy lovers today: a cheap CCTV camera which can reliably survive a large bomb explosion with video recordings intact has been developed. It's no longer possible to cover one's tracks by simply blowing everything up.
News of the new cheapo bombproof surveillance cams comes to us courtesy of - you guessed it - the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The DHS didn't develop the kit, but did help test it by blowing up a bus with sixteen of the prototype ruggedised spyeyes aboard (vid below). Each camera's memory chip had been preloaded with video files in order to see how much was retained.
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News of the new cheapo bombproof surveillance cams comes to us courtesy of - you guessed it - the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The DHS didn't develop the kit, but did help test it by blowing up a bus with sixteen of the prototype ruggedised spyeyes aboard (vid below). Each camera's memory chip had been preloaded with video files in order to see how much was retained.
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Blurring the lines between magic and science: Berkeley researchers create an 'invisibility cloak'
The great science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke famously noted the similarities between advanced technology and magic. This summer on the big screen, the young wizard Harry Potter will once again don his magic invisibility cloak and disappear. Meanwhile, researchers with Berkeley Lab and the University of California (UC) Berkeley will be studying an invisibility cloak of their own that also hides objects from view.
A team led by Xiang Zhang, a principal investigator with Berkeley Lab's Materials Sciences Division and director of UC Berkeley's Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center, has created a "carpet cloak" from nanostructured silicon that conceals the presence of objects placed under it from optical detection. While the carpet itself can still be seen, the bulge of the object underneath it disappears from view. Shining a beam of light on the bulge shows a reflection identical to that of a beam reflected from a flat surface, meaning the object itself has essentially been rendered invisible.
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A team led by Xiang Zhang, a principal investigator with Berkeley Lab's Materials Sciences Division and director of UC Berkeley's Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center, has created a "carpet cloak" from nanostructured silicon that conceals the presence of objects placed under it from optical detection. While the carpet itself can still be seen, the bulge of the object underneath it disappears from view. Shining a beam of light on the bulge shows a reflection identical to that of a beam reflected from a flat surface, meaning the object itself has essentially been rendered invisible.
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Safety Laser Scanner covers up to 48 zones
The New Keyence SZ Series, Type 3 Safety Laser Scanner, allows users to configure protection areas anywhere, even in complex-shaped zones and dangerous areas. Its compact body and light weight help facilitate installation and save space without compromising quality or detection range. Despite its compact size, the SZ Series can create a protection zone up to 4.2m (13.77') with a warning zone area projecting as far as 10 m (32.80') from the scanner.
The SZ Series ensures reliable detection of any target regardless of its color or surface finish. Even matte black targets can be detected, thus eliminating the need to worry about dark colored work clothes affecting its performance.
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The SZ Series ensures reliable detection of any target regardless of its color or surface finish. Even matte black targets can be detected, thus eliminating the need to worry about dark colored work clothes affecting its performance.
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Rubber Suspensions target fire and rescue industry.
Available in tandem capacities of 42,000, 48,000, 54,000, and 58,000 lb, HN® FR Series utilizes VariRate® spring system to provide optimal balance of empty ride quality and loaded stability. Diagonally-mounted rubber bolster springs act in compression and shear to dissipate road shock, while extra wide spring centers and Hytrel® auxiliary springs provide stability for high center of gravity applications and emergency driving conditions.
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RFID Asset Tracking Solution Debuted by DAILY RFID
DAILY RFID has released a modified RFID Asset Tracking solution, designed to track and manage mobile and fixed assets. It can automatically keep track of assets as they move in and out of an area.
This 13.56MHz RFID asset tracking solution can apply to all assets in business. To track asset with RFID, asset tracking tags or rfid metal tags are attached to the assets, depending on different environment, so as to enable the stability of the system.
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This 13.56MHz RFID asset tracking solution can apply to all assets in business. To track asset with RFID, asset tracking tags or rfid metal tags are attached to the assets, depending on different environment, so as to enable the stability of the system.
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Blade forces
US researchers have developed a technique that uses sensors and software to constantly monitor forces exerted on wind-turbine blades.
