17 septembre 2023 | International, C4ISR, Sécurité
The Ukraine war has reaffirmed the vital importance of enabling militaries to communicate faster, more efficiently and safely with each other.
2 février 2023 | International, Naval
Additive manufacturing could build certain metal pieces more reliably, faster and in higher volume than traditional methods, Navy and industry leaders say.
24 avril 2022 | International, Terrestre
Up to 40 vehicles are needed in the long term, and could come from either from New Zealand or other countries where they're available, according to military sources in Chile.
17 septembre 2018 | International, C4ISR
By: Kelsey Atherton U.S. Special Operations Command awarded the Sierra Nevada Corporation Aug. 23 a contract worth $47 million to keep supplying and maintaining the software it uses in to ensure radios can communicate with one another across frequencies. Dubbed, TRAX, for “Tactical Radio Application eXtension,” the software “fills a [redacted] role in the Special Operations air-to-ground communication architecture," and it works on Android devices, too. The contract award is available online, and while the text omits several details, what can be seen is clear on why Sierra Nevada Corporation is the only contractor that can meet this need. Convenience is one factor. Sierra Nevada developed the software, so it makes sense to continue, and funding a new or redundant development to work in the same way and with the same interoperability would be added cost for no meaningful, tangible benefit. There is also the matter of specific intellectual property. Sierra Nevada owns the TRAX software. Keeping the TRAX program with the same provider avoids the legal battles and technical issues that could come with trying to replicate it elsewhere. While SOCOM solicited information about an alternative capability, the justification statement argues that whatever that redacted capability is, the decision was made to single track it. In the field, TRAX translates data protocols, allowing for communication across devices that otherwise couldn't speak to each other. While military machines from radios up through planes are designed with the knowledge that they will need to be used together, and often built around shared protocols to match, reality is messier than planning, so a reliable software medium is one way to retain a capability even if the equipment on hand isn't the equipment that was intended. Full article: https://www.c4isrnet.com/c2-comms/2018/09/14/socom-awards-47-million-for-radio-software