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AUSA 24 – AZAK Demonstrates New Wheel

Monday, October 28th, 2024

Exhibiting with BlueSky mobile power, AZAK showed their new S26 self powered wheel.

As I mentioned last AUSA, the drivetrain and battery are contained within the wheel. What makes these so appealing is that they can be used in an almost LEGO-like fashion, attached to simple frames of various configurations as wheel, drivetrain, and power source. Even better, they can be swapped out in a matter of seconds.

Measuring 26” tall x 8” wide, the new wheels offer 147 lb ft of torque and a top speed of 12 mph.

Posted in AUSA, Disruptive Tech, Mobility, Robotics | 1 Comment »

AUSA 24 – DefendTex Vengeance FPV Drone

Thursday, October 24th, 2024

One of my personal missions at AUSA was to seek out truly attritable drones. One of the things I’ve taken away from the war in Ukraine is that with a consumption rate in excess of 10,000 per month, the attritable drone is the 155 shell of the future. These small, low-cost, disposable unmanned aerial systems are upending how we will conduct warfare. They are highly adaptable and are under constant revision as enemy TTPs adapt to their use. We’ve got to have something just as robust. In the hands of innovative American troops like SOCOM’s new robotics specialists, drones will be devastating.

Attritable, or consumable, apparently means a lot of things to a lot of people. For instance, when the Defense Innovation Unit’s Replicator initiative went to industry seeking out attritable drones they ended up buying AeroVironment Switchblade-600 loitering munition. A fine weapon to be sure, but our nation can hardly afford to expend them at the rate seen in Ukraine. If anything, our future adversaries are going to throw an order of magnitude more at us and we’ll need to be able to respond in kind.

One of the examples I ran across is from Australian small business DefendTex. They first impressed me years ago with their innovative Drone40.

The Vengeance is a First Person View drone manufactured in Australia and has been submitted to the US for Blue certification.

Offered in 7″, 8″, 10″, and 13″ models, it can carry up to 10kg of explosive ordinance over a distance greater than 20kms.

It is built with a goal of around $1000 per copy in mass production and features simple construction using zip ties in some instances and a single circuit board integrating flight control, ESC, OSD, VTX connector and servo output.

Although it is an FPV drone, it can be configured for autonomous terminal guidance as well as swarm tactics.

Posted in AUSA, Disruptive Tech, UAS | 2 Comments »

Laser Weapons: Rheinmetall and MBDA Germany Sign Cooperation Agreement

Monday, September 23rd, 2024

Rheinmetall and MBDA Deutschland have decided to continue their successful cooperation in the field of laser weapons.

The aim is to bring a joint maritime product to the market within the next five to six years, which opens up new possibilities, particularly in relation to drone defence on ships. Both companies are convinced that their complementary skills in the field of laser weapon technology will enable them to successfully develop a military laser weapon system. The companies have now concluded a corresponding cooperation agreement.

Most recently, a laser weapon demonstrator from Rheinmetall and MBDA Germany was integrated on the German Navy’s frigate 124 “Sachsen” from June 2022 to September 2023. During this on-board trial, the demonstrator performed impressively in more than 100 test shots.

Posted in Disruptive Tech, Industry, International, Press Release, weapons | Comments Off on Laser Weapons: Rheinmetall and MBDA Germany Sign Cooperation Agreement

Light Fighter Manifesto Volume III

Monday, June 3rd, 2024

In an age when the lines between conventional and unconventional warfare blur and the convergence of technology and tactics dictate individuals’ survival, the Light Fighter Manifesto emerges as a stark, indispensable source of information. Volume III offers 186 pages of 12 hard-hitting articles that delve into the topics reshaping the modern-day light fighter.

Topics include austere medicine, the art of survival with scavenger tools, the relentless skill of man-tracking, and the unforgiving truths of how terrain reshapes boundaries and war. It covers the grim realities of home defense, the lethal future of kamikaze FPV drones, the critical importance of communication strategies, the silent battles of cyber awareness, and the cold precision of sniping. As governments and regimes crumble and transform, being prepared is no longer a choice but an absolute necessity.

Pre-orders of Volume III can be purchased at lightfightermanifesto.org.