The research by engineers at Purdue University and Sandia National Laboratories is part of an effort to develop a smarter wind-turbine structure.
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The research by engineers at Purdue University and Sandia National Laboratories is part of an effort to develop a smarter wind-turbine structure.
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Speed Bump Sensors Keep Hummers Rolling
Wear and tear on Humvees need not slow down the U.S. Army – soldiers could soon drive over speed bump-like diagnostic cleats to determine the conditions their vehicles are in.
Embedded sensors could detect suspension or tire problems by comparing vibration signatures with the baseline signature of a healthy vehicle. Researchers used triaxial accelerometers to gauge tire forces in a cleat prototype.
"The cleat is a quick first check to determine what's mechanically wrong with a vehicle before wasting time hunting for potentially simple problems," said Joseph Gothamy, who leads the reliability and durability simulation team at Army's Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center, in Warren, Michigan.
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Embedded sensors could detect suspension or tire problems by comparing vibration signatures with the baseline signature of a healthy vehicle. Researchers used triaxial accelerometers to gauge tire forces in a cleat prototype.
"The cleat is a quick first check to determine what's mechanically wrong with a vehicle before wasting time hunting for potentially simple problems," said Joseph Gothamy, who leads the reliability and durability simulation team at Army's Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center, in Warren, Michigan.
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Hackers Breach the Joint Strike Fighter Program
Cyberwarfare ratchets up as intruders siphon information from the Pentagon's most sensitive and expensive weapons program. Are Chinese hackers responsible?
After frightening revelations that hackers have already managed to break into the computer systems that control huge swaths of the United States' power grid and other pieces of national infrastructure, the Wall Street Journal reports that cyber-spies have broken into the Pentagon's Joint Strike Fighter program -- its costliest initiative -- and made off with several terabytes of sensitive data. Hackers have also managed to get into the Air Force's air-traffic-control system, the Journal reports.
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After frightening revelations that hackers have already managed to break into the computer systems that control huge swaths of the United States' power grid and other pieces of national infrastructure, the Wall Street Journal reports that cyber-spies have broken into the Pentagon's Joint Strike Fighter program -- its costliest initiative -- and made off with several terabytes of sensitive data. Hackers have also managed to get into the Air Force's air-traffic-control system, the Journal reports.
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Social Networking for Emergencies
Microsoft Vine takes the trivia out of tweeting
Emergency response entails a widespread tactical effort by countless government agencies. Too often, citizens are left out of the loop and have to rely on mass media, cell phones, and Web sites for emergency information. Microsoft Vine is a new social networking tool, designed to help its users keep tabs on people and places. Currently in a beta test in Seattle, the service lets you enter a location and see news reports aggregated from 20,000 sources, and from the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. You can enter people you want to track into Microsoft Vine, and then receive an e-mail, text message, or an update about them in the Vine dashboard -- which runs on Windows only. Disaster victims with Macs are out of luck.
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Emergency response entails a widespread tactical effort by countless government agencies. Too often, citizens are left out of the loop and have to rely on mass media, cell phones, and Web sites for emergency information. Microsoft Vine is a new social networking tool, designed to help its users keep tabs on people and places. Currently in a beta test in Seattle, the service lets you enter a location and see news reports aggregated from 20,000 sources, and from the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. You can enter people you want to track into Microsoft Vine, and then receive an e-mail, text message, or an update about them in the Vine dashboard -- which runs on Windows only. Disaster victims with Macs are out of luck.
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GE breakthrough steps closer to 500 Gbyte optical storage disc
Although they are not the first to develop ultrahigh-density data storage technology (see "Terabyte optical disc relies on two-photon process" and "Harvard researchers develop plasmonic laser antenna [to improve optical storage technology]"), GE Global Research (Niskayuna, NY), the technology development arm of General Electric, announced a major breakthrough in the development of next-generation optical storage technology. GE researchers successfully demonstrated a threshold micro-holographic storage material that can support 500 gigabytes (Gbyte) of storage capacity in a standard DVD-size disc.
