OCTOBER 2017
ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES FOR NATIONAL DEFENSE
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Military & Aerospace Electronics® (ISSN 1046-9079), Volume 28, No. 10. Military & Aerospace Electronics is published 12 times a year, monthly by PennWell® Corporation, 1421 S. Sheridan, Tulsa, OK 74112. Periodicals postage paid at Tulsa, OK 74112 and at additional mailing offices. SUBSCRIPTION PRICES: USA $185 1yr., $327 2 yr., $466 3 yr.; Canada $280 1 yr., $479 2 yr., $618 3 yr.; International $335 1 yr., $638 2 yr., $834 3 yr. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to Military & Aerospace Electronics, P.O. Box 47570, Plymouth, MN 55447. Military & Aerospace Electronics is a registered trademark. © PennWell Corporation 2017. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Permission, however, is granted for employees of corporations licensed under the Annual Authorization Service offered by the Copyright Clearance Center Inc. (CCC), 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, Mass. 01923, or by calling CCC’s Customer Relations Department at 978-750-8400 prior to copying. We make portions of our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that offer products and services that may be important for your work. If you do not want to receive those offers and/or information via direct mail, please let us know by contacting us at List Services Military & Aerospace Electronics, 61 Spit Brook Rd Suite 410, Nashua, NH 03060. Printed in the USA. GST No. 126813153. Publications Mail Agreement no. 875376.
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MILITARY•COTS•INDUSTRIAL TRANSFORMERS & INDUCTORS
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
1
10/11/17 8:19 AM
trends
BY JOHN KELLER, EDITOR IN CHIEF
Get ready for a new era in naval warfare We may be on the precipice of a
that nuclear-powered aircraft carriers
resources trying to defeat the low-
major shift in naval warfare that is
and submarines will remain the cen-
cost systems.
every bit as disruptive and signifi-
terpieces of naval power.
cant as the armored battleship and
U.S. sea-control today revolves
Today’s aircraft carriers and nuclear submarines would become
submarine in World War I, and the
around carrier battle groups and
platforms for deploying manned and
aircraft carrier in World War II.
nuclear submarines. Basing the
unmanned surveillance and strike
Navy’s survival on these assets, how-
assets. Meanwhile, they would retain
time secure networks of manned
The idea revolves around real-
ever, increasingly is difficult because
their offensive and human leadership
and unmanned aircraft, surface
of the many enemy long-range anti-
capabilities. These expensive vessels
ships, and submarines able to attack
ship missiles they face. Adversaries
wouldn’t have to operate close to the
and defend vast areas of the world’s
also are quickly enhancing their
enemy; instead they would send their
oceans to hold enemy ships and sub-
anti-submarine warfare capabilities.
unmanned systems to do that in the
To overcome these obstacles,
air, on the water, and under the sur-
marines at risk over wide contested areas. This is the core concept of the
the CDMaST program seeks to
Cross Domain Maritime Surveillance
move away from a centralized
and Targeting (CDMaST) Phase 2
defensive battle group posture to a
would use pre-deployed hidden sen-
project of the U.S. Defense Advanced
more distributed and agile approach
sors and weapons like those envi-
Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in
to hold the opponent at risk over
sioned in the DARPA Upward Falling
Arlington, Va. It could lead to a new
ocean areas as large as a million
Payloads program. DARPA research-
era of global sea control, and could
square kilometers.
ers are considering networked sys-
be a fundamental step forward in maritime combat. CDMaST would augment aircraft
Think of it: The Navy no longer
face. It’s doing more with less. Such a future naval strategy also
tems of new anti-ship missiles; fast,
would have to base its global strat-
long-range undersea weapon sys-
egy on 12 aircraft carriers, 52 attack
tems; unmanned, long-endurance
carrier battle groups and manned
submarines, and 18 ballistic- and
air, surface, and undersea vehicles;
submarines with networked manned
cruise-missile submarines. Instead,
and prepositioned seafloor systems.
and unmanned systems of sys-
the heart of U.S. naval power would
Combined with manned platforms,
tems (SoS) that work collaboratively
be rapidly reconfigurable forces of
these systems can provide the sur-
to control the seas. This approach
size and scope to meet specific chal-
veillance and targeting needed to
has the potential to render previous
lenges when and where they are
exploit new weapons.
forms of naval warfare obsolete.
needed most.
The advent of shipboard nuclear
The concept is to distribute com-
New technologies would come to bear in communications; battle
power in the 1950s leads us to today’s
bat ability across many low-cost sys-
management; command and con-
most modern aircraft carriers, fast
tems to threaten the opponent and
trol; position, navigation, and tim-
attack submarines, and ballistic mis-
put him on the defensive. This will
ing; logistics; sensors; manned and
sile submarines that can operate for
involve a combination of manned
unmanned systems; and weapons.
years without refueling. These ves-
and unmanned systems to form
It’s a new day for which we
sels have been kings of the ocean
SoS architectures able to conduct
should prepare ourselves. The era
now for nearly 60 years. Everything
wide-area surveillance and targeting,
of distributed networked naval sys-
changes, however, and it’s unlikely
and cause the opponent to expend
tems is not far off.
2
1710mae_2 2
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
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10/11/17 8:19 AM
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news
Military researchers are developing bistatic sonar with manned and unmanned submarines to enhance sub-hunting capabilities.
IN BRIEF Raytheon to build lightweight Griffin missile for UAVs, surface warships, and aircraft U.S. Air Force airborne weapons experts are asking the Raytheon Co. to build a lightweight missile and glide bomb that features low collateral damage and is suitable for launch from a variety of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), mili-
New era dawns in ASW as manned and unmanned submarines team for bistatic sonar
tary manned aircraft, and sur-
BY JOHN KELLER
face warships. The Air Force
NEWPORT, R.I. —
announced a $104.9 million
researchers are asking two U.S.
out giving away their presence to
contract to the Raytheon Missile
defense contractors to develop
potentially hostile vessels.
Systems segment in Tucson,
bistatic sonar for anti-submarine
Ariz., to build, test, and support
warfare (ASW) that teams manned
as pingers and manned fast attack
the AGM-176 Griffin missile.
and unmanned submarines and
submarines as listeners to con-
Griffin is a lightweight, preci-
capitalizes on the benefits of active
ceal the presence of the manned
sion-guided munition that can
sonar without compromising the
attack sub. Using this technology,
launch from the ground, from
stealth of U.S. attack submarines.
the manned submarine could detect
the air as a rocket-powered
U.S. military
Officials of the U.S. Naval
(UUVs) to detect and track enemy submarines at long ranges with-
The project seeks to use UUVs
and target enemy submarines based
missile, or drop from the air as
Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC)
on sonar returns from the UUV
a guided bomb. It carries a rel-
in Newport, R.I., have announced
active sonar pingers.
atively small, 13-pound war-
a $4.6 million contract to the BAE
head for low-collateral damage,
Systems Electronic Systems seg-
sound waves off submarines, sur-
as well as for use in irregular
ment in Merrimack, N.H.; and a $4.7
face warships, and other objects for
warfare. The munition comes
million contract to Applied Physical
detection and tracking. The problem
in two versions. Griffin A is an
Sciences Corp. in Groton, Conn.,
with active sonar, however, is it’s
unpowered precision munition
for the Mobile Offboard Command
like shining a flashlight in a dark-
that can be dropped by air-
and Control and Approach
ened room: It can find objects effec-
craft from a rear cargo door or a
(MOCCA) program.
tively, but gives away its presence
Traditional active sonar bounces
NUWC awarded the contracts
and forfeits any pretense of stealth.
Block II B is a short-range mis-
in February on behalf of the U.S.
Passive sonar, on the other hand,
sile that can be fired from UAVs
Defense Advanced Research
simply listens for sounds from
as well as manned helicopters,
Projects Agency (DARPA) in
enemy submarines or surface ships.
attack aircraft, U.S. Air Force
Arlington, Va. MOCCA seeks to
It’s not as effective or as efficient as
AC-130W gunships, and U.S.
enable manned Navy submarines to
active sonar, but it preserves stealth
Marine Corps KC-130J tankers.
use active sonar pings from nearby
and can keep the submarine’s pres-
unmanned underwater vehicles
ence secret from the enemy.
door-mounted launcher. Griffin
4
1710mae_4 4
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
Bistatic sonar using sonar trans-
sonar and communications con-
sonar pinger small enough for
mitters aboard a UUV and sonar
cepts, as well as subsystem pro-
UUVs, as well as signal process-
receivers aboard nearby attack sub-
totype demonstrations to validate
ing, and a secure communications
marines, however, has the potential
design approaches.
link to enable the host subma-
to gain the best of both worlds.
The MOCCA program has two
As long as attack subma-
key technical challenges: an active
rine to control the UUV at significant distances.
rine crews have precise knowledge of the position of the pinging
RES-XR6
UUV, they can detect the presence of enemy submarines based on sonar sound returns, and track their movements with accuracy. Moreover, attack submarines can
THE FIRST RUGGED SERVERS WITH SKYLAKE ARCHITECTURE
keep their locations secret — if the enemy submarines don’t inadvertently receive acoustic signal returns from the attack submarines. The DARPA MOCCA program
Now Available
seeks to develop active sonar solutions that will mitigate the limits of passive submarine sonar sensors, researchers say. The objective is to achieve significant standoff detection and tracking range by using an active sonar projector deployed offboard a submarine and onboard a UUV. The submarine will need the ability to coordinate the operational functions of the supporting UUV. Thus, the program must demonstrate reliable clandestine communications between the host submarine and supporting UUV without sacrificing stealth. The program is asking BAE Systems and Applied Physical Sciences to develop compact active sonar sources, signal processing, and secure undersea communica-
Cloud Computing on the Move Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processors with AVX-512 Multiple storage options, 2666MHz memory SWaP optimized, MIL-STD Resiliency Enhanced security, tamper-resistance
tions technology for an offboard UUV in support of ASW. The first phase will last for
TH EMIS .C OM/R ES- XR 6
15 months and will involve preliminary designs for innovative www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_5 5
©2017 Themis Computer. All rights reserved. Themis and the Themis logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Themis Computer. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
10/11/17 8:19 AM
news DARPA researchers are ask-
as energy-efficient as possible.
ing the two companies to build an
Researchers want the ability to
active sonar with an active sonar
focus the projected acoustic signal
projector small enough for UUV
in a direction of interest. The goal
operations, and bistatic active sonar
is to produce practical and flexible
processing. This will involve devel-
designs for the projector that can
oping high-output transducer mate-
scale for several different UUVs and
rials, and a sonar projector that is
deployment options.
IN BRIEF Lockheed Martin to upgrade avionics and computers on German P-3C aircraft Military avionics experts at Lockheed Martin Corp. will upgrade the mission computers aboard German military P-3C maritime patrol
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and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft under terms of a $158.5 million order. Lockheed Martin Global Inc. in Owego, N.Y., will upgrade the mission computers, acoustic equipment, armament/
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Martin will provide for new mission and acoustic system
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1710mae_6 6
SFF Embedded Computers
and sea surveillance. It has www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
news In addition to a small, pow-
Researchers also need a secure
er-efficient sonar projector, or
and reliable communications link
pinger, researchers are asking the
to provide positive control of a UUV
two companies to develop bistatic
and its sonar payload operating at
Navy eyes technologies in mine warfare, special ops, and expeditionary warfare
sonar processing advancements
a significant distance from its host
U.S. Navy surface warfare experts
in reverberation and clutter rejec-
submarine. The communications
are reaching out to industry for
tion as well as precision localiza-
link also must be able to communi-
enabling technologies to enhance
tion capability. The host UUV is
cate information generated on the
or speed new military capabili-
expected to be no larger than 21
UUV back to the host platform.
ties in mine warfare, naval spe-
inches in diameter.
