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Army Researchers Receive Patent for Pocket-Sized Chemical and Biological Assessment Kit

November 6th, 2023

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. — Army researchers have developed an innovative design for immediate on-the-ground chemical and biological assessment, giving traditional everyday laboratory equipment a new purpose for Soldiers in the field.

The invention, known as the pocket detection pouch, or PDP, was granted a patent on July 26, 2023, for its unique design that enables a one-way flow of a chemical or biological liquid sample that can be assessed and preserved in a lightweight, pocket-sized pouch.

The invention itself was deliberately designed to be “low-tech,” with the purpose to provide simple, immediate, and easily readable test results in the field while reducing the size, weight, and burden that traditional detection equipment imposes on the warfighter.

The idea for the PDP began at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center and was brought forward through the collaboration of two researchers at the organization — Ms. Kelley Betts and Dr. Jennifer Sekowski.

Betts, a research scientist and an Army wife, understood that every ounce carried by a Soldier during deployments matters, and wondered if there was a way to combine both a chemical and biological detection capability into a single, easy-to-use platform using something readily accessible — like an inexpensive plastic bag.

She decided to use her knowledge and expertise to develop a customizable chemical and biological assessment tool that was small, lightweight and could fit easily in the pocket of every warfighter. Betts developed the initial prototype in her kitchen using everyday resealable sandwich bags and a heat-sealer. “I found a way to come up with multiple individual chambers within the bag, and that’s how the one-way flow for liquids was born,” said Betts.

In this episode of CB Defense Today, public affairs specialist, Jack Bunja, interviews Doctor Jennifer Sekowski, a molecular toxicologist at the Center and inventor of the Pocket Detection Pouch (PDP), and Yusuf Henriques, founder and CEO of IndyGeneUS AI.

DEVCOM CBC Video by Ellie White

Betts then introduced the idea to Sekowski, who further helped to develop the prototype and proposed the technology to the Innovative Development of Employee Advanced Solutions program at DEVCOM CBC where she was awarded $50,000 over the span of six months to further develop the technology.

Gathering information and garnering feedback from other scientists, researchers, and warfighters within the Center allowed Sekowski and Betts to further refine their invention by increasing the size of the flap opening, reducing the size of the pouch and including a self-loading feature that allows the end user to tailor the PDP for different scenarios.

During refinement, the pair maintained the idea to reduce the burden to the warfighter by making the asset easy to use, lightweight, inexpensive, power-free with little debris footprint, and enabling the ability of containment. “It is one of the least expensive projects I’ve ever done, and one of the most successful,” said Sekowski.

The final design allows for a pouch that collects a sample into a main chamber which then flows into individual testing channels that are perforated at the bottom and housed in an external chamber. It is essentially a bag within a bag. “Other people have developed other, small form factor platforms, but in the end, we were able to demonstrate that our device is worthy of a patent because of the design,” said Sekowski.

The design has been able to gain further support and funding for production on a larger scale. The team has been able to partner with IndyGeneUS AI, a veteran- and minority-owned business dedicated to the field of medical technology, to further the development of the PDP. “We’re very fortunate that we were able to patent it and that allowed us to work with IndyGeneUS AI. They are going to help us find funding to do that engineering work to make it a commercial product,” said Sekowski.

With both the patent and partnership in place, Betts and Sekowski plan to continue developing the product further, working with IndyGeneUS AI to make the PDP commercially available. “I would like to see it in the hands of Soldiers, in the hands of people, where it can make a big difference in the world,” said Betts.

By Aeriel Storey

Posted in Army, CBRNE, Guest Post | Comments Off on Army Researchers Receive Patent for Pocket-Sized Chemical and Biological Assessment Kit

Defense Distributed – Serial Covers

November 5th, 2023

Defense Distributed bills their Serial Covers as “The solution to maintaining privacy while still looking cool.”

You get three segments of 3M-backed self-adhesive Cordura material to prevent your serial numbers from being easily visible and traceable, particularly when posting photos online. Offered in multiple colors amd patterns, the shapes were
configured around a Mil-Spec M4 lower receiver.

Available from defensedistributors.com but of course, you could do this yourself. However, if you buy them Defense Distributors you support their development of other products.

defensedistributors.com/product/serial-cover-for-ar15

Posted in 2A, Camo, weapons | 6 Comments »

Study from Ventus Illustrates Evidence and Risk of Toxic Respiratory Exposure from Firearm Combustion and Weapons Training

November 5th, 2023

An independent analysis of filters recovered from Ventus’ TR2 Tactical Respirator, worn during various weapons training exercises, revealed the presence of 32 different heavy metals and compounds after just a single day of use

Toronto, Ontario, Nov. 02, 2023 — Ventus Respiratory Technologies, a company pioneering a new standard of respiratory protection for law enforcement, the armed forces, and first responders, has conducted a comprehensive study to illustrate the filtration efficacy of its TR2 Tactical Respirator, and to provide quantitative evidence of airborne hazards in weapons training environments.