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Air Force fields special flight suit for JSF
Pilots flying the F-35 Lightning II are getting their own flight suit, a more comfortable one that will protect their arms if they have to eject from the stealth fighter.
The sage-green flight suit looks like the one now worn by thousands of other airmen except for no line-cutter pocket on the left leg and the addition of a removable fabric cord attached to each upper sleeve, said Cheryl Limrick, a spokeswoman for the Joint Strike Fighter program office in Arlington, Va.
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The sage-green flight suit looks like the one now worn by thousands of other airmen except for no line-cutter pocket on the left leg and the addition of a removable fabric cord attached to each upper sleeve, said Cheryl Limrick, a spokeswoman for the Joint Strike Fighter program office in Arlington, Va.
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Friday, May 1, 2009
Ohio Engineers "Ink" New Electronic Paper Technology
A new technology that uses ambient light and pigments used in commercial printing promises to make thin electronic displays that are as bright and vibrant as the pages of a glossy magazine, according to research reported this week in Nature Photonics.
Researchers at the University of Cincinnati’s Novel Devices Laboratory have developed what they call electrofluidic display technology over the past two years in collaboration with color experts from ink and pigments manufacturer Sun Chemical Corp. Sun Chemical also funded the work and has applied for a patent on the technology with the university.
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Researchers at the University of Cincinnati’s Novel Devices Laboratory have developed what they call electrofluidic display technology over the past two years in collaboration with color experts from ink and pigments manufacturer Sun Chemical Corp. Sun Chemical also funded the work and has applied for a patent on the technology with the university.
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Microsoft Offers Secure Windows … But Only to the Government
It’s the most secure distribution version of Windows XP ever produced by Microsoft: More than 600 settings are locked down tight, and critical security patches can be installed in an average of 72 hours instead of 57 days. The only problem is, you have to join the Air Force to get it.
The Air Force persuaded Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to provide it with a secure Windows configuration that saved the service about $100 million in contract costs and countless hours of maintenance. At a congressional hearing this week on cybersecurity, Alan Paller, research director of the Sans Institute, shared the story as a template for how the government could use its massive purchasing power to get companies to produce more secure products. And those could eventually be available to the rest of us.
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The Air Force persuaded Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to provide it with a secure Windows configuration that saved the service about $100 million in contract costs and countless hours of maintenance. At a congressional hearing this week on cybersecurity, Alan Paller, research director of the Sans Institute, shared the story as a template for how the government could use its massive purchasing power to get companies to produce more secure products. And those could eventually be available to the rest of us.
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SpectraFluidics to develop detector tech
California-based SpectraFluidics has received a contract to work on a hand-held explosive detection development project.
SpectraFluidics announced its team that includes the University of California Santa Barbara's Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies and the U.S. Army's Edgewood Chemical Biological Center has received a three-year development contract.
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SpectraFluidics announced its team that includes the University of California Santa Barbara's Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies and the U.S. Army's Edgewood Chemical Biological Center has received a three-year development contract.
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How a "smart charger" could ease transition to electric cars
Imagine all the folks on the waiting list for the Chevy Volt or a plug-in Toyota Prius plugged in their cars at once. The result? Blackout, as the world's largest machine (otherwise known as the electric grid) is overloaded.
What's needed is a device that can sense when there's sufficient capacity to juice up an electric car and when there's not—a so-called "smart charger" (which would, of course, be a key component of a "smart" grid).
And that's exactly what engineers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash. have created. "If a million owners plug in their vehicles to recharge after work, it could cause a major strain on the grid," said PNNL engineer Michael Kintner-Meyer in a statement. "The Smart Charger Controller could prevent those peaks in demand from plug-in vehicles and enable our existing grid to be used more evenly."
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What's needed is a device that can sense when there's sufficient capacity to juice up an electric car and when there's not—a so-called "smart charger" (which would, of course, be a key component of a "smart" grid).
And that's exactly what engineers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash. have created. "If a million owners plug in their vehicles to recharge after work, it could cause a major strain on the grid," said PNNL engineer Michael Kintner-Meyer in a statement. "The Smart Charger Controller could prevent those peaks in demand from plug-in vehicles and enable our existing grid to be used more evenly."