Posted in Disruptive Tech, Guest Post, Training | 4 Comments »

Rampart Range Day 24 – ARA

Tuesday, May 28th, 2024

ARA had the most extraordinary piece of equipment I’ve seen in some time. The Man Portable Adhesive Disruption System is designed to make items inoperable by applying glue to the working parts.

Now, I’m not really a fan of the name. When I first saw it I thought it was a solvent that would make things fall apart and MPADS is close enough to MANPADS that it might confuse some, but I’d say they are definitely on to something.

The system consists of a pack which holds the spayed and 9 canisters for the adhesive, along with some accessories. All told, the load is 33 lbs with 9.0 liters of adhesive per kit which will up to 2 square meters per liter and you can apply about 2 liters per minute.

Whether you’re up to sabotage or making equipment quickly inoperable when you don’t have time to destroy it via other means, this is a great idea. You can disable vehicle controls, weapons, lab equipment, factory components, etc. Its use is really limited by your imagination.

The ARA rep said it might be useful for field expedient repairs of equipment as well. It is a very strong adhesive after all.

This and other products shown at Rampart Range Day are available for unit and agency orders in Canada and the US through Rampart.

Posted in Disruptive Tech, Rampart Range Day | 2 Comments »

SOFWERX – AIM G-NOMES Collaboration Event

Monday, February 26th, 2024

SOFWERX, in collaboration with the USSOCOM, U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (DEVCOM CBC), the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), and the Accelerator for Innovative Minds (AIM) Genomic Non-Specific Operational Matchmaking Enabled Systems (GNOMES) Team, will host a collaboration event on 23 April 2024, leveraging their hybrid accelerator model to provide awareness of biological agents/compounds in a far forward, resource-limited environment. This event will provide opportunities for direct dialogue with Industry, Academia, Warfighters, and Government Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to lower the barrier to working with the DoD and accelerate disruptive technologies and processing to the field.

The Chemical and Biological Defense Program’s vision through AIM is to identify capabilities which provide insight of chemical and biological (CB) contested environments. The objective is to develop a system with maximum utility for the warfighter to overcome current limiting factors in providing awareness of biological agents/compounds in a far forward, resource-limited environment.

For full details, visit events.sofwerx.org/aim-gnomes

Please request to Attend NLT 19 March 2024 11:59 PM ET.

Posted in Disruptive Tech, Medical, Research, SOF | Comments Off on SOFWERX – AIM G-NOMES Collaboration Event

Quantropi Picks Evergreen Innovations to be Distributor to U.S. Department of Defense

Friday, October 6th, 2023

Evergreen to sell company’s quantum security products in anticipation of Y2Q

TIMNITH, Colo.– Evergreen Innovations LLC (“Evergreen”), a tactical communications integrator, announced today that the company has formed a strategic partnership with Quantropi, a Canadian provider of quantum security products.

Evergreen Innovations will act as Quantropi’s official American distributor to the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), streamlining the process by which the U.S. military purchases cutting-edge encryption technology.

“We are excited to be collaborating with Quantropi,” said Chris Wallower, CEO of Evergreen. “The encryption products they offer will keep the DoD ahead Y2Q.”

Y2Q, sometimes called “Q-Day,” is that future point in time when quantum computers would have advanced so far that they will be able to defeat the public-key encryption systems that keep military and civilian communications private and secure.

When that happens, all bets are off, Wallower notes.

To its credit, the U.S. government has been tracking the Y2Q problem. The Biden Administration, for example, signed into law H.R. 7535: Quantum Computing Cybersecurity Preparedness Act in 2022.

But new novel attacks leveraging AI and Machine Learning have greatly compressed the timeline to Y2Q.

“The DoD knows this day is coming, and they’ve been preparing for it,” said James Nguyen, CEO of Quantropi. “Unfortunately, technology doesn’t advance in a slow, linear fashion. It can sometimes make very rapid advances. Most of the focus has been on upgrading asymmetric encryption, but for optimal security, symmetric encryption and quantum random number generation need to be addressed as well.”