“The TR2 is unique in the market, being the only CE-certified respirator that is purpose-built for military and law enforcement personnel, to protect them from toxic exposure,” said Arjun Grewal, CEO of Ventus, who previously spent 20 years with the Canadian Armed Forces. “Chronic exposure to particulates such as those produced by combustion has been shown to pose a significant health risk.”

“Particulate” refers to a type of air pollution consisting of a complex mixture of tiny solid particles and liquid droplets in the air. The TR2 has demonstrated its ability to filter out ?99% of solid airborne particulates down to 0.06?m and 97% of oil-based particles down to 0.3?m.

About The Study:

The study consisted of weapons training exercises with participants wearing Ventus’ TR2. These took place in multiple live training scenarios often experienced by Special Forces and SWAT teams. This included indoor firing ranges, outdoor firing ranges, and close-quarter battle (CQB) shoot houses.

Following this, the respirator filters were removed and analyzed by an independent lab to learn the level and volume of airborne contamination present. “The TR2 protects the wearer’s airway and respiratory system, our filter is a critical layer of protection between the toxic air present in these environments and the body. The findings were surprising.”

Results:

An average of 32 different compounds including heavy metals and known carcinogens were identified in all TR2 filters including aluminum, antimony, bismuth, copper, iron, lead, potassium, sodium, strontium, and uranium, with levels consistently exceeding daily exposure thresholds for each chemical, as established by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

Access the full report here:

“These concentrations of heavy metals and carcinogenic compounds are very concerning, particularly considering that the filters examined were worn for a single day only, whereas real-world users typically participate in similar activities 10-15 times per month,” added Grewal. “Respiratory protection has lagged, or simply been non-existent, compared to eye and ear protection requirements for these activities for far too long. The rate of respiratory illness in military personnel is roughly three times greater than for the average population. This study is critical to educate users and leadership of the clear and present risks.”

Short-term exposure to these and other particulate matter can cause airway restriction, reduced oxygenation, slower cognition, diminished performance, and acute respiratory illness. Longer-term exposure to high particulate loads can lead to chronic illness and disability.

Ventus is backed by ONE9 and Kensington Capital. ONE9 is Canada’s first and only venture capital fund and accelerator focused purely on national security and critical infrastructure technologies.

Posted in CBRNE, Press Release | 7 Comments »

Cannon Service Member of the Year: Air Commandos Test Their Grit

November 5th, 2023

CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. —

The 27th Special Operations Wing hosted its annual Service Member of the Year Competition Oct. 10-13 at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M.

Twelve Air Commandos tested their technical prowess, grit and leadership abilities during a week of competitions that included the Air Force Physical Fitness Test, weapons qualification and assembly, a written academic test and a six-mile ruck/run.

Senior Master Sgt. Adam Hardy, 6th Special Operations Squadron senior enlisted leader, stated that he believes the individual selected as the 27th SOW Service Member of the Year must exemplify pride in being an Air Commando, possess the physical fitness required to complete any mission, and demonstrate exceptional performance and superior leadership.

During the events, Air Commandos from a range of career fields were pushed to their limits as they vied for the title of 27th SOW Service Member of the Year and the chance to represent the 27 SOW at the U.S. Special Operations Command level, where they will compete against other joint service members in similar events.

“The point of this competition is to identify the individual from our Wing who most embodies the Warrior Ethos. Professional, credible and capable Airmen deserve to compete against the finest warriors in the DOD, and I’m incredibly excited to be able to put Cannon AFB’s Airmen on the radar of our sister services,” Hardy said. “Our nominees are not from Special Tactics; they are from career fields all over the base, and the Wing’s nominee will compete in an environment that is unfamiliar, against opponents who are incredible in their own right.”

27th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs

Posted in Air Force, Guest Post, SOF | Comments Off on Cannon Service Member of the Year: Air Commandos Test Their Grit

Blackhawk Sponsored Athlete Zach Rodman Wins Georgia Tactical Games

November 4th, 2023

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – October 31, 2023 – Blackhawk®, a leader in law enforcement and military equipment for over 30 years, congratulates sponsored tactical athlete Zach Rodman for winning the Men’s Elite Division of the Tactical Games Georgia Regional Event.

In two seasons of competing as a Blackhawk-sponsored tactical athlete, Rodman has racked up a pair individual Tactical Games wins and ranked seventh or higher two more times. Competing alongside teammates Jared Halbert and Ehea Schuerch, Rodman has also won a team title and finished second and third in two other Tactical Games team events.