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7 Military Tech Winners and Losers Under Gates's Proposed Defense Budget
Defense Secretary Robert Gates proposed a budget that would be the first Defense Department overhaul by the Obama administration. The plan has winners and losers as Gates tries to streamline defense procurement, focus on asymmetric and guerrilla threats around the globe and cut costs wherever possible. Here are some of the winners and losers under Gates's proposed budget.
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UAV Helicopter Brings Finesse to Airstrikes
In modern warfare, the advantage often goes to guerrillas who can attack, then quickly hide among the population or disappear into the hills. To counter those tactics, the Pentagon since 2001 has been arming unmanned aerial vehicles to identify and destroy targets with missiles.
The Defense Department is seeking weapons for UAVs that can strike enemies but limit collateral damage, especially in cities. The Army’s solution is the Autonomous Rotorcraft Sniper System (ARSS), a small, unmanned helicopter equipped with a powerful .338-caliber rifle. An autopilot system handles the tricky business of flying while the operator lines up the kill shot on a remote monitor.
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The Defense Department is seeking weapons for UAVs that can strike enemies but limit collateral damage, especially in cities. The Army’s solution is the Autonomous Rotorcraft Sniper System (ARSS), a small, unmanned helicopter equipped with a powerful .338-caliber rifle. An autopilot system handles the tricky business of flying while the operator lines up the kill shot on a remote monitor.
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DARPA’s ISIS Project Seeks Slow, Soaring Surveillance Superiority (updated)
DARPA’s ISIS program is developing a stratospheric airship with sensor antennas that will include a radar nearly as large as the airship. This would create a battlefield surveillance platform with extreme endurance, and equally extreme resolution for its air and battlefield scans via radar and other carried sensors. This project is associated with Lockheed’s High Altitude Airship program, which is intended to soar at over 65,000 feet for over a month at a time, and could also play a significant role in ballistic missile and cruise missile defense.
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Raytheon Restarts Production of Laser Maverick Missiles
Raytheon is restarting its production line for AGM-65E laser-guided Maverick missiles, and will also upgrade existing stocks, in response to demand from the front lines.
The AGM-65 Maverick was the first general purpose fire-and-forget tactical air-to-ground missile in service with the U.S. Air Force. The Joint Common Missile proposes to replace it, but until then, it remains the default option for jet fighters that need to make precision-guided missile strikes. The AGM-65 rose to its greatest prominence during Desert Storm, when many of TV’s missile-eye views of air strikes came from Mavericks. In truth, it was produced in 3 versions: TV-guided, Imaging Infared (IIR) guided, and laser-guided. Production continues for the TV and IIR variants, but the Marines’ AGM-65E laser-guided version had gone put of production.
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The AGM-65 Maverick was the first general purpose fire-and-forget tactical air-to-ground missile in service with the U.S. Air Force. The Joint Common Missile proposes to replace it, but until then, it remains the default option for jet fighters that need to make precision-guided missile strikes. The AGM-65 rose to its greatest prominence during Desert Storm, when many of TV’s missile-eye views of air strikes came from Mavericks. In truth, it was produced in 3 versions: TV-guided, Imaging Infared (IIR) guided, and laser-guided. Production continues for the TV and IIR variants, but the Marines’ AGM-65E laser-guided version had gone put of production.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Next-Gen Ultrasound
Whereas the signal-processing and image-reconstruction techniques used in medical ultrasonography have made huge advances since this type of imaging became commonplace three decades ago, the business end of the apparatus—the transducer, which converts electrical impulses to sound waves and vice versa—has remained largely unchanged. So we found fertile ground when we began digging for ways to improve those transducers using tools from the microelectronics industry. You will soon find the fruits of those efforts at your local hospital. Indeed, this strategy promises to revolutionize ultrasound imaging within the next few years.
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25 Microchips That Shook the World
In microchip design, as in life, small things sometimes add up to big things. Dream up a clever microcircuit, get it sculpted in a sliver of silicon, and your little creation may unleash a technological revolution. It happened with the Intel 8088 microprocessor. And the Mostek MK4096 4-kilobit DRAM. And the Texas Instruments TMS32010 digital signal processor.
