13 septembre 2021 | International, Terrestre
Israeli defense company unveils its latest ground robot at DSEI as market for light robotic combat vehicles heats up in the European theater.
6 mai 2024 | International, Terrestre, C4ISR
Washington and other governments have committed billions of dollars of aid to Ukraine, including armored vehicles and secure communication devices.
11 septembre 2019 | International, Terrestre
By: Jen Judson LONDON — A FLIR System that deploys tiny unmanned aerial vehicles from a ruggedized container affixed to the front of a vehicle is helping to shape how advanced teaming can be used on the tactical edge against near peer threats. At DSEI — a major defense exposition in London — the system that deploys Black Hornet UAVs, which is the system chosen by the U.S. Army for the Soldier Borne Sensor program, made its appearance in several variations around the showroom floor. Rheinmetall had it built onto the front of its Mission Master Unmanned Ground System representing a surveillance variant. At Kongsberg, the system is integrated with a remote weapon station. The idea is that the package of tiny UAVs can be forward deployed from a combat vehicle while soldiers stay inside and maintain standoff from enemy forces. The UAVs can perform reconnaissance and possible targeting assistance so the vehicle knows where it can shoot. The data from the UAVs tiny camera can feed right back into the vehicle's weapon station providing intel to the gunner, for instance. The concept was first unveiled in a prototype at the Association of the U.S. Army's annual conference in Washington in 2018, but it is now a full-up system ready for the market, according to Ole Aguirre, FLIR senior director of UIS Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships in the company's unmanned systems and integrated solutions division. The system accommodates four Black Hornets in four individual compartments, which close up to protect the little drones. Two UAVs can be deployed at once while the other two charge using power from the vehicle, Aguirre said. The entire box that can be attached to the front of the vehicle is ruggedized to the level it can withstand the environment of a tank, he added. The system can be controlled from inside the vehicle using the remote weapon station or a tablet or the traditional controls that go with the U.S. Army's Soldier Borne Sensor. It has been built using NATO standards so it can be integrated into command and control systems. Placing the box of UAVs outside of the vehicle is important so that a soldier wouldn't have to open up the hatch on a vehicle to throw one out and space is highly limited inside most tanks and combat vehicles. The Black Hornet's range is roughly a 2,000 meter radius, but FLIR is looking at how to extend the range of the UAV to meet a requirement defined by a pacing threat of 3,000 meters, Aguirre said. Because the system is versatile, it can be used on small UGVs all the way up to tanks and so FLIR sees opportunity across the U.S. Army's many vehicle modernization programs and also with current systems. The company is investing heavily in evaluating utility for the U.S. Army, Aguirre added, but there is also strong international interest in Europe and the Middle East particularly. The system is a step forward in conceiving feasible integration concepts for advanced teaming between UAVs and manned and unmanned ground vehicles. Two years ago at DSEI, there was a striking lack of integration of unmanned aircraft systems into vehicle concepts. For example, Finnish defense company Patria was the only one to display a concept integrating a drone with a vehicle — mounting the hand-launched Black Hornet atop a little stick on the roof of the back end of its armored modular vehicle. Eurosatory in 2018, held in Paris, showed a little more evolution in advanced teaming between aerial systems and vehicles. The U.S. Army's plans to evaluate a wide variety of advanced teaming concepts as part of a major modernization effort through its brand new Army Futures Command could be driving much of the proliferation of ideas now popping up at defense trade shows. https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/dsei/2019/09/11/unleash-the-hornets-combat-vehicles-and-robots-get-new-kit-to-increase-standoff
21 avril 2020 | International, Aérospatial
Le ministère de l'Intérieur vient de diffuser un appel d'offres portant sur 645 drones en quatre lots. Le volume total atteindrait les 3,8 M€. 645 drones de toutes tailles Le service de l'achat, de l'innovation et de la logistique du ministère de l'Intérieur (SAELSI) recherche 645 drones de toutes tailles, apprend-on dans un appel d'offres diffusé le 15 avril. Le volume atteindrait les 3,8 M€ en quatre lots. Le premier concerne les drones du quotidien, un programme initié par la gendarmerie, et qui désormais semble profiter aussi à la police nationale. Le contexte d'emploi principal concerne des opérations diurnes. Ce lot de 1,8 M€ concerne à la fois la formation, la fourniture de drones (565) et leur maintenance pour des unités non spécialisées. Tout le territoire et l'outremer pourront être ainsi dotés. Nano-drones Le deuxième lot équipera des drones pour les unités nationales spécialisées, pour une valeur de 1,58 M€. Les mini-drones concernés sont utilisables de jour comme de nuit, et plus résilients, mais aussi plus chers. Là aussi, le lot concerne la formation, le MCO et la livraison des 66 drones, de quoi équiper notamment le GIGN, le RAID et leurs antennes. Tous sont aujourd'hui dotés d'une kyrielle de modèles. Les nano-drones spécialisés constituent le troisième lot. Il sera là aussi réservé aux unités dont certaines, comme le GIGN, disposent déjà de Black Hornet. Le volume peut sembler assez minime puisque seulement 175 000 euros sont réservés. Ce qui, au prix, du Black Hornet 3 représente assez peu de systèmes. Les prévisions sont néanmoins assez élevées, pas moins de 20 nano-drones. Le quatrième et dernier lot concerne les capacités de communication afférentes, pour une valeur de 240.000 euros. 300 passerelles wi-fi sont attendues. Barkhane La gendarmerie a été motrice sur l'engagement de drones, via le GIGN, mais aussi lors de manœuvres de maintien de l'ordre, à Notre-Dame des Landes, lors des manifestations des gilets jaunes. Elle a notamment utilisée des DJI Phantom IV et des micro drones NX70 et NX110 de Novadem. Elle a rencontré des difficultés avec les NX70 de première génération, interdits de vol plusieurs mois. Ces problèmes ont apparemment été réglés sur la deuxième génération, car les militaires qui les utilisent à Barkhane n'en font pas état. L'expérimentation de drone du quotidien, qui vient de s'achever, a concerné 48 micro-drones, notamment des Mavic Pro et des Anafi du Français Parrot qui a manifestement une belle carte à jouer. https://air-cosmos.com/article/la-place-beauvau-recherche-645-drones-22936