A longtime police officer from Indiana, Rodman runs a full suite of Blackhawk gear including the T-Series® L3D holster, Jacket Slot Leg Strap Adapter, Foundation Series Tac Nylon plate carrier and belt.

“To say I’ve been proud to represent Blackhawk the last two years is an understatement,” said Rodman. “It’s easy to promote and back a company whose products you believe in.”

Rodman uses Blackhawk gear to not only compete at the highest levels in the Tactical Games, but also as an instructor at the Tactical Games Athlete Camp. During the three-day course, Rodman helps train new athletes with course curriculums covering shooting, fitness, and gear.

To learn more about Rodman and the gear he uses in the Tactical Games, visit Blackhawk.com.

Posted in Industry, Press Release, Shooting Sports | Comments Off on Blackhawk Sponsored Athlete Zach Rodman Wins Georgia Tactical Games

Blast from the Past – Who Remembers The Eagle Industries Chest Pouch SF30 AK

November 4th, 2023

I ran across one of these on Instagram earlier this week and did a web search looking for a new one. Sure enough, I ran across an article I had written in 2017 about this chest rig.

The SF30AK from Eagle Industries was the second chest rig I owned. While stationed in Germany in the late ’80s I had purchased a Arktis 42 Pattern Chest Rig. It was very lightweight and served me well but I was always checking out new kit.

Later, while stationed at Ft Bragg, I purchased the SF30AK chest rig, via mail order from Eagle Industries. I chose the OD version because that’s what gear was made from at the time and wouldn’t stick out quite as much as another color. I used it a bit during training but its only operational use was for a time during Operation Restore Democracy in Haiti. When we first went in, we wore RBA, making it a good choice to wear over the armor vest, but later in the deployment, I just wore a JS Industries Predator Vest with a Camelbak in the back slot or an issue ETLBV. Vests you could just slip on while outside the compound, were easier to don and doff than a chest rig.

Mine is long gone, but even years later, I still like the design for its innovation and carrying capacity. The pockets would accept up to 12 magazines and the GP pockets would take canteens or other gear. What’s more the ammo pouches featured Eagle’s silent closure which required a downward pull on the webbing tab to release or attach the flap.

At the rear, there were two male portions of 1″ side release buckles which would allow the attachment of the assault pack from the field pack, large internal frame. However, most everyone cut them off because they would dig in if you wore a pack. The Vest in the photos is later production and has Coyote buckles. Back in the day, they were Black.

Features:
-Four magazine pouches that carry three M4/ M16 or two AK47 magazines each.
-Two large side utility pouches with slotted webbing for “ALICE” clips to hang extra gear.
-Two extra pockets behind the utility pouches.
-One full length inside pocket.
-The back of CP-SF-30AK is padded and uses CoolMax mesh for ventilation and comfort.
-Drop loops will attach to the Eagle Duty Belt or military web belt.
-All closures and fasteners use Mil. Spec. hardware.
-Made in the USA

Unfortunately, they are no longer available.

Did anyone else use this chest rig?

Posted in History, Load Carrying | 7 Comments »

LEAP: The Solution to Language, Culture Barriers in Large-Scale Military Exercises

November 4th, 2023

MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. (AFNS) — Large-scale military exercises across all branches focus heavily on integration with allies and partners as a cornerstone of the National Defense and National Security strategies. While seamless execution of this integration can pose a challenge when differences in language and culture are present, the Air Force Culture and Language Center offers a solution to overcome those barriers — the Language Enabled Airman Program.

A recent article in defense trade publication highlighted the cultural and language challenges U.S. Air Force leaders faced during exercise Northern Edge 2. U.S. Air Force pilots worked with their Japanese and French pilot counterparts during this exercise to demonstrate the concept of agile combat employment, which relies on working with allies and partners in the region for success. Exercise leaders emphasized the need to overcome language barriers before they could effectively accomplish the mission.

While focus is often placed on the tactical process of working side by side with ally and partner nations, many military leaders now recognize the critical importance of having cultural and language understanding along with technical expertise for true integration.

“The Department of the Air Force seeks to strengthen international relationships and work with our partners to build shared air and space capabilities and capacity, but we can’t stay connected and continue to strengthen relationships with our allies and partners if we don’t understand them,” Brig. Gen. William Freeman, Air War College commandant, said during a recent Facebook live event. “We need Airmen with language, regional expertise and culture skills to accomplish this.”

That’s where LEAP comes in. The program serves as a force multiplier throughout the Department of Defense with a bench of more than 3,400 multi-capable, language-enabled Airmen who have proficiencies in language, regional expertise and culture across 97 strategic languages.