The Quantropi QiSpace™ platform offers a complete set of cryptographic capabilities that have distinct security and performance advantages. The solutions are:

• MASQ™: an asymmetric cryptographic suite that supports NIST-standard and novel Quantropi post-quantum algorithms for both key exchange and digital signature;

• QEEP™: a quantum secure symmetric algorithm that is up to 18 times faster than AES-256 with no performance degradation for keys up to 400 times larger; and

• SEQUR™: a scalable, high-performance SaaS solution for quantum random number generation and distribution to endpoints over existing network infrastructures.

“We are eager to have Evergreen introduce our post-quantum solutions to the DoD,” Nguyen said. “We understand that people can be wary of bold technological promises. That’s why we welcome rigorous military testing. We are confident that QiSpace™ can provide quantum security for a wide range of DoD use cases.”

Posted in Disruptive Tech, Industry, Press Release | Comments Off on Quantropi Picks Evergreen Innovations to be Distributor to U.S. Department of Defense

Modernising Defence Manufacturing: Disruptive Capabilities to be Displayed at DSEI 2023

Friday, August 25th, 2023

London, 23 August 2023

Technologies that will reshape the defence manufacturing industry and equip armed forces for years to come will be on display at this year’s Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) event.

Held on the 12th-15th September at ExCeL in London, the event will showcase the latest advances in defence manufacturing with an extensive range of agile approaches including additive manufacturing (AM), Internet of Things (IoT) technology and digital design tools.

The manufacturing industry and the defence sector have traditionally been closely aligned, with advances in manufacturing technologies often propelling the evolution of military capabilities and vice versa. Today, this dynamic remains unchanged, as disruptive solutions are expected to significantly alter the defence industry, reducing the cost of the production of tools and parts, enabling faster delivery and crucially, bolstering supply chain resilience.

Speaking on the event Grant Burgham, DSEI Director, commented:

“At DSEI this year, our manufacturing exhibitors are expected to take centre stage, reflecting a 200% surge in their representation – a testament to the vital role the manufacturing sector will play in fostering an integrated force.

“The defence industry champions UK manufacturing and exports, while recognising its significant impact on job creation and supply chain resilience. With exhibitors not limited to the defence and security sectors we’re looking forward to welcoming companies and organisations such as DMG Mori, Böllhoff, G&H Aerospace and Defence, Helix among many others.”

Sponsoring DSEI’s Manufacturing Hub is the High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult, a strategic research and innovation hub for industry, commercialising the UK’s most advanced manufacturing ideas. Established and supported by Innovate UK, HVM Catapult provides manufacturers access to world-class research, development facilities and expertise that would otherwise be out of reach.

A central focus of DSEI this year will be the disruptive capabilities of AM, which has demonstrated its remarkable ability to revolutionise the defence industry’s approach to designing, creating, and maintaining critical infrastructure and equipment. Embracing the flexibility of rapid prototyping, AM opens opportunities to alleviate supply chain burdens, enhance design agility, and streamline operational readiness.

Within the Manufacturing Hub, two HVM Catapult centres, the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) and University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) will be demonstrating their capabilities.

The MTC will be displaying components which demonstrate the breadth of its AM capability and other technologies that can help the sector improve frontline equipment availability. The AMRC will showcase its ‘MediTel’ robot, a remotely operated robotic system designed to provide medical triage to patients on the battlefield using virtual reality (VR) technology.

Visitors to the stand will also understand how HVM Catapult plays a crucial role in providing industry-leading training and is developing long-term strategies to futureproof the UK workforce.

Katherine Bennett CBE, HVM Catapult chief executive, said:

“We are delighted to be exhibiting at DSEI in 2023, where visitors will be able to see our centres’ capabilities and our combined impact in the defence sector, harnessing the talents of our 3,500 staff and with the backing of Innovate UK.

“In the Manufacturing Hub we will be demonstrating how HVM Catapult engineers are leaders in harnessing manufacturing data, how we are enabling faster delivery through developing supply chain resilience, how our industry-leading training is futureproofing workforces, and how we can become the defence sector’s agile manufacturing technology partner.”

Posted in Disruptive Tech, DSEi, Press Release | Comments Off on Modernising Defence Manufacturing: Disruptive Capabilities to be Displayed at DSEI 2023