An ideal link would have a low
The goal is to operate the system
cial operations, and naval expe-
probability of intercept and of
ditionary warfare. Researchers
in bottom-limited acoustic environ-
exploitation and provide high link
at Naval Sea Systems Command
ments, so projected sound will scat-
reliability. The MOCCA communi-
in Washington issued a solic-
ter and produce reverberation and
cations link cannot degrade subma-
itation (N00024-17-R-6271) for
signal loss. Scattered sound inad-
rine stealth.
the Confronting Irregular and
vertently may illuminate the host
Expeditionary Warfare Capability
submarine and possibly compromise
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit BAE
Challenges project to develop new
stealth, so researchers want detailed
Systems Electronic systems online
technologies in mine warfare,
and accurate predictions of the
at www.baesystems.com, Applied
naval special warfare, and naval
acoustic environment to manage the
Physical Sciences at www.aphysci.
expeditionary combat that apply
sonar and potential exposures.
com, and DARPA at www.darpa.mil.
to Navy programs of record or
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10/11/17 8:19 AM
news other acquisition programs. Navy
expeditionary combat. In addition,
researchers are interested in new
the Navy wants new technologies
technologies that could be ready
that enable warfighters to oper-
advanced submarine-detec-
within one year, based on proto-
ate in harbors, rivers, bays, and on
tion sensors, such as direc-
type demonstrations in realistic
beaches, as well as technologies
tional frequency and rang-
environments. Those interested
that improve access to multi-intel-
ing (DIFAR) sonobuoys and
have one year to submit ideas.
ligence, surveillance, and recon-
magnetic anomaly detection
Capabilities of interest involve
naissance at the tactical edge.
(MAD) equipment.
reconnaissance, counter-terrorism,
IN BRIEF
Radiation-hardened embedded computer from BAE Systems ready to serve in space
direct action, irregular warfare,
MORE INFORMATION IS online
foreign internal defense, and other
at https://www.fbo.gov/spg/DON/
urgent and emerging needs in
NAVSEA/NAVSEAHQ/N00024-
mine warfare, special warfare, and
17-R-6271/listing.html.
Aerospace and defense technology company BAE Systems in Manassas, Va., is debuting its next-generation hardened computer designed for spacebased use. The new RAD5545
Air Force asks industry for space communications to track and control multiple satellites
single-board computer beats its
BY JOHN KELLER
predecessor in size, speed, and
LOS ANGELES AFB, Calif.
efficiency, BAE systems says.
space experts are reaching out
tion (FA8806RFI01) for the Multi-
The new space microprocessor
to industry for communications
Band Multi-Mission Systems —
is radiation-hardened against
technologies able to contact multi-
Multi-Band Multi-Mission project.
ambient radiation, which
ple satellites and other spacecraft
means it can work reliably in
simultaneously across several fre-
tem could help the Air Force deal
the challenging conditions of
quency bands to track and control
with the growing number of orbit-
outer space for protracted peri-
a growing number of space vehicles
ing U.S. government satellites, and
ods. The RAD5545 is designed
in Earth orbit.
may augment or replace the current
at Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif., – U.S. Air Force
to be simpler than computers
Officials of the Air Force Space
used on previous generations
and Missile Systems Center (SMC)
have issued a request for informa-
A multi-band, multi-mission sys-
Air Force Satellite Control Network (AFSCN) and Launch and Test Range
of space-faring vehicles and
System (LTRS)
satellites, since it replaces mul-
infrastructure.
tiple cards with just one. It can
A future multi-
also unlock new capabilities
band, multi-mis-
for future spacecraft, including
sion, space-con-
encryption, running multiple
trol system could
operating systems at once, pro-
perform key
cessing extremely high-resolu-
telemetry, track-
tion images, and autonomously
ing, and control
operating spacecraft. Each of
(TT&C) capabil-
these tasks was beyond the
ities and radar
capabilities of previous sin-
functions, Air
gle-board computers designed for space. 8
1710mae_8 8
OCTOBER 2017
The Air Force is looking for new ways of controlling several different satellites at once to track and control a growing number of space vehicles in Earth orbit.
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
Force officials say. Air Force space-control
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
news experts say they need to increase
technology maturity levels; and
Dedrick at Jeffrey.Dedrick@us.af.mil,
capacity, flexibility, interoperability,
available documentation.
Rachel Scollans at Rachel.Scollans@
automation, and resiliency of space
Companies interested should
us.af.mil, or Capt. Alexander Bast at Alexander.Bast.1@us.af.mil.
operations and spacelift because
e-mail responses no longer than 25
of the increasing number of satel-
pages in Microsoft Word or .pdf for-
lites and space launches expected
mats to the Air Force’s Jeffrey Dedrick
MORE INFORMATION IS online at
in the future.
at Jeffrey.Dedrick@us.af.mil. E-mail
https://www.fbo.gov/spg/USAF/AFSC/
questions or concerns to Jeffrey
SMCSMSC/FA8806RFI01/listing.html.
A multi-band, multi-mission system should be able to contact several space vehicles simultaneously across several frequency bands and provide tracking radar to support the Air Force AFSCN and LTRS. Air Force officials are asking industry for information on today’s available capabilities that compa-
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should be able to meet the needs of the Multi-Band Multi-Mission Systems — Multi-Band MultiMission project now, or be modified to do so in the future. Candidate technologies should be able to respond to a surge in demand for spacecraft tracking and control; support frequency bands such as VHF, UHF, C, L, S. K, Q, and X; communicate with spacecraft from low-Earth orbit to geosyn-
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1710mae_9 9
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
9
10/11/17 8:19 AM
S PECIA L
REPORT
FOR BORDER
AND PERIMETER
SECURITY
BY J.R. WILSON
TECHNOLOGY Sensors, data processing, interoperability, open systems, and wireless networking are only a few of the enabling technologies for securing the nation’s borders and critical infrastructure.
Refugees and immigrants, legal
complex — and potentially devas-
ranged from significantly raising
and illegal, are moving across the
tating — to the target nations by the
the level of vetting new arrivals
globe in numbers not seen since
presence of far more criminals and
to increasing security checks at
World War II, stressing the politics
terrorists, some from well-organized
official entry points, adding more
and -funded organizations, some
border patrols, limiting the num-
and security capabilities of dozens of nations. While this phenomenon has been divisive and costly, it is not something upper tier nations
“freelance” fanatics, but all carrying the potential for violence and chaos. The situation has grown beyond
ber of new arrivals allowed, or trying to close their borders to all new immigrants.
were unable to handle previously,
the capabilities of traditional
even if it took a generation or two
human and dog patrols, official
to fully assimilate the new popula-
manned checkpoints at borders,
two land borders include the
tion segments.
seaports, and airports, and coastal
world’s longest with Canada (5,500
Today, however, an already com-
water patrols. The reaction by indi-
miles) and nearly 2,000 miles with
plicated issue has been made more
vidual nations across the world has
Mexico — both largely desolate —
10
1710mae_10 10
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
The problem is especially acute for the United States, whose only
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
plus 95,000 miles of shoreline,
effect to keep everyone safe and
15,000 airports, and government
accomplish the mission.”
and military facilities in nearly every nation on Earth. “The simple issue of building a
and our federal, state, local, and tribal partners, allowing a proactive approach rather than strictly a reac-
Standardized processes
tive approach to threats,” Keplar
What border security authorities
says. “Infrastructure and archi-
physical versus a smart barrier,
also need are standardized pro-
tecture will be key to generating
where 21st Century technologies are
cesses for surveillance and recon-
actionable intelligence. Ensuring we
used, is a battle that has just begun,”
naissance, says Emily Keplar,
have proper connectivity to sensors,
Nelson Balido, CEO, Border Com-
intelligence functional manager at
customers, and decision-makers
merce & Security Council, said in an
the U.S. Department of Homeland
is critical... Finding new solutions
interview with Institute for Defense
Security (DHS) in Washington, who
and sharing existing resources is
& Government Advancement (IDGA)
oversees intelligence collection
becoming more necessary.”
before its 2017 Homeland Security
and reporting.
Week conference.
The DHS Silicon Valley Innova-
The DHS needs ways to establish
“Local and state issues must be
tion Program — a partnership of
multi-layered intelligence, surveil-
high-tech industry, DHS Science
taken into consideration, private
lance, and reconnaissance (ISR)
& Technology (S&T), and Customs
land owners will certainly have
plans that align resources and com-
and Border Protection (CBP) — is
skin in the game, as will various
mand structures to synchronize
working to enhance the situational
other groups,” Balido said. “In the
DHS activities, Keplar says.
awareness of Border Patrol agents
end, we need solutions that give our front-line agents a force-multiplier
“We have to provide timely intelligence to our DHS components
who often operate in harsh terrain under extreme physical conditions,
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10/11/17 8:19 AM
Border security is a hotbed of new technologies, but sometimes the best solutions have been in use for hundreds of years, as Border Patrol agents still rely on horses for use in difficult terrain. with backup often miles away. In
who have applied for the program
Communications-Electronics
an April 2017 Customs and Border
and we view this interest, and the
Research, Development &
Protection blog entry, Commissioner
success of these companies thus far,
Engineering Center (CERDEC) at
Kevin K. McAleenan wrote that one
as a sign of great things to come
Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.
of the most successful initiatives
with respect to Customs and Border
under the program involves small
Protection and S&T’s collaborative
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
efforts with the technology commu-
“Developing technologies and capabilities to secure our hard-
nity,” McAleenan added. Advances in technology in the
Biometrics “In the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), the focus has been on fingerprints and imperfect environments,”
21st Century’s first two decades
Riser says. “We’re looking to move
critical for deploying SUAS [small
have resulted in smaller, lighter,
toward more commercial sensors
unmanned aircraft system] tech-
faster, more capable, and more
in the future. Mobile devices that
nology,” McAleenan wrote. “We
mobile platforms, sensor fusion,
adhere to the same set of standards
have been looking for technologies
data analysis, and automatic tar-
open a larger set of devices that can
that will help adapt SUAS platforms
geted distribution.
ware and software platforms is
for use in Customs and Border
“The technologies are a mixture
be used by the DOD. Fingerprints, eyes, face are the primary uses
Protection, and specifically border
of things that have advanced, in
now.” Riser is part of CERDEC’s
patrol missions, such as new sen-
some cases, slower than the com-
Intelligence & Information
sors, user interfaces for law enforce-
mercial industry, which has been
Warfare Directorate’s Intelligence,
ment officers, and cybersecurity.
pushed by smartphones,” says
Surveillance, Reconnaissance &
Keith Riser, an identity intelli-
Targeting (ISRT) activity.
“We have received a number of proposals from quality companies 12
1710mae_12 12
OCTOBER 2017
gence engineer at the U.S. Army
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
ISRT’s fielded technologies to www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
S PECIAL
help warfighters secure borders,
VADER is an advanced Ku-band
REPORT
scanning, real-time (or forensic anal-
checkpoints, and U.S. military and
ground moving target indicator
ysis) detection of large numbers of
government facilities overseas
radar that can detect and track mov-
targets, and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging of fixed targets.
include Tactical Reconnaissance &
ing vehicles and pedestrians. It also
Counter-concealment Enabled Radar
can provide wide- and small-area
Wolfhound fills coverage gaps
(TRACER); Vehicle and Dismount
air-to-ground moving target indi-
and other limitations of traditional
Enabled Radar (VADER); Wolfhound
cation, high-range resolution target
systems through frequency threat
Handheld Threat Warning System;
and direction finding. The hand-
Vigilant Pursuit; and Distributed
held device enables warfighters to
Common Ground System–Army
geo-locate spotter positions and
(DCGS-A).
observation posts.
