30 novembre 2020 | International, Terrestre
COLOGNE, Germany — Rheinmetall has unveiled a new scouting configuration of its Mission Master ground robot, ratcheting up competition in a European market segment that is set to heat up in the coming years.
The new version features a suite of sensors mounted on a collapsible, 3.5-meter mast, including an infrared sensor, a surveillance radar and a 360-degree camera. A laser rangefinder and target designator are also included on the vehicle, as is a 7.62mm gun on a remote-controlled weapon station, according to a company statement.
“The Mission Master-Armed Reconnaissance is designed to execute high-risk scouting missions and deliver a real-time common operating picture without putting soldiers in danger,” the German company said.
The six-wheeled vehicle's autonomous functions are powered by Rheinmetall's PATH kit, which the company advertises as a means to turn any vehicle into an unmanned platform. Multiple vehicles can be combined to operate as part a “Wolf Pack” cluster, a technology enabling communications, cueing and targeting toward a common mission objective, according to Rheinmetall.
Ground robots with varying degrees of autonomy are rapidly becoming critical for ground forces worldwide. Cargo transport and surveillance are some of the most obvious applications. While some of the new robots carry weapons, Western manufacturers have shied away from connecting their most advanced autonomy algorithms to the process of firing them.
Rheinmetall's Mission Master series is something of a counterpoint to Estonia's Milrem Robotics, which has been making inroads with European ground forces through its tracked THeMIS vehicle. Milrem has advertised its operational experience by way of a THeMIS deployment with the Estonian military to the French-led Barkhane counterterrorism mission in Mali.
Milrem also sits atop a smattering of European companies charged with developing a common architecture for unmanned ground vehicles under the umbrella of the European Defence Industrial Development Programme. The effort is named iMUGS, which is short for “integrated Modular Unmanned Ground System,” and it received roughly $36 million in European Union funding over the summer.
“The ambition is no less than developing an F-16 [fighter jet] of unmanned ground systems,” Kusti Salm, director general of the Estonian Centre for Defence Investments, was quoted as saying by the Baltic Times website in 2019.
The iMUGS effort centers around Milrem's THeMIS vehicle as a prototype platform. Notable European land warfare companies are part of the consortium, including Germany's Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and France's Nexter. Absent from the EU-endorsed roster is Rheinmetall, which has mounted its own marketing and outreach campaign for the Mission Master series.
Earlier in November, the company announced it had given a sample vehicle to the Royal Netherlands Army for experimentation. The robot will undergo a two-year evaluation toward what Rheinmetall described as “Future Manoeuvre Elements” to aid Dutch ground forces during operations.
The Dutch previously ordered the THeMIS from Milrem.
During the spring, Rheinmetall delivered four Mission Master vehicles configured for cargo transport to U.K. forces.
“These unmanned ground vehicles will form part of the United Kingdom's Robotic Platoon Vehicle program,” Rheinmetall said in a statement at the time. “This program is designed to determine the extent to which unmanned vehicles can boost the combat effectiveness and capabilities of dismounted troops at platoon level.”
16 octobre 2024 | International, Aérospatial, C4ISR
The recently announced award includes an additional contract ceiling of $743 million with $54.9 million in new funding.
23 août 2023 | International, Naval
The country is also purchasing more than 60 Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile-Extended Range weapons from the United States.
1 mars 2019 | International, Aérospatial
By: Mike Yeo MELBOURNE, Australia — Australia's search for a new unmanned aircraft system to operate from its naval vessels has taken a new twist, as the service announced tweaks to its procurement program to streamline the process and put it in a position to take advantage of future technological advances. Speaking at a media event during an unmanned aircraft conference during the ongoing Avalon Airshow, officers from the Royal Australian Navy, or RAN, confirmed that it was rolling its two-stage procurement program into one. The program, Project Sea 129 Phase 5 Maritime Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems, will look for a single prime contractor to offer a system to operate from all of the RAN's major fleet units, primarily its upcoming 12 offshore patrol vessels and nine future frigates. Sea 129 Phase 5 had previously been split into two stages, with the first seeking a system to operate from the OPVs and the second to equip the frigates. According to RAN Capt. Adrian Capner, Sea 129 Phase 5 will seek a platform systems integrator, or PSI, to be put in charge of the entire program, with the ability to meet capability requirements taking precedence over platform. “We will tell you what we want the system to do; you are going to come forward and show us how you expect to achieve that,” Capner told the audience. These requirements include being able to operate from the flight deck of a German-designed Lurssen OPV 80-class ships selected by Australia, which are the smallest ships slated to use the selected UAS. The aircraft must be able to perform surveillance and maritime domain awareness missions in Antarctic conditions, and participate in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. Capner said the RAN is open to using multiple platforms to achieve the program's capability goals, adding that the PSI will also be responsible for constant upgrades to the UAS, as the service needs the system to stay relevant over the next few decades. The program is currently at the request for information stage, with Capner confirming that a request for tender is expected in the first half of 2020 and an initial operating capability planned for the mid-2020s. This change in procurement strategy appears to reduce the burden of risk on the RAN and lessen concerns about operating outdated technology by the time the platform enters service. Rather, these burdens shift to the winning PSI, who will be responsible to managing the program and adjusting for technological changes when the system is in service. The reaction to these changes from potential bidders has been mixed. James Lawless, business development manager at Saab Australia, called it an “intelligent way to approach [the program],” noting that it mirrors Saab's strategy in partnering with UMS Skeldar and Airflite to offer the UMS Skeldar V-200 UAV. Meanwhile, