Science-fiction writers envision technologies that scientists and
engineers often create in the future. Consider the smartphone. Once
firmly in the realm of science fiction, we use our “communicators” to not
only talk to someone on the other side of the globe, but also to schedule
our calendars, check e-mail, or access the Internet. Forty years ago, this
seemed unattainable.
Yet Army researchers within the Army Materiel Command and Research,
Development and Engineering Command team achieve innovation
by imagining something and then creating an idea or concept that can
change the nature of the fight.
In the future, quantum communications will enable entangled atoms
to pass information with no apparent connection. This means bandwidth
will not be an issue. It also means secure communications. We are working
on this with the University of Maryland.
We are also working closely with the U.S. Special Operations Command
on the Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit, or TALOS. Sensors
will give Soldiers a wealth of information, and the suit will provide better
protection, enhanced performance and improved situational awareness.
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond Odierno wants us to focus on the
squad and individual Soldier, and we are focused on lightening the load
both physically and cognitively.
As Soldiers access more data, it becomes a constant stream of information.
Those of us who remember the early Internet went through this
as it matured from a novelty to a vital, yet sometimes overwhelming connection
to the world. During the early days of the Internet the trick was
to find information. Then it became finding good information. The same
is happening to Soldiers. We need to provide the right information at the
right time in a form Soldiers can use. After all, Soldiers use information to
make decisions in a split second and often under dire circumstances.
When I served on a submarine in the U.S. Navy, my boat had the latest
sonar and torpedo fire-control system. The system could easily overwhelm
the crew with the number of screens and the amount of information it
provided, but it enabled each of us to configure the output to best support
our decision-making process. I see this in the same way. Military technology
must provide the Soldier with information best suited to an individual’s
decision-making process. As researchers and engineers, the more thought
put into designing a streamlined, configurable information flow, the better
off our Soldiers will be. We will help our Soldiers to make the best decisions
with the best information at the speed of battle, which can be the
difference between life and death, victory and defeat.
To achieve this end as we
move forward with an even more
technology-oriented Soldier, our
scientists at the U.S. Army Research
Laboratory are developing a helmet
that can sense who’s wearing it.
This helmet will provide information
contextually tailored by its wearer.
Smart helmets are just one
of the technologies that will help
provide warriors with information
they need. If it takes too long for our
Soldiers to evaluate the information,
we may lose the fight. Time is critical
to their success.
We envision a day when squad
leaders will have an app that outlines
missions and mission requirements.
Imagine a squad leader sharing information with his or her team
by laying out the mission and specifying the required equipment. Instead
of needing a briefing to be told what to do, Soldiers will customize their kit
and meet for the first time, ready to execute the mission.
Future American warriors will depend on technologies that better protect
them and prepare them for the fight. RDECOM’s technology development
strategy ties everything together, from lethality to protection.
This integration is critical to the chief of staff’s vision of a future Army
that will be technologically competent and feature enhanced combat
power with fewer Soldiers. Connectivity and integration are critical attributes
to enable our technologies to be greater than the sum of their parts,
just as the Internet and cloud applications are helping mobile devices rival
the power of desktop computers of a few years ago. We have this firmly
in mind for the goals of the Army Brigade Combat Team Modernization
program for Army 2025 and continuing toward the Army of 2040.
We are focused on developing technologies that give our Soldiers the
advantage of an unfair fight. That’s our primary motivation. With AMC,
RDECOM has tremendous capabilities. Between what we develop and what
we help industry modify to meet our specific requirements, there is no
one better positioned to accomplish this mission. We will continue to do
the necessary work to enable our leadership’s vision for the Army of the
future.
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