TRACER enables long-range, wide
Vigilant Pursuit combines human
area detection of targets under
intelligence and signals intelligence
camouflage, concealment, and
from any source. Its information
deception conditions and map-
helps soldiers identify persons of
ping for complex environments. It
interest and uses cross-cuing and
enhances situational awareness
tipping to help with decision-mak-
by detecting small roadside tar-
ing in the field. It hosts DCGS-A
gets and buried weapons caches
workstations, dismounted human
through onboard image formation and change detection.
Upgraded Remote Video Surveillance System sensors are taking their place in U.S. border security.
intelligence collection, and several National Security Agency (NSA) ª
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1710mae_13 13
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MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
13
10/11/17 8:19 AM
S PECIAL
REPORT
enterprise solutions. DCGS-A is the
background investigations.
field-testing a mobile, relocatable
Army’s primary system for posting
“You first take an individual’s
data, processing information, and
fingerprints and eye scans, which
disseminating ISR information.
enrolls them in IDENT, says
ern, current system that updates
CERDEC’s Riser. “The goal is to have
electro-optical and infrared, but
for border security or immigra-
an authoritative response within
also includes a laser illuminator,
tion control, each of those systems
three minutes. Another aspect is
spotlight, a loud hailer, all as inte-
can be applied to elements of the
a watch list on the devices them-
grated components,” says Robert
Army’s overseas missions in both
selves. These can provide a lot of
Gilbert, senior program director
While not developed specifically
version called R-RVSS. “We were able to bring a mod-
areas. They also could be modified
nuances indicating why the individ-
at General Dynamics Information
for use by DHS in patrolling U.S.
ual is there.
Technology. Gilbert is a retired
land borders, shorelines, official ports of entry, and coastal waters.
“These basically offer a passive defense. If you can identify someone who has malicious intent
chief of the Customs and Border Protection agency. “The operator in the command
Dual-use technologies
before they cross a perimeter, you
center can click the mike and tell
ISRT research programs look at
can detain them for further screen-
people what to do, including warn-
how sensors can share biometric
ing. That improves soldier safety
ing an agent of someone he may not
data. How CERDEC and DHS inter-
without targeting an entire group,”
see,” Gilbert says. “It significantly
act in this effort can be seen in the
Riser says.
reduces the time agents previously
Automated Biometric Identification
DHS is converting the 20-year-old
wasted responding to false alarms.
System — called ABIS by the mili-
Remote Video Surveillance System
tary, IDENT by DHS.
(RVSS) sensor towers into hosts
Mexico, giving Border Patrol field
for an improved RVSS developed
leadership knowledge they did not
tem-wide storage and process-
by General Dynamics Information
have before so they can deploy their
ing of biometric and associated
Technology in Fairfax, Va. As
human assets where they are most
Both provide centralized, sys-
The system also can see into
biographic information for national
part of that program for Customs
needed. It is a phenomenal deter-
security, immigration and border
and Border Protection, General
rent. Anyone looking at crossing the
management, and intelligence and
Dynamics also developed and is
border illegally or smuggling drugs can see these systems and know they are being observed.” Upgrading legacy systems There also are legacy RVSS installations on the U.S. border with Canada. Gilbert says he expects that expanding the use of RVSS on the U.S. and Canadian border will replicate what is being done on the Southwest border — upgrading legacy installations and expanding into new areas as they update their requirements. The stationary RVSS is mounted on towers, poles. Upgrades are in progress on 70 sites in Arizona
Unmanned ground vehicles are taking a role in border and perimeter security to block drug smugglers and other intruders. 14
1710mae_14 14
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
and 80 in Texas. The R-RVSS uses a retractable mast as high as 80 www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
S PECIAL
REPORT
ONYX-HD DO-160 & MIL-STD Qualified COTS VIDEO Computer
Border Patrol agents for decades have relied on sensor towers, yet these are giving way to networks of fixed and mobile sensors for enhanced situational awareness.
Capture, process, encode, display and store your raw EO/IR video in 1920*1080p30/p60 HD video and data management, advanced augmented reality, digital moving map, tactical video overlay
feet mounted on self-sustaining trailers that can run
> 2x 3G/HD-SDI inputs
for as long as 45 days, and then change locations in
> 2x HD-SDI outputs
less than a day.
> Glass to glass latency < 100ms
General Dynamics also has installed a pilot Law
> 2x Analog NTSC/PAL inputs for legacy sensors
Enforcement Application Platform (LEAP) at Los Angeles
> H.264/AVC video encoding capabilities
International Airport. LEAP is designed to detect perim-
> Linux Metadata extraction
eter intrusions along the airport’s fence line. Its com-
> -40°C to +71°C operating
ponents and sensors correlate with more than 3,000 cameras that General Dynamics is deploying throughout the massive facility. Gilbert believes LEAP also may
> Qualified DO-160 and MIL-STD-810/461 > ITAR free
be of interest to the Border Patrol. “The primary application we’ve been looking at, especially in airports, is facial recognition,” says Peter Howard, senior business development director at General Dynamics Information Technology. “We also have License Plate Recognition (LPR) technology, which we look at as enhancements to the video system. We can bring in a number of sensors in a common operating picture.” Customs and Border Protection is demonstrating facial recognition exit technology at five high-traffic www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_15 15
Tel : +33 1 69 07 83 22 www.ecrin.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
S PECIAL
REPORT
Federal authorities are converting the 20-year-old Remote Video Surveillance System (RVSS) sensor towers into hosts for an improved RVSS system. U.S. airports and is collaborating
recognition holds huge potential to
capabilities,” Lyon said in an accom-
with airlines to integrate facial rec-
improve and eliminate face-to-face
panying interview. “Another chal-
ognition technology into passenger
interaction with the government.
lenge is the pace of change in the
gates at three others. The agency
Person-centric processing versus
biometrics and identity space.
notes there are several laws direct-
form-based is the next leap in
Technological advances and cus-
ing DHS to record the arrival and
transformation.”
departure of non-U.S. citizens.
IDENT, developed in the 1990s,
tomer demands are moving so quickly that, in many cases, an
“You never know what new and
will be replaced by a new system,
overall policy framework has not
cool technology is starting to emerge
Homeland Advanced Recognition
yet been developed.”
and the potential for that technology
Technology (HART), to handle the
to be integrated into the immigra-
growth of stored biometric identities,
Safeguarding privacy
tion process,” says Paul Hunter, chief
says Shonnie Lyon, acting director of
An additional challenge relates
of biometrics strategy at DHS U.S.
the DHS Office of Biometric Identity
to balancing privacy and mission
Citizenship & Immigration Services
Management. The number of bio-
needs, Lyon explains. “Privacy pro-
(USCIS). Hunter made his com-
metric identities has risen from hun-
tection is of utmost importance.
ments in an interview with IDGA
dreds of thousands initially to more
Balancing the natural tension
prior to the July 2017 Biometrics for
than 200 million.
between a commitment to privacy
Government & Law Enforcement
“HART will deliver more robust
protection and the need to exchange
performance, greater capacity and
biometric data means we need to be
“Voice holds a lot of promise in
functionality, and multi-modal
especially vigilant in what data is
the digital age,” Hunter says. “Facial
matching, storing, and sharing
shared and with whom.”
International conference.
16
1710mae_16 16
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
S PECIAL
Several technologies are in the
REPORT
shortly after 9/11 to develop elec-
different systems to talk to each
works to enhance the speed, accu-
tro-optical threat sensors. Their cur-
other. Each had to have its own
racy, and safety of border secu-
rent focus is on perimeter security.
operator sending information into
rity. Those include palm prints,
“We began working about 10
a technical operations center to
DNA, gait, space between the eyes,
years ago with DHS on joint urgent
make sense of the different inputs.
license plate recognition, and vehi-
operational requirements called
That led to a real push for interop-
cle detection and tracking.
Base Expeditionary Targeting
erability in the systems CERDEC
Palm prints can be lifted from
Surveillance Systems−Combined
developed later.
bombs or fragments, and can be
(BETSS-C),” says Len Ramboyong,
stored in IDENT. Federal experts
chief of the NVESD Counter-
still are considering how to tie DNA
Terrorism Branch. “That resulted in
Resolution and deployability
into their processes for screening
a group of force protection equip-
that will go into the Ground-Based
refugees and immigrants in border
ment used for perimeter security.
Operational Surveillance System-
“We are working on enhancements
operations, identifying family lines,
Part of that suite was a system
Expeditionary (GBOSS-E) to meet
and augmenting existing forensic
called Cerberus, consisting of visual
a new requirement for better
processes. DNA is expected to have
and infrared imaging, unattended
resolution and be more deploy-
a much more significant role in the
ground sensors, and radars to
able, so they can be moved easily
next five to ten years.
detect targets.”
without a large logistic footprint,”
Gait, or how someone walks, is
A major drawback with BETSS-C
unique. A gait that differs signifi-
was the inability of five or six of its
Ramboyong says. “We’re working on sensor resolution, improving
cantly from the norm may indicate a suspect is carrying a heavy or dangerous load. Micro-expressions and Interocular Distance (space between the eyes) could benefit down the road. License plate recognition and vehicle detection and tracking could help resolve any questions before a suspect is close to human guards. LPR is more common in the U.S. “Any of those new modalities require creating ways to collect and store them on the database, then put into the watch list, and match them in real time,” CERDEC’s Riser says. “We’re definitely looking at data collection and dissemination from any platform, but we also want to move processing into the cloud, so the collection device is agnostic. The goal remains providing a rapid response following data collection.” Another CERDEC directorate, Night Vision & Electronic Sensors (NVESD) at Fort Belvoir, Va., established a counter-terrorism branch www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_17 17
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
17
10/11/17 8:19 AM
S PECIAL
REPORT
processing speed, and algorithm
federal sector of Ruckus Wireless
Technology advancements in
development that will allow us to
Inc. in Sunnyvale, Calif. “New secu-
security systems have been spec-
more quickly identify targets, bring
rity technology doesn’t work if it
tacular in the past few years, but
in some automation, and reduce
isn’t simple to expand and deploy
also have increased the need to
operator reaction time, while
in a world where all our tools are
secure deployed technology, and
enabling better sharing of informa-
needed everywhere, all the time. If
prevent the use of “backdoors” in
tion by making the systems more
I need to move a checkpoint, even
U.S. technology.
interoperable.”
if just to the other side of an airport,
NVESD is developing on systems to increase stand-off capabilities and enable users to detect
“The problem with miniaturiza-
the only way to do that quickly is
tion is whether the data remains
with a wireless network.
with the sensor or is sent back,”
“We have security mechanisms
Collura says. “It’s not just one or
individuals and vehicles at longer
to allow different devices to con-
two devices now, either, but a lot of
distances. Processing and reso-
nect only to the right networks,”
different sensors. One thing we’re
lution enhancements will enable
Collura says. “Next-generation secu-
working on is different technology
faster detection of anomalies, with
rity is not only for mobile phones,
from Bluetooth to LTE to Wi-Fi to
some of the detection capabilities
but also to ensure sensors are on
make a single, secure network man-
becoming more automated. That
the right network and no one else
aging all that.”
does not include the use of artifi-
can connect with them. Bandwidth
cial intelligence (AI), Ramboyong
and reliability, in general, have
der and perimeter security are
adds, which, while potentially
advanced to give wireless con-
designed to increase speed, accu-
helpful, is still too early in
nections comparable capability to
racy, and safety in dealing with
development.
wired, which was impossible just
millions of people on the move
five years ago. That has been a
worldwide. They also raise numer-
game-changer.”
ous questions about privacy, sys-
“There are a lot of different AI technologies, so we have to identify the proper one for each application,
Wireless networks and minia-
All the technologies for bor-
tem security, integration, and
given the environment and mis-
turization of power and sensors
sion, finding something that will
have allowed cameras to move
interoperability.
enhance, rather than hinder, the
away from buildings or even fixed
to become more and more com-
system,” agrees Gilbert of General
locations and be mounted on UAVs,
mon,” CERDEC’s Riser says. “In the
Dynamics. “When you integrate
unmanned ground vehicles, aero-
future, we are likely to be dealing
technology, if you haven’t done due
stats, and possibly unmanned sur-
with huge numbers of individuals,
“Operating in gray areas is going
diligence, you may create prob-
face vessels. That increases the
so having this capability in place
lems you didn’t have before, so you
area covered and the amount of
now will help then because we
have to make sure any improve-
data gathered.
won’t have to target everyone.
ment is an actual improvement.
At the same time, the imposition
“As we move forward, we will
At this point, we’re not yet ready
of government standards to certify
increase the speed and how we
to deploy AI.”
wired and wireless networks has
parse our sensing, increase part-
become a key to cybersecurity. Cybersecurity
“If something happens, next-gen,
nering with industry and academia and leverage our subject matter
As is true throughout electronic
certificate-based security allows
experts to integrate all that knowl-
high-tech, these systems will
me to force something off the
edge,” Riser says. “We want to
be targeted by hackers. This has
network and require it to re-au-
make sure we aren’t creating mul-
placed ever-higher requirements on
thenticate,” Collura says. “Having
tiple stovepipes, so if we are devel-
network and system security.
devices pre-authorized to join the
oping something someone else also
network before deployment limits
is developing, we can converge
“Everything is moving from wired to wireless connections,” points out
the ability of someone to interfere
to solve both our needs without
Chris Collura, sales director in the
with those.”
duplication.”
18
1710mae_18 18
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
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10/11/17 8:19 AM
TECHNOLOGY F CUS
Micro data centers for military drones Pushing the bounds of size, weight, and power consumption (SWaP) to design the most rugged and sophisticated on-board sensor and data processing for military unmanned air, land, and sea vehicles BY John
Keller
The A176 rugged embedded computer from Aitech Defense Systems has general-purpose graphics processing unit (GPGPU) functionality to provide realtime image recognition for unmanned vehicle surveillance.
Demand is exploding for sensor capability aboard unmanned vehicles. To a large extent, these unmanned craft represent the eyes and ears of U.S. and allied military forces, and are becoming more so in the future. Top commanders rely on unmanned vehicles to get them the information they need, when they need it, with little or no time lag involved. Unmanned vehicles also are shrinking in size. Where once the
“We are seeing an uptick in C4ISR
Processing unmanned data
U.S. military relied exclusively
[command, control, communications,
It all begins with on-board data
on unmanned aerial vehicles
computers, intelligence, surveillance,
processors, which must handle
(UAVs) the size of jet fighters,
and reconnaissance] applications on
massive amounts of data com-
today’s UAVs often have wing
unmanned vehicles, with video, elec-
ing in from still-image and video
spans no longer than a person
tro-optical, and sensor fusion all tied
cameras, radar, signals intelligence
is tall and can be launched by
together,” says Doug Patterson, vice
(SIGINT), electronic warfare (EW),
catapult, and sometimes even by
president of business development
electro-optical sensors, and other
hand. This trend is continuing
and marketing at embedded comput-
kinds of surveillance and reconnais-
with development of UAVs small
ing specialist Aitech Defense Systems
sance equipment.
enough to fit in a warfighter’s
Inc. in Chatsworth, Calif.
shirt pocket.
When it comes to unmanned
“More processing is required on board unmanned vehicles,” says
This creates unprecedented
vehicles, the driving mantra of
Chris Ciufo, chief technology officer
design challenges for the embed-
onboard sensor processing for
at General Micro Systems (GMS) in
ded computing industry, whose
unmanned vehicles is SWaP-C,
Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. “PowerPC
engineers increasingly are being
which is short for size, weight,
was the way we did things 10 years
asked to design what essentially are
power consumption, and cost. This
ago. Now we have these data-min-
rugged, mobile micro data centers
pressing need is what keeps embed-
ing applications on UAVS where you
that are small, rugged, powerful,
ded systems designers up at night.
are collecting reams of data from
and power-efficient enough for duty
These systems should be small,
these sensors of large-pixel den-
aboard the latest generations of
lightweight, power-efficient, and
sity, from TV and infrared cam-
unmanned vehicles.
cost-effective.
eras. There’s just lots and lots of
20
1710mae_20 20
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
data streaming in — terabytes —
more cores — 16 for commer-
Intel Xeon D brings together a lot
in real time.”
cial-temperature applications, and
of processing cores, much more
12 cores for industrial tempera-
memory, and on top of that many
processors powerful, but increas-
Not only are today’s most modern
tures — with 45 watts of thermal
more PCI Express and 10 Gigabit
ingly they are easier to integrate
dissipation,” Southworth says. “The
Ethernet lanes.”
than previous generations. “You have the silicon that is much more powerful, and much more user-
sales@systelusa.com 888-613-4291 www.systelusa.com
friendly in terms of programming,” says Aitech’s Patterson. “The implementation process is almost limitless with the amount of processing that the systems designer has available.” Trends in the miniaturization of processors of many different types has progressed to the stage where they can power shoebox-size, sensor-processing subsystems appropriate for many small- and medium-sized unmanned vehicles. This trend applies to general-purpose central processing units (CPUs), general-purpose graphics-processing units (GPGPUs), vector-processing engines, field-programmable gate arrays
Proven Rugged Solutions for Mission Success
(FPGAs), and other components critical to on-board sensor processing. “Intel, obviously, is a large component of that, but there are other architectures, like ARM, that are growing significantly within military unmanned vehicles,” says Mike Southworth, product manager at the Curtiss-Wright Corp. Defense
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Flat Panel Displays and Computers
High Performance Computing High Density Storage
“Intel has released its first system-on-a-chip for the Xeon processor technology that has enabled power consumption like the company’s Core i7 processor, but with www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_21 21
10/11/17 2:27 PM
TECHNOLOGY F CUS
While the Intel Xeon D processor offers server-class
“AVX is Intel’s name for its vector-processing engine
performance with multiprocessing capability, match-
that it puts on its processors,” Thompson says. “It’s a
ing that chip, or other microprocessors, with the Nvidia
side-car on the processor, and is designed to do signal
GPGPU can speed the processing of incoming sensor
and image processing. AVX gives you the capability to
video. “You can encode or decode video coming from
process in parallel. Its parallel vector pipeline enables
the sensor, or use the GPGPU as a parallel processor,”
you to manipulate more data per cycle, so you can do
Southworth says.
more of whatever it is you are doing.”
Improvements in microproces-
In addition to processing performance, the Intel
sors suitable for on-board
Xeon offers designers access to a broad
unmanned vehicle
range of software support. “If you can use
sensor processing are
that Xeon ecosystem, you have access to
expected continue. “We
all the software in that ecosystem,” says
are starting to see a
John Bratton, product and solutions mar-
migration to more cores
keting manager at Mercury Systems in
coming up on the Xeons.
Andover, Mass.
We already have seen Xeon D-class processors with four, eight, twelve, and up to sixteen cores in a package,” says Peter Thompson, director of business development technology at Abaco
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When it comes to transforming raw sensor data into actionable information, pure processing power is only one piece of the puzzle. To run at its optimum speeds, a processor needs the ability to receive data from sensors as quickly as it can pro-
Sometimes specialized processors are necessary for image and video processing, and sometimes a com-
cess that data. “You don’t want to starve the processor for data,”
bination of specialized processors like GPGPUs and a
says Mercury’s Bratton. “The backplane needs unre-
high-performance, general-purpose processor like the
stricted fat pipes. We have 10-gigabit or 40-giga-
Intel Xeon can fit customer needs.
bit pipes across 40 channels, and we guarantee the
“On the video side, we are seeing interest in
performance.”
GPGPU,” says Aitech’s Patterson. “They are
The sensor-pro-
seeing the need for small, compact
cessing system must
repetitive algorithms dis-
be able to move data
tributed among hundreds of
within the system,
processors, if not more. You
as well as move data
can break down your video
to other on-board
into smaller chunks, process
systems or to satellite
those pixels separately, and
links or ground-based net-
then combine them later.”
works. For these tasks, on-board
In addition to enhanced processing power, unmanned vehicle sensor processing designers also are gaining access to the
data networking and I/O is essential. The S402-LC Mustang rugged and sealed CPU server based on the Intel Xeon E5 processor from General Micro Systems is for aerospace and defense applications that demand SWaP efficiency.
Intel AVX-512 technology, which adds 512-bit extensions to the
“Beyond the processor itself is the ability to move data around on the vehicle faster than ever before,” says GMS’s Ciufo. “Our customers want 10-gigabit fiber Ethernet on board, so
256-bit Advanced Vector Extensions single-instruction
we can add an Ethernet switch to route data throughout
multiple data (SIMD) instructions for x86 instruction set
the platform. Networking is important, because we are
architecture (ISA).
talking about something like an on-board data center.”
22
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MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
TECHNOLOGY F CUS
The bandwidth of data links to the ground or to sat-
points out. USB 3.0 can transfer data as quickly as
ellite networks is paltry compared to today’s on-board
5 gigabits per second. Its successor, USB 3.1, doubles the
networking that fast Ethernet links provide. “You only
speed, and can transfer data as quickly as 10 gigabits
have a straw as a pipe to the ground or to the satellite,”
per second. These data pipes are becoming common on
Ciufo says. It’s for this reason that today’s on-board
PC laptop and desktop computers.
sensor-processing sys-
“When it comes to ruggedization,
tems must be able
USB 3.0 takes some spe-
to handle as much
cial care,” Southworth
data as possible
says. “Your cable length
on the unmanned
for USB 3.0 will not be
vehicle itself.
at its full potential, and
“That fabric for PCI Express and 10-Gigabit Ethernet can enable a lot of interesting capabilities in technologies like 3U VPX, but now we are going much smaller,” says CurtissWright’s Southworth.
Mercury’s Ensemble HDS6603 high-density embedded server offers more than one teraFLOP of general processing power in an OpenVPX slot. It has two 1.8-GHz Intel Xeon E5-2600 v3 processors, each with 12 cores to deliver image- and video-processing power for unmanned vehicles.
Ultra-small processing
you may need shorter cable runs. You need to make sure your connector interfaces can handle the signal from that connection.” Precision timing A key component of on-board sensor networking is precision timing, such that processors and nodes on the network can be synchronized with nanosecond accuracy.
also necessitates the smallest possible I/O, Southworth
“Modern processors and communications devices
says. “We can port things like additional I/O integrated
would come to a halt if they weren’t able to synchronize
right in the box,” he adds. “MIL-STD-1553 and ARINC-
their devices,” says Curtiss-Wright’s Southworth.
439 databuses and CANbus for ground vehicles are
One accepted industry standard for network pre-
common in these ultra-
cision timing is the IEEE 1588 precision time
small-form-factor boxes.
protocol (PTP), which helps synchronize clocks
They also have open
throughout a computer network. It is designed
slots to support some
for local systems that require accuracies
add-on interface cards,
beyond those attainable using Network Time
which are about the size
Protocol (NTP), as well as for applications that
of business cards, that
neither can bear the weight or cost of a sepa-
are pre-fitted into these card slots. With this, the generic computer becomes a customizable computer.” Southworth says customers of CurtissWright typically know how many extra networking and I/O interfaces they need in each sensor-processing subsystem. “We can integrate that in the boxes we make, and the customers will have all the throughput they need.”
rate GPS receiver at each node, nor for The Parvus DuraCOR 312 from Curtiss-Wright Defense Solutions is an ultra-small form factor embedded mission computer built around the NVIDIA Jetson Tegra X2 (TX2) integrated in a miniature rugged chassis with MIL-grade, highdensity connectors.
One trusted partner of Curtiss-Wright’s for rug-
which GPS signals are inaccessible. IEEE 1588 “is an increasing requirement in unmanned vehicle Ethernet networks,” Southworth says. It’s not just for synchronizing networking nodes, but also for unmanned vehicle navigation in areas where signals from Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites are jammed or otherwise denied. The military has one program of
gedized MIL-STD-1553 and ARINC 429 avionics databus
record called Mounted Assured Position, Navigation,
interfaces is Data Device Corp. (DDC) in Bohemia, N.Y.
and Timing (MAPS), Southworth says. “The goal is to
One promising data pipe for unmanned sensor processing is Universal Serial Bus (USB) 3.0, Southworth www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_23 23
leverage redundancy in position, navigation, and timing [PNT] by distributing PNT timing,” he says. “You MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
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10/11/17 8:19 AM
TECHNOLOGY F CUS
have a chip-scale atomic clock to assure precision tim-
Other advantages of NVMe include its ability to be
ing, rather than from a GPS device. It’s connected to
ruggedized for applications like unmanned vehicles,
an Ethernet switch to distribute all this PNT data. The
as well as its ability to carry out fast data encryption
Army and the other services view this as one way to
and decryption. “You can buy NVMe drives that do
deal with GPS degradation and GPS denial. Assured
multi-encryption on the fly, and we are doing that as
PNT is validating the truth of where you are and where
well,” Ciufo says.
you’re going.”
Mercury Systems engineers are addressing SWaP in
Data storage and
on-board data storage with
memory
a 3D stacking technique for
There are addi-
flash memory in solid-state
tional components of
memory devices. On-board
unmanned sensor pro-
sensor processing “relies on
cessing. One overrid-
vast amounts of memory, and
ing technology is fast
memory takes up space,” says
data storage.
Mercury’s Bratton.
“The mission of a
“On the Xeon boards, we are
UAV is to collect information the battlefield. Storing the information is hugely important,” says GMS’s Ciufo.
doing dense memory stacks The S2002-MD Golden-Eyes II from General Micro Systems offers two isolated rugged servers based on the Intel Xeon-D and removable data storage drives for unmanned vehicles and other small-form-factor applications.
and reducing the footprint the memory takes on the board by about 90 percent,” Bratton says. “We connect the memory to the
“When we went from
board with BGA packaging. It is
rotating media to solid-state drives,
very dense and rugged memory
things got a lot better.”
attached to the board.”
Solid-state drives fixed a lot of the
Another benefit to Mercury’s
problems of rotating data storage —
rugged on-board, solid-state
especially when it comes to ruggediza-
memory in its high-perfor-
tion, reliability, and size. It does have a
mance Xeon embedded com-
downside: “It’s more expensive for the
puting boards is the tech-
density you get,” Ciufo says.
nology’s intense level of
Yet data storage continues to improve,
ruggedization. “We have expe-
and is enabling data storage to be a big contributor of unmanned sensor processing capabilities. One of the most significant advances is Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe), which enables
rience in smart munitions,” Mercury Systems uses special hardening to ruggedize high-performance embedded computing sufficiently for use in unmanned vehicle sensor-processing subsystems.
systems designers to access non-vola-
Bratton explains. “We can make these stacked chips gun-hardened, and we can leverage this technology to make these payloads quite small.”
tile storage media like the Flash memory in solid-state memory devices via the PCI Express bus. NVMe enables
Power and thermal management
host hardware and software to use parallelism in mod-
Dense, powerful computing sized small enough for
ern solid-state drives.
on-board unmanned sensor-processing payloads can
NVMe “eliminates the need for a hard disk controller
have two substantial drawbacks: substantial power
and avoids the latency of accessing the drive directly,”
requirements, and difficulty to cool. Hence, power and
Ciufo explains. “The processor can talk directly to the
thermal management on unmanned sensor-process-
drive, and boosts the performance of streaming data
ing payloads need to be considered up-front in any
to the drive.”
system design.
24
1710mae_24 24
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MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:19 AM
TECHNOLOGY F CUS
“These systems need massive processing, and are
performance under demanding circumstances, ensure
very dense down to the memory, so cooling is critical,”
that software and hardware do not interfere with one
says Mercury’s Bratton. “Mercury’s air flow-by and liq-
another to produce errors and faults, and that guard
uid flow-by technologies helps our boards run cooler.”
against the intentional insertion of malware to disrupt
Air flow-by, reflected in the VITA 48.7 open-systems standard, involves cooling and sealing technologies for VPX and VPX REDI embedded computing systems. It
or bring down computer operations. “Security isn’t optional anymore; it needs to baked into all these solutions,” says Mercury’s Bratton. “With
uses convection heat transfer to
more of the sensor chain on board,
cool plug-in modules while shield-
security has to be part of sensor, pro-
ing circuit boards and backplanes
cessing, data storage, and back again.”
from the cooling air with plate
The sophistication of unmanned
with apertures for backplane con-
sensors and sensor processing also
nectors over the backplane.
is bringing artificial intelligence and
Liquid flow-by, meanwhile,
decision-support aboard unmanned
enables open-systems modules
vehicles. “The sensors themselves are
to operate unrestricted and reli-
starting to make decisions, and safe-
ably, regardless of the presence of a cooling air supply. It integrates liquid-cooling capability to remove about 50 percent more heat than pure air-cooled approaches.
The GVC2000 from Abaco Systems is a mission or graphics computer intended for symbol generation, mission computing, demanding graphics generation applications, and GPU-accelerated data processing.
Liquid flow-by thermal man-
ty-certifiable is starting to be critical,” he says. Trusted computing doesn’t only deal with shielding against viruses and other malware. It also involves allocating and balancing computer
agement can use an unmanned vehicle’s own fuel as a
resources so life- and mission-critical functions take
cooling liquid. Fuel enters each module through non-
priority over other non-critical tasks. It also uses built-in
drip, quick disconnects to complement or take over
routines to prevent the inadvertent corruption of com-
the native air cooling capability of each module. Non-
puter data or instructions from unanticipated system
drip technology makes each module and supporting
transactions, and the accidental dissemination of data
chassis a self-sealing entity, which is critical for liq-
that should remain private to the system.
uid cooled subsystems, especially when the coolant
“Everything these days has sensors, and produces
is fuel. In the absence of cooling air, the coolant takes
a deluge of information,” says Mercury’s Bratton. “This
over completely.
uses a cloud-like model, where information feeds to a
In addition to cooling, unmanned vehicle sensor payloads are starting to rely in a variety of digital power control architectures to help squeeze out every bit of
server that can manage the information, take information out, and parcel it out to users that need it.” One way of keeping everything straight is the use
capability for a given source of power — especially
of software hypervisors. “Security architectures use
when the vehicle makes broad use of battery power.
hypervisors that separate command-and-control, data
Smart power management can help balance power
acquisition, and other functions,” says Erik Kramer,
loads over the whole vehicle — including separate net-
product manager at Mercury Systems. “You can sepa-
worked sensor payloads — and even borrow power from
rate functionality by hypervisor to privacy and security
systems with light power demands to help systems
concerns. If one domain fails, using hypervisors guaran-
under intense power loads.
tees that it doesn’t bring the whole system down.”
Security, safety, and trusted computing
sor-processing system that might be overworked. “If one
Those specifying unmanned vehicles and on-board
function in a system is challenged at the moment, you
sensor payloads increasingly are demanding special
can use hypervisor technology for guaranteed levels of
provisions that guarantee safe operations of these
performance reserved for other functions that are criti-
unmanned systems alongside manned craft, guarantee
cal,” Kramer says.
The same principle applies to separate parts of a sen-
www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_25 25
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
25
10/11/17 8:19 AM
RF&
m i crowave Reinventing electronic warfare with investment in new technologies
Raytheon to build TOW radio-controlled anti-tank missiles
The Pentagon’s recently com-
BY John
pleted electronic warfare strate-
REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. —
gy calls for increased investment
Raytheon Co. will build radio-con-
in advanced electronic warfare
trolled anti-tank missiles for the
(EW) technology designed for
U.S. Army and the military forces
defense, as well as a proactive
of Saudi Arabia and Lebanon under
use of emerging electromagnetic
terms of a $31.5 million order.
spectrum systems to attack ene-
Keller
The
Officials of the U.S. Army
mies. The vision of the electron-
Contracting Command at Redstone
ic warfare strategy is to be agile,
Arsenal, Ala., are asking Raytheon
adaptive, and integrate EW to
Missile Systems in Tucson, Ariz., to
offensively achieve electromag-
build the Tube-Launched, Optically-
Armored Vehicle–Anti-tank and U.S.
netic spectrum superiority across
Tracked, Wireless-Guided munition,
Marine Corps AH-1W Cobra attack
the range of military operations.
better-known as the TOW missile.
helicopter.
Goals include organizing the EW
The Army Contracting Command
Operators control the TOW missile in flight using radio links between its launcher and the missile.
To fire the TOW missile, the oper-
enterprise to ensure electromag-
is placing the order on behalf of
ator uses an optical missile sight
netic spectrum superiority, train-
the Army Aviation and Missile
attached to the launcher. The sight is
ing and equipping EW forces, and
Command at Redstone Arsenal.
data linked to the missile. Wireless
strengthening partnerships with
Versions of the TOW missile have
TOW missiles include an RF trans-
allies, industry, and academia.
been in the U.S. inventory since 1970.
mitter added to the missile case and
This U.S. Department of Defense
The multimission TOW 2A,
(DOD) EW strategy took on new
TOW 2B, TOW 2B aero, and TOW
missile. When the missile fires, the
urgency following Russia’s suc-
bunker-buster missile is one of
RF transmitter in the launcher relays
cessful use of advanced EW tech-
the primary precision anti-armor,
information to the missile while in
nologies in Ukraine and the pace
anti-fortification, and anti-amphibi-
flight. The operator keeps the sight
of global technological progress
ous landing weapons used through-
fixed on the target — even if the tar-
in the area of EW systems.
out the world today.
get is moving — to guide the mis-
TOW missiles can be fired
sile to its target. Original versions
BAE, General Dynamics, Airbus to develop tactical hotspot for British Army
from all TOW launchers, includ-
of the TOW, which were called the
ing the Improved Target Acquisition
tube-launched, optically-tracked,
Systems (ITAS), Stryker anti-tank
wire-guided missile, trailed a thin
BAE Systems, Airbus, and
guided missile vehicle (modified
wire that relayed information to the
General Dynamics (GD) have
ITAS), and Bradley Fighting Vehicles
missile from the sight.
partnered to develop the Strike
(Improved Bradley Acquisition
Tactical Hotspot concept demon-
Subsystem). TOW launchers can be
do the work in Tucson, Ariz., and
strator, a new network technolo-
mounted to a wide variety of vehi-
Farmington, N.M., and should be
gy for the British Army. Tactical
cles, including the Humvee, and
finished by December 2018.
Hotspot is a compact mobile dig-
can be placed in improvised ground
ital communications set that
fortifications for front-line infan-
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit
can be deployed securely in
try use. Versions of the TOW mis-
Raytheon Missile Systems online
sile also can be fired from Light
at www.raytheon.com.
26
1710mae_26 26
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
an RF receiver located inside the
On this order, Raytheon will
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:20 AM
Orbital ATK to upgrade 230 AARGM anti-radar missiles BY John
Keller
PATUXENT RIVER NAS, Md. —
U.S. Navy
an armored vehicle to enable front-line troops to communicate securely with their comThe AGM-88E AARGM missile is designed to suppress enemy air defenses by homing-in on and killing hostile radar installations.
air warfare experts are upgrad-
mand headquarters. When fitted to an adapted, Panther armored combat vehicle with self-erecting radio masts, the Hotspot
ing 230 air-to-ground, radar-killing
seeker, global positioning system/
can provide secure connectiv-
AGM-88B High Speed Anti-Radiation
inertial navigation system guidance,
ity over several miles. It can
Missile (HARM) systems to the AGM-
net-centric connectivity, and weap-
maneuver alongside the British
88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided
on-impact-assessment transmit.