Among the many great chips that have emerged from fabs during the half-century reign of the integrated circuit, a small group stands out. Their designs proved so cutting-edge, so out of the box, so ahead of their time, that we are left groping for more technology clichés to describe them. Suffice it to say that they gave us the technology that made our brief, otherwise tedious existence in this universe worth living.
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Among the many great chips that have emerged from fabs during the half-century reign of the integrated circuit, a small group stands out. Their designs proved so cutting-edge, so out of the box, so ahead of their time, that we are left groping for more technology clichés to describe them. Suffice it to say that they gave us the technology that made our brief, otherwise tedious existence in this universe worth living.
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U.S. May Monitor Pirates From Space
The U.S. is exploring the use of commercial satellites to enhance ship identification and communication for the battle against piracy.
Long before the U.S.-flagged container ship Maersk Alabama was attacked by Somali pirates this month, a sister vessel, the Maersk Iowa, was plying the sea lanes between the U.S. East Coast and the Indian Ocean, testing a device that combines the information obtained from shipboard radar and identification transponders to give authorities a better overview of who is on the water and what they are up to.
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Long before the U.S.-flagged container ship Maersk Alabama was attacked by Somali pirates this month, a sister vessel, the Maersk Iowa, was plying the sea lanes between the U.S. East Coast and the Indian Ocean, testing a device that combines the information obtained from shipboard radar and identification transponders to give authorities a better overview of who is on the water and what they are up to.
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CCUVS Deploys Robonic Unmanned Air Systems Launcher On First Operational Mission
The Canadian Centre for Unmanned Vehicle Systems (CCUVS) has announced it will be deploying the Robonic MC2555LLR unmanned air systems (UAS) launcher on its first operational mission since acquiring the launcher earlier this year.
The Robonic MC2555LLR launcher will be transported to Victoria, British Columbia, on 28 April and will be used to support the Canadian navy during exercise Trident Fury at the beginning of May. CCUVS is working closely with Meggitt Training Systems Canada (MTSC), the prime for providing the targets and control systems that the navy will use for ship defence training.
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The Robonic MC2555LLR launcher will be transported to Victoria, British Columbia, on 28 April and will be used to support the Canadian navy during exercise Trident Fury at the beginning of May. CCUVS is working closely with Meggitt Training Systems Canada (MTSC), the prime for providing the targets and control systems that the navy will use for ship defence training.
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Generating Energy From the Deep
LOCKHEED MARTIN is best known for building stealth fighters, satellites and other military equipment. But since late 2006 the company has taken on a different kind of enterprise — generating renewable power from the ocean.
The technology is still being developed in the laboratory, but if it succeeds on a large scale, it
could eventually become an important tool in the nation’s battle against global warming and dependency on foreign oil.
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The technology is still being developed in the laboratory, but if it succeeds on a large scale, it
could eventually become an important tool in the nation’s battle against global warming and dependency on foreign oil.
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Hypersonic ‘WaveRider’ poised for test flight
Hoping to bridge the gap between airplanes and rocketships, the U.S. military is preparing to test an experimental aircraft that can fly more than six times faster than the speed of sound on ordinary jet fuel.
Officially, it's known as the X-51, but folks like to call it the WaveRider because it stays airborne, in part, with lift generated by the shock waves of its own flight. The design stems from the goal of the program — to demonstrate an air-breathing, hypersonic, combustion ramjet engine, known as a scramjet.
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Officially, it's known as the X-51, but folks like to call it the WaveRider because it stays airborne, in part, with lift generated by the shock waves of its own flight. The design stems from the goal of the program — to demonstrate an air-breathing, hypersonic, combustion ramjet engine, known as a scramjet.
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Raytheon affirms plans to launch family of Killer Bee UAVs
Raytheon says today it will continue to develop and sell new versions of the Killer Bee blended wing body unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) even after the design has been acquired and renamed by Northrop Grumman.
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