LEAP scholars are ready to deploy, at a moment’s notice, with the language, culture and technical skills needed in diverse environments to strengthen strategic connections with partners and allies and enable agile combat employment, or ACE.

“Language, regional expertise and culture skills are an enabler of ACE because it’s the only path to the type of integration that produces dominance in operational tempo when we’re working with our partners and allies,” said Howard Ward AFCLC director. “To defeat the strategy of our adversaries, our operational output as a team must be greater than the sum of the parts. LREC skills, in the hands of a force integrated by design with partners and allies, are required to produce that level of winning capability.”

Recently, LEAP scholars have supported several large-scale missions in the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command region across all branches of service to help advance a “free and open Indo-Pacific,” as instructed in the Department of Defense Indo-Pacific Strategy.

Gen. Mike Minihan, commander of Air Mobility Command, utilized LEAP scholars to enhance understanding and integration with partners and allies during the command’s largest-ever full-spectrum readiness exercise, Mobility Guardian 23.

“Mobility Guardian 23 focused heavily on enabling ACE with our allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific, which cannot happen if we don’t understand each other. Having LEAP scholars in the mix during the exercise helped us take integration and understanding to a new level to lay the groundwork for a fortified, integrated and agile joint team ready to fight and win against our adversaries,” he said.

Cope North is another large-scale annual exercise held in the Indo-Pacific region where LEAP scholars played a key role in facilitating partnership building for the Air Force. Cope North 23 was a multilateral field training exercise focused on integration of large-force employment, ACE and humanitarian and disaster relief training. During this event, two Japanese LEAP scholars worked alongside Air Force airfield experts to facilitate an exchange of skills with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force and Royal Australian Air Force partners.

“Having support from language-enabled Airmen for this event is invaluable and vital for mission success. Cope North is historically the number one or two highest priorities in Pacific Air Forces out of roughly 47 annual exercises, and the linguist support enabled the Air Force and Royal Australian Air Force to further interoperability with our Japan Air Self-Defense Force allies,” Cope North lead planner Lt. Col. David Overstreet said.

During Kamandag 6, a large-scale Marine Corps exercise held in the Philippines, LEAP scholars provided critical culture and language support along with their technical expertise from their career fields to completely transform the way servicemembers connected by bridging language and cultural gaps to strengthen the strategic bond between the two nations.

Brig. Gen. Jimmy Larida, Philippine Marine Corps, 3rd Marine Brigade, commanding general, emphasized the positive impact LEAP scholar support had on this exercise.

“In the 34 times that I have performed exercises with the U.S. Marine Corps, this is the first time that they’ve attached [LEAP] linguists — linguists who are truly one of us. And it has made a huge difference. My Marines trust them, and my Marines are drawn to them. This needs to happen, every single time from here on out,” he said.

Marine Corps Col. Thomas Siverts, commander, 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit/Marine Rotational Force-Southeast Asia, also highlighted the critical importance of LEAP support to the success of Kamandag 6.

“The LEAP team enabled us to quickly establish trust with the 3rd Marine Brigade, and they facilitated an exceptional environment where both forces could learn from each other using our native languages,” he said. “The result was a great exercise that developed relationships, trust and interoperability at an unmatched pace. I will never do another bi-lateral exercise without requesting the language and cultural expertise that LEAP was able to provide.”

All DOD and intergovernmental agencies can utilize LEAP scholars for interpretation and translation support in exercises, conferences and other missions. To request LEAP scholar support, visit the Air Force Culture and Language Center website and select the Training Partnership Request option in the sidebar menu.

Story by Mikala McCurry

Air Force Culture and Language Center Outreach Team

Photo by Airman 1st Class Spencer Perkins

Posted in Air Force, Guest Post | Comments Off on LEAP: The Solution to Language, Culture Barriers in Large-Scale Military Exercises

Suunto Wing

November 3rd, 2023

Suunto recently launched the Wing, an open-ear sports headphone which utilizes bone conduction via the jaw bone so your ears aren’t covered. Looping over the ear, the band is semi-rigid and won’t fall off while engaging in sport activities. Bluetooth enabled, it connects to your end user device.

Waterproof to IP67, Wing boasts a 10 hour battery life. The included power bank offers 20 more hours and a 10-minute quick charge gives you three hours of listening.

Additionally, there are lights along the side for visibility while running which can be set on/off or in blink mode.

It also features a microphone. A cool feature is that you can answer or hang up on calls with head gestures. Similarly, you can interact with your play list.

www.suunto.com/en-us/Products/Other-accessories/suunto-wing/suunto-wing-black

Posted in Comms | 3 Comments »