Army’s medium strike brigade
Missile (AARGM) to equip the ser-
The new missile offers improved
for continuous secure commu-
vice’s carrier-based fighter-bombers
capabilities over the HARM systems
nications on the move. Under
and electronic warfare jets.
it replaces, including advanced sig-
a contract worth $1.62 million,
nal processing, improved frequen-
BAE will supply two experimen-
Command at Patuxent River Naval
Officials of the Naval Air Systems
cy coverage, detection range, and
tal Strike Tactical Hotspots to the
Air Station, Md., announced a $156.8
field of view; time-critical, standoff
British Army.
million contract to the Orbital ATK
strike; missile-impact zone control
Defense Electronic Systems seg-
to prevent collateral damage; count-
ment in Northridge, Calif., to con-
er-emitter shutdown through active
vert AGM-88B HARM munitions into
millimeter-wave radar terminal guid-
Navy electronic warfare helicopters to help defend ships from missile attack
230 AGM-88E AARGM all-up-rounds.
ance; and bomb damage assessment.
The U.S. Navy and Lockheed
The contract, which involves lot 6
The AARGM features new soft-
Martin Corp. have wrapped up
of AARGM production, includes six
ware and enhanced capabilities to
a preliminary design review of a
captive air training missiles, sup-
counter radar shutdown and passive
helicopter-based electronic war-
plies, services, spare parts, and fleet
radar using an additional active mil-
fare (EW) pod designed to help
deployment.
limeter-wave seeker. Previous ver-
ship crews detect and respond
sions of the missile could be spoofed
to anti-ship missile threats.
88 missile is compatible with U.S.
by turning off radar before the
Lockheed Martin officials say
and allied strike aircraft, including
weapon could lock on to their sig-
their company’s Advanced Off-
the F/A-18 fighter bomber, EA-18G
nals. The missile has been in full
Board Electronic Warfare (AOEW)
electronic warfare jet, Tornado, F-16,
production since 2012.
Active Mission Payload AN/ALQ-
The newest version of the AGM-
and F-35. The missile program is a
The missile will be integrated
248 system aboard MH-60 heli-
joint venture by the U.S. Department
onto the F/A-18C/D, F/A-18E/F, EA-18G,
copters provides the aircraft with
of Defense (DOD) and the Italian
and Tornado ECR aircraft and lat-
surveillance and EW capabili-
Ministry of Defense. The AGM-88E
er on the F-35. On this contract, ATK
ties against anti-ship threats with
provides the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine
will do the work in Northridge, Calif.,
radio-frequency countermea-
Corps, and Italian air force with the
and Ridgecrest, Calif., and should be
sures. AOEW can function inde-
ability to engage and destroy ene-
finished by March 2019.
pendently or work with the ship’s
my air defenses and time-critical mobile targets.
SEWIP Block 2 AN/SLQ-32(V)6 FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Orbital
electronic surveillance sensor to
ATK Defense Electronic Systems
detect and assess the trajectory
digital, anti-radiation homing sen-
online at www.orbitalatk.com/defense-
of incoming missile threats.
sor, millimeter-wave radar terminal
systems/defense-electronic-systems.
The AARGM boasts an advanced,
www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_27 27
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
27
10/11/17 8:20 AM
UN M A N N ED
vehicles
contract to develop a power-ef-
Orbital ATK to develop hypersonic propulsion for aircraft, UAVs, and missiles
ficient illuminator for night-
BY John
time operations of the Coastal
ARLINGTON, Va. —
Battlefield Reconnaissance and
experts at Orbital ATK Inc. in Elkton,
Analysis (COBRA) system. The
Md., are helping U.S. government
COBRA multispectral illuminator
researchers develop a full-scale reus-
will provide broadband light with
able propulsion system for future
and missile propulsion confronts
sufficient electro-optical illumi-
hypersonic aircraft and missiles
engineers with two difficult chal-
nation for the COBRA camera to
that can fly at least five times the
lenges. First, the top speed of tradi-
operate under all light conditions.
speed of sound.
tional jet-turbine engines maxes out
Navy funds Bodkin Design to develop light source for nighttime reconnaissance Bodkin Design & Engineering LLC in Newton, Mass., won a $1.5 million U.S. Navy research
The COBRA airborne payload is
Keller
Aviation propulsion
Officials of the U.S. Defense
Orbital ATK is developing hypersonic propulsion for future generations of U.S. manned and unmanned aircraft, as well as missiles. Developing hypersonic aircraft
at roughly Mach 2.5. Second, hyper-
carried on the MQ-8 Fire Scout
Advanced Research Projects Agency
sonic engines such as scramjets can-
unmanned aircraft.
(DARPA) in Arlington, Va., have
not provide effective thrust at speeds
announced a $21.4 million contract
much below Mach 3.5.
Insitu to provide six ScanEagle unmanned aircraft for Philippines
to ATK for the Advanced Full Range
The AFRE program seeks to com-
Engine (AFRE) program. This project
bine the best commercially available
seeks to develop and ground-demon-
technologies in jet turbine engines
Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)
strate a full-scale, reusable turbine-
and ramjet/scramjet technologies.
designers at Insitu Inc., a subsid-
based combined-cycle (TBCC) pro-
iary of Boeing, in Bingen, Wash.,
pulsion system for future hyper-
hybrid system that would combine
will build six ScanEagle small
sonic aircraft. TBCC combines a
and improve upon the best off-the-
UAVs for the government of the
turbine engine for low-speed oper-
shelf turbine and ramjet/scramjet
Philippines under terms of a $7.4
ations with a ramjet/scramjet for
technologies,” says Christopher Clay,
U.S. Navy order. Officials of the
high-speed operations via a common
the DARPA AFRE program manager.
Naval Air Systems Command at
inlet and nozzle.
“With recent advances in manufac-
Patuxent River Naval Air Station,
Reliable hypersonic propulsion
“We’re envisioning an inventive
turing methods, modeling, and other
Md., are asking Insitu to pro-
technology will be necessary for
disciplines, we believe this poten-
vide six ScanEagle UAVs, support
future generations of high-speed
tially ground-breaking achievement
equipment, training, site activa-
manned and unmanned military
may finally be within reach.”
tion, technical services, and data
aircraft, as well as for next-gener-
for the Philippines. The ScanEagle
ation anti-ship missiles and other
gram calls for Orbital ATK to con-
UAV is 5.1 feet long with a 5.6-foot
smart munitions, DARPA officials
duct system design, subscale and
wingspan weighing as much as
say. Hypersonic propulsion may
large-scale component development,
48.5 pounds. Able to carry a 7.5-
enable military aircraft and missiles
and ground demonstration.
pound sensor payload, the UAV
to fly from long ranges with short
can fly for more than 24 hours
response times compared to current
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Orbital
military systems.
ATK online at www.orbitalatk.com.
28
1710mae_28 28
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
The first phase of the AFRE pro-
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:20 AM
Raytheon to upgrade venerable Tomahawk missile for next-gen, anti-ship role
at altitudes as high as 19.500
BY John
ScanEagle can carry a sensor
Keller
feet, and at speeds to 80 knots.
Raytheon and Navy experts are determining the most appropri-
payload consisting of visible-light
munitions experts at the Raytheon
ate type of sensor for the Maritime
camera, medium-wave infra-
Co. are upgrading the venera-
Strike Tomahawk. It could be a
red imager, or both integrated in
ble Tomahawk land-attack missile
multi-mode seeker with a mix of
one turret. The UAV also has an
(TLAM) for the anti-ship role with
passive and active sensors.
analog digitally encrypted video
PATUXENT RIVER NAS, Md. —
Smart
a new sensor system to enable the
The upgrade of Tomahawk
data link, as well as encrypted or
weapon to attack moving enemy
land-attack missiles to maritime
unencrypted command-and-con-
ships at sea.
strike variants also will involve war-
trol data link. The UAV can be
Officials of the U.S. Naval Air
head enhancements, and technology
launched autonomously and uses
Systems Command at Patuxent
to enable the new missiles to operate
a no-nets recovery system that
River Naval Air Station, Md.,
in areas where GPS satellite naviga-
recovers with its wing tip on a
announced a $119 million order
tion signals are jammed or otherwise
rope that hangs from a boom.
to the Raytheon Missile Systems
inoperative.
segment in Tucson, Ariz., to inte-
The first of the Maritime Attack
grate seeker suite technology and
Tomahawk missiles should be ready
Athena laser weapon shoots down five drones
processing capabilities into the
by the early 2020s. A supersonic ver-
Lockheed Martin has released
Tactical Tomahawk Block IV missile
sion of the Tomahawk with a ramjet
footage from tests with its laser weapon system, revealing how the Advanced Test High Energy Asset (Athena) laser weapon can deliver an invisible killing blow to take down an enemy drone. In the tests conducted at New Mexico’s White Sands Missile Range, the prototype laser weapon shot down five unmanned Outlaw aircraft. The video shows the moment flames burst from the tails of the flying
Raytheon is working with the Navy to upgrade the venerable Tomahawk cruise missile to attack moving targets and perhaps fill a next-generation, anti-ship missile need.
drones one by one before they plummet toward the ground, as the silent attack causes loss
in support of the Maritime Strike
to increase its speed to Mach 3 is
of control and structural fail-
Tomahawk Program.
under consideration. On this order,
ure. Lockheed Martin and the
Raytheon will do the work in Tucson,
U.S. Army’s Space and Missile
trade studies, architecture, model-
Ariz.; Dallas; Boulder, Colo.; and at
Defense Command conducted
ing, simulation development, evalu-
other locations, and should be fin-
the tests using the 30-kilo-
ation, and prototyping activities for
ished by August 2019.
watt-class Athena system. See
The order provides for analysis,
an anti-ship missile version of the
the video online at https://youtu.
Tomahawk, which will be called the
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit
Maritime Strike Tomahawk variant.
Raytheon at www.raytheon.com.
www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_29 29
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MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
29
10/11/17 8:20 AM
ELECTRO O OPTICS
watch c
Optics and laser gun sight for machine guns introduced by B.E. Meyers Wash., is introducing the BOARS-
Raytheon to upgrade Marine Corps CH-53E helicopter cockpit displays
M2 — short for B.E. Meyers Optics
BY John
& Accessories Rail System — optics
PATUXENT RIVER NAS, Md. —
and laser accessory rail gun sight
designers at Raytheon Co. will pro-
system for M2, M2A1, and M3 .50
duce 63 smart multifunction color
caliber heavy machine guns. The
display (SMFCD) B-kits to upgrade the
BOARS-M2 is a low-profile mount
avionics aboard U.S. Marine Corps
that offers a quick-disconnect with
CH-53E heavy-lift helicopters under a
return-to-zero reattach. Key fea-
$15.1 million U.S. Navy order.
B.E. Meyers & Co. Inc. in Redmond,
tures for the BOARS-M2 include: a
Keller
Avionics
Officials of the Naval Air Systems
The smart multifunction color display (SMFCD) consolidates all the CH-53E helicopter’s survivability information, blue force tracking, and some time-sensitive threat information onto one display.
quick detach optics and laser rail,
Command at Patuxent River Naval
snag-free design, non-marring
Air Station, Md., are asking Raytheon
installation, low-height over bore,
Intelligence, Information, and
and oversized pass-through aper-
Services in Indianapolis to produce
ture for use with iron sights.
these cockpit display upgrade kits.
the need for a separate pen tablet
Marine Corps leaders are attempting
computer to display aircraft posi-
two parts: the lower base and a
The BOARS-M2 is composed of
to reduce the number of lost aircraft
tion. The SMFCD can accommodate
quick-detach optics and accessory
and personnel due to poor situation-
future aircraft modifications, such
rail. This allows for quick and effec-
al awareness.
as Situational Awareness Data Link
tive changes between day and night
CH-53E air crews need to be able
(SADL), LARS V12, and Intelligence
optics without any loss of zero. The
to process, filter, sort, and display
mount also simplifies cleaning and
information from various sources
The CH-53E Super Stallion by
maintenance. While legacy systems
to enhance situational awareness.
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. in Stratford,
require users to remove the optic
The smart displays consolidate all
Conn., is a three-engine heavy-lift
and mount — resulting in a com-
the helicopter’s survivability infor-
helicopter used to transport Marine
plete loss of zero — the BOARS-M2
mation, blue force tracking, and
Corps infantrymen and equipment
requires only the quick-detach of
some time-sensitive threat informa-
from landing ships offshore to inva-
the optics and accessory rail, which
tion onto one display. Marine Corps
sion beaches, and for general-pur-
preserves optic zero after reinstall-
CH-53 crews have all this informa-
pose, heavy-lift helicopter operations.
ing all components.
tion today, but must view it in different places in the cockpit.
DARPA smart sensor
The SMFCD has its own integrat-
Broadcast Receiver.
Raytheon engineers are modifying the company’s existing SMFCD to meet the updated requirements,
powered by the infrared it is designed to detect
ed processor, which enables pilots
integrate a prototype SMFCD sys-
to display and manipulate current
tem into a CH-53E helicopter, per-
Researchers at Northeastern
data streams cleanly using one col-
form qualification and aircraft
University have developed a
or display screen for each pilot. This
flight testing, as well as build and
next-generation smart sensor for
SMFCD enables the CH-53E air crew
install prototype displays. On this
the Defense Advanced Research
to view forward-looking infrared
order, Raytheon will do the work
Projects Agency (DARPA) that is
(FLIR) picture information with intu-
in Indianapolis, and should be fin-
capable of identifying infrared
itive hover display, aircraft flight
ished by August 2020
(IR) wavelengths — without hav-
instrument data, integrated mov-
ing to have its own always-present
ing map display, and real-time threat
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Ray-
display. This approach can eliminate
theon online at www.raytheon.com.
30
1710mae_30 30
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:20 AM
power source. Instead, the smart
Lockheed Aculight eyes high-power laser to defend tactical aircraft BY John
sensor is powered by the same infrared wavelengths for which it’s designed to look. The sensor was developed as part of
Keller
KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. —
DARPA’s Near Zero Power RF and Laser
Sensor Operation (N-ZERO) pro-
weapons experts at Lockheed
gram and could be used for a wide
Martin Corp. are helping the U.S.
range of things, including detect-
Air Force develop a compact, rug-
ing approaching human bodies
gedized, high-power laser to
or fuel-burning cars, identify-
defend tactical aircraft flying at or above the speed of sound from enemy aircraft and missiles. Officials of the Laser Division
Lockheed Martin Aculight is developing a prototype laser for potential use aboard tactical aircraft to defend against enemy planes, missiles, and other airborne threats.
of the Air Force Research
ing wildfires before they become uncontrollable, or pairing with laser sources for new types of remote control and communication applications. The sensors are
Laboratory’s Directed Energy
in a pod attached to a fighter-sized
based on tiny mechanical switch-
Directorate at Kirtland Air Force
aircraft.
es that are triggered by specif-
Base, N.M., announced a $26.3 mil-
Air Force researchers are asking
ic wavelength of lights. When this
lion contract to Lockheed Martin
Aculight to demonstrate a rugge-
happens, they utilize the energy
Aculight in Bothell, Wash., for the
dized, high-power laser subsystem
contained in these wavelengths to
Laser Advancements for Next-
for flight testing on the Northrop
mechanically close a pair of elec-
generation Compact Environments
Grumman aircraft-attached
trical contacts, creating a low-re-
(LANCE) project. LANCE seeks
SHiELD pod. This laser must min-
sistance electrical connection
to explore ways of reducing risk
imize beam quality degradation
between a battery and a load.
for laser weapons on aircraft.
under the stressing flight condi-
Lockheed Martin Aculight experts
tions of high-performance tactical
will help advance the state of the
aircraft.
art in laser technologies, demon-
Aculight experts will quantify
BAE Systems developing technology to protect pilots from laser attacks
strate performance, and assess the
the performance of this airborne
BAE Systems engineers have
operational utility of a laser weap-
defensive laser system for laser
developed a low-cost, lightweight,
on small enough to fit on tactical
output power, electrical-to-optical
flexible system that can block
aircraft like jet fighters.
efficiency, power stability, beam jit-
dangerous laser light, protecting
ter, and power in the bucket. The
pilots and flight crew from hostile
Air Force’s Self-protect High Energy
laser must be able to withstand
attacks. The laser-protection tech-
Laser Demonstrator (SHiELD) pro-
the G loads and vibration of tacti-
nique for aircraft is selective in the
gram to develop and assess a high-
cal aircraft maneuvers, and must
way it prevents laser transmission,
energy laser for use against enemy
be ready for flight demonstra-
meaning a high level of natural
aircraft, missiles, and other air-
tions by 2021.
light still can pass through the can-
The LANCE project is part of the
borne threats. On the SHiELD pro-
On this contract, Lockheed
opy with minimal color distortion.
gram, Northrop Grumman Corp.
Martin Aculight will do the work in
Pilots are protected from dangerous
Aerospace Systems in Redondo
Bothell, Wash., and should be fin-
laser incidents with no deteriora-
Beach, Calif., is developing beam-
ished by September 2022.
tion in vision. Laser attacks target-
control technology to protect cur-
ing pilots and air crews are a major
rent and future fighter aircraft with
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit
concern, and can distract pilots,
directed-energy systems. Northrop
Lockheed Martin online at www.
obscure instruments, and cause
Grumman is using a laser housed
lockheedmartin.com.
short-lived ‘flash’ blindness.
www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_31 31
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
31
10/11/17 8:20 AM
PRODUCT
applic at ions MUNITIONS
Raytheon to build lightweight missile to arm UAVs and aircraft
unpowered precision munition
U.S. Air Force airborne weapons
from a rear cargo door or a door-
experts are asking the Raytheon
mounted launcher. Griffin Block
THERMAL MANAGEMENT
Co. to build a lightweight missile
II B is a short-range missile that
and glide bomb that features low
can be fired from UAVs as well
collateral damage and is suit-
as manned helicopters, attack
Global Technical providing thermal management for shipboard embedded computing
able for launch from a variety of
aircraft, U.S. Air Force AC-130W
U.S. Navy shipboard electronics
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs),
gunships, and U.S. Marine Corps
experts needed ways to tap shipwide
military manned aircraft, and
KC-130J tankers.
air conditioning to provide thermal
surface warships.
that can be dropped by aircraft
Griffin is less than half the
embedded computing racks and
offers GPS-aided inertial guidance
cabinets. They found their solution
and a semi-active laser seeker.
from Global Technical Systems in
It has a 10-mile range when air-
Virginia Beach, Va.
launched, and a 3-mile range
Officials of the Air Force Life
management for onboard rackmount
weight of a Hellfire round and
Officials of the Naval Air Warfare
when launched from the surface.
Center Aircraft Division in Lakehurst,
Three Griffins can be carried in
N.J., announced an $11.9 million
place of one Hellfire. The Griffin
order to Global Technical Systems
missile and launch assembly is
to develop and deploy an efficient
also lighter than the Hellfire,
cooling system for Navy ship-
Cycle Management Center at Eglin
allowing more to be mounted on
board computers.
Air Force Base, Fla., announced
the Predator.
a $104.9 million contract to the
The U.S. Navy has tested the
This order involves the third phase of the Navyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Improved,
Raytheon Missile Systems seg-
Griffin as a laser-guided ship-
Flexible Infrastructure Compatible,
ment in Tucson, Ariz., to build,
board missile to attack fast-mov-
Open-Loop Air-Cooled Computer
test, and support the AGM-176
ing small boats. Raytheon also
Rack and Cabinet project, which
Griffin missile.
is developing the Griffin C with
seeks to eliminate standard com-
Griffin is a lightweight, pre-
dual-mode guidance; and the
puter cooling fans by bringing in
cision-guided munition that can
Griffin C-ER, which will be an
cooled air from the shipâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s heating,
launch from the ground, from the
extended-range missile.
ventilation, and air conditioning
air as a rocket-powered missile,
On this contract, Raytheon
(HVAC) systems and exhausting hot
or drop from the air as a guided
will do the work in Tucson,
air from the top of the computer
bomb. It carries a relatively small
Ariz., and should be finished by
racks near air returns.
13-pound warhead for low-collat-
December 2018.
eral damage, as well as for use in irregular warfare. The munition comes in two versions. Griffin A is an
Global Technical Systems experts will help the Navy install and eval-
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit
uate a new air conditioning and
Raytheon Missile Systems online
electronics thermal-management
at www.raytheon.com.
system appropriate for naval vessels. If tests are promising, this
32
1710mae_32 32
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:20 AM
computer thermal management sys-
system updates and changes occur. It
common rack and launcher test set
tem first may be installed aboard the
could help eliminate large amounts
(CRALTS) which has reliability and
America-class amphibious assault
of HVAC ducting, reduce the need
obsolescence issues.
ship USS Bougainville (LHA-8), which
to rebalance the HVAC system, and
will be built at the Huntington
reduce costs, Navy officials say.
Ingalls Industries shipyard in
The PAS interfaces with the CAATS to test the LAU-7 and LAU127 high-pressure, pure air gener-
Pascagoula, Miss., and delivered to
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Global
ator (HiPPAG) weapons launchers.
the Navy in 2024. Experts are explor-
Technical Systems at http://gts.us.com.
It provides pressure test capability
ing outfitting spaces aboard the
to evaluate emerging pneumatic
Bougainville with electronics cooling
TEST AND MEASUREMENT
pressure release launchers, such
systems mounted to the deck and
Behlman to provide avionics test equipment for Navy weapons launchers
as the Joint Miniature Munitions
and cabinets use side- and back-
U.S. Navy aircraft weapons experts
launcher carries and deploys the
mounted fans and require a duct
needed avionics test and measure-
connected to the ship’s HVAC sys-
ment equipment for missile and
tem to remove heat from shipboard
weapons launchers aboard the F/A-18
computer rooms. Global Technical
jet fighter bomber and other combat
Systems has developed more effi-
aircraft. They found their solution
cient cooling for individual computer
from Behlman Electronics Inc. in
racks and cabinets using below-deck
Hauppauge, N.Y.
bulkheads, and in the overhead. Today’s standard computer racks
HVAC system supply air. In the project’s first and second
Bomb Rack Unit. The LAU-7 air-to-air missile
Officials of the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division in Lakehurst,
phases, Global Technical Systems
N.J., announced a $21.7 million con-
AIM-9 heat-seeking missile and
developed a prototype air-cooled
tract to Behlman to build as many
instrumentation pods on Navy
computer rack system, and estab-
as 180 Common Aircraft Armament
and Marine Corps F/A-18 fight-
lished its feasibility with component
Test Sets (CAATS) and 100 Pure
er-bombers. The LAU-127 missile
testing and analytical modeling. Now
Air Generator System Adapter Sets
rail launcher, meanwhile, enables
the company will refine this proto-
(PAGS PAS). The CAATS/PAS helps
the F/A-18 to carry and launch the
type for realistic shipboard testing.
test and troubleshoot U.S. Navy,
radar-guided AIM-120 Advanced
Not only will this system cool
Marine Corps, and international
Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile
individual computer racks with ship-
military bomb racks, missile launch-
(AMRAAM) and AIM-9X advanced
board air conditioning, but it also
ers, pylons and emerging weapons
heat-seeking missile.
will control the supply of cool air
carriage devices across most aircraft
to compensate for varying cooling
weapons systems at the intermedi-
trical and mechanical interface
demands. The system prototype will
ate maintenance level.
between the AMRAAM and AIM-9X
maintain existing computer rack
Behlman will build weapons-
The LAU-127 provides the elec-
missiles and the F/A-18 aircraft,
size, shape, weight, and shock-mount
launcher test and measurement
as well as two-way data transfer
effectiveness, and demonstrate reli-
equipment for the Navy and Marine
between the missile and the air-
ability and performance that is bet-
Corps, as well as the militaries of
craft’s cockpit controls and displays.
ter than current shipboard computer
Spain, Italy, Finland, and Kuwait.
On this contract, Behlman will
thermal-management approaches. This approach could reduce the
The CAATS system tests rack
do the work in Hauppauge, N.Y., and
and launcher weapons interfaces off
Indianapolis, and should be finished
need for new computer rack foun-
the aircraft prior to the loading of
by September 2020.
dations and HVAC ducting, and
ordnance to ensure proper system
help the Navy reconfigure on-board
functionality and safety. The CAATS/
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Behlman
electronics and computer spaces as
PAS replaces the legacy A/E37T-35A
Electronics at www.behlman.com.
www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_33 33
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
33
10/11/17 8:20 AM
new products
To submit new products for consideration, contact John Keller at jkeller@pennwell.com.
MISSION COMPUTERS
display computer is for applications
capacity of 2 terabytes with AES
Rugged embedded computing system for developing avionics mission computers introduced by Abaco
in degraded visual environments,
256 encrypted data-at-rest. The
complex scene rendering, or driv-
pocket-sized GSA facilitates expe-
ing several independent displays
ditionary operations and enables
all requiring extensive GPU pro-
the operator to connect with vir-
Abaco Systems in Huntsville,
cessing capabilities.
tually any computer via USB 3.0 exchange pre- and post-mission
Ala., is introducing the Lightning embedded computing system
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Abaco
for developing rugged embedded
Systems online at www.abaco.com.
data rapidly. FOR MORE INFORMATION visit
DATA STORAGE
Kaman Memory online at www.
Memory and data exchange system for military data storage introduced by Kaman
kamanmemory.com.
The Memory Division of Kaman Precision Products in Middletown,
Intel Xeon VME single-board computer introduced by Mercury
Conn., is introducing the Advanced
Mercury Systems Inc. in Andover,
Memory and Data Exchange
Mass., is introducing the Ensemble
BOARD PRODUCTS
Universal System (AMADEUS) for mission computers for avionics
use in harsh-environment military,
and other mission-critical sys-
aerospace, and industrial data stor-
tems. Lightning-based systems are
age applications. The AMADEUS
designed with I/O customization
includes the model 9740 Multi-Port
to help systems integrators reduce
data transfer unit which includes
development cost and time. The
four removable memory cards
first two Lightning-enabled systems — the MCS1000 and GVC2000
4000 series SBC4510 Intel Xeon E3
— were announced in September.
v6-based VME single-board com-
The rugged, small-form-factor
puter for existing VME-based, sen-
MCS1000 mission or display com-
sor-processing embedded com-
puter is for I/O-rich applications
puting applications that supply 50
with several target platforms or
watts or less. The computer board
interfaces. The system has the
will enable technology insertion of
Intel Xeon E3 processor combined
modern high-performance and sys-
with a CoreAVI (or AMD) E8860
tem-security engineering solutions
GPU, as much as 16 gigabytes of
(RMC) and a mini-Ground Station
with system security engineering
DDR4 SDRAM and an XMC site.
Adapter (GSA). The model 9740 pro-
capabilities — a key enabler for
This system is for avionics mission
vides simultaneous data interface
foreign military sales and direct
computer and display applications
over 10 Gigabit Ethernet, Mil-Std
commercial sales. The single-slot
such as sensor fusion and sensor
1553, and RS-232/422, as well as
computer board is compatible with
processing, or as a data processing
options to record multiple SMPTE
legacy VME64 systems, and sup-
and display computer. The rug-
292 and NTSC (RS-170) video/audio
ports Linux and VxWorks oper-
ged, small-form-factor GVC2000
channels. Each Kaman RMC has a
ating systems It offers a secure
34
1710mae_34 34
OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:20 AM
hypervisor to enable legacy appli-
power electronics device operates
temperature range of -55 to 125
cations to run in their own con-
in temperatures from -55 to 125
degrees Celsius.
tainers independently of the
degrees Celsius, and has military
underlying system software and
processing options.
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Crane
Aerospace & Electronics online at
hardware. Several applications can run simultaneously in a virtualized
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit DDC
environment to take advantage of
online at www.ddc-web.com.
www.interpoint.com. INTERCONNECTS
the increase in performance of the Intel Xeon processor.
RAD-HARD SPACE
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit
Radiation-tolerant DC-DC converters introduced by Crane Aerospace
Connectors to help eliminate backplanes introduced by TE Connectivity
Mercury Systems online at www.
Crane Aerospace & Electronics
TE Connectivity in Harrisburg, Pa.,
mrcy.com/SBC4510.
is introducing the cabled STRADA Whisper connectors to help elim-
POWER ELECTRONICS
inate the need for printed cir-
High-power electric motor drive for military applications introduced by DDC
cuit board (PCB) backplanes in
Data Device Corp. (DDC) in
cabled STRADA Whisper connec-
Bohemia, N.Y., is introducing the
tors can support 25- to 56-giga-
PWR-82335 high-power, three-
bit-per-second PAM-4, with future
high-performance computing (HPC) and core routing applications. The
phase bridge electric motor drive
in Redmond, Wash., is intro-
for harsh-environment, space-con-
ducing the SMHF42 space-grade
strained defense and aerospace
DC-DC converters for space sys-
applications. The PWR-82335 is
tems integrators who need radiation-tolerant power electronics that support 42- and 50-volt power buses. Crane Interpoint DC-DC converters are used on satellites and space systems, including Mars Rovers, Cygnus, Aquarius, GLONASS, ISS, Dawn, and many
expansion to 56-gigabit-per-sec-
more. The SMHF42 is a family of
ond NRZ. Cabled STRADA Whisper
designed to deliver current pre-
isolated 15-watt power electron-
connectors also reduce insertion
cisely to windings of three-phase
ics products with a range of single
loss for improved channel mar-
brush and brushless DC motors,
and dual outputs, operating over
gin. Connection options expand if
with a high-efficiency MOSFET
an input voltage range of 35 to 55
they are not being tied to a circuit
drive stage. The rugged, compact,
volts with 80-volt transient protec-
board, company officials say. TE
three-phase motor drive hybrid
tion. They are available in Class H
offers three main cabled STRADA
uses a high-efficiency MOSFET
and Class K versions (per MIL-PRF
Whisper solutions: point-to-point
drive stage with a 200-volt DC rat-
38534) with radiation tolerance of L
cable, value-add assemblies, and a
ing to deliver a high-speed switch-
and R. The power supplies are reli-
full backplane/midplane solution.
ing frequency as high as 50 kHz,
able under harsh conditions, have
and a high-current capability of as
small hermetically sealed pack-
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit TE
much as 30 amps to the motor. The
ages and operate over the military
Connectivity online at www.te.com.
www.militaryaerospace.com
1710mae_35 35
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
OCTOBER 2017
35
10/11/17 8:20 AM
new products EMBEDDED COMPUTING
Aitech, ADLINK ruggedize Xeon 3U VPX board for harsh-environment applications
GROUP PUBLISHER Alan Bergstein
Aitech Defense Systems Inc. in Chatsworth, Calif., and
603 891-9447 ⁄ alanb@pennwell�com
ADLINK Technology Inc. in San Jose, Calif., are working
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF John Keller
together to ruggedize ADLINK’s newest Xeon-based 3U VPX
EXECUTIVE EDITOR Courtney E. Howard
603 891-9117 ⁄ jkeller@pennwell�com
embedded computing blade for use in mission-critical aero-
509 413-1522 ⁄ courtney@pennwell�com
space and defense harsh-environment applications. This
702 434-3903 ⁄ jrwilson@pennwell�com
partnership brings Aitech’s system integration capabilities for rugged, harsh-environment, and military-qualified electronics to ADLINK’s range of embedded computing solu-
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR WESTERN BUREAU J. R. Wilson ART DIRECTOR Meg Fuschetti PRODUCTION MANAGER Sheila Ward SENIOR ILLUSTRATOR Chris Hipp AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Debbie Bouley
tions. It also enables Aitech to provide powerful Xeon-based
603 891-9372 ⁄ debbieb@pennwell�com AD SERVICES MANAGER Glenda Van Duyne
systems tailored to an
918 831-9473 ⁄ glendav@pennwell�com
application’s require-
MARKETING MANAGER Gillian Hinkle
603 891-9126 ⁄ gillianh@pennwell�com
ments, with different configurations that include user-defined I/O
www�pennwell�com
ports, graphics cards,
EDITORIAL OFFICES
and frame grabbers. Operating in a range of -40 to 75 degrees Celsius in air- and conduction-cooled ver-
PennWell Corporation, Military & Aerospace Electronics 61 Spit Brook Road, Suite 401, Nashua, NH 03060 603 891-0123 • FAX 603 891-0514 • www�milaero�com
sions, the 3U VPX single-slot C876 single-board computer
SALES OFFICES EASTERN US & EASTERN CANADA & UK
serves as the heart of the rugged subsystems and uses the
Bob Collopy, Sales Manager 603 891-9398 ⁄ Cell 603 233-7698 FAX 603 686-7580 ⁄ bobc@pennwell�com
Intel Xeon D-1500 multi-core processor.
WESTERN CANADA & WEST OF MISSISSIPPI
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Aitech online at www.rugged.
com, or ADLINK at www.adlinktech.com.
Jay Mendelson, Sales Manager 4957 Chiles Drive, San Jose, CA 95136 408 221-2828 ⁄ jaym@pennwell�com REPRINTS Jessica Stremmel
717 505-9701 x2205 ⁄ Jessica�stremmel@theygsgroup�com DIRECTOR LIST RENTAL Kelli Berry
918 831-9782 ⁄ kellib@pennwell�com
A DV E R T I S E RS I N D E X ADVERTISER
PAGE
For assistance with marketing strategy or ad creation, please contact PennWell Marketing Solutions Paul Andrews, Vice President 240 595-2352 ⁄ pandrews@pennwell�com
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CORPOR ATE OFFICERS CHAIRMAN Robert F. Biolchini
Dawn VME �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������9
VICE CHAIRMAN Frank T. Lauinger
Ecrin Systems ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 15 Electromagnetic Technologies Industries Inc� ��������������������������������������������������������������������������17 Extreme Engineering Solutions ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������C4 Holt Integrated Circuits����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13 ODU USA Inc� ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������7
PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Mark C. Wilmoth EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT AND STRATEGY Jayne A. Gilsinger SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, FINANCE AND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Brian Conway
TECHNOLOGY GROUP SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT/PUBLISHING DIRECTOR Christine Shaw
Pasternack Enterprises ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� C2, 3, 19 Phoenix International ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������37
SUBSCRIP TION INQUIRIES
Pico Electronics Inc����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������1
Phone: 1-800-869-6882 / Fax: 1-866-658-6156 E-mail: MAEM@kmpsgroup.com Web: www.mae-subscribe.com
RGB Spectrum ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������37 Systel Inc��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������21 Themis Computer ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������5 Z Microsystems ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13
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OCTOBER 2017
MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS
www.militaryaerospace.com
10/11/17 8:20 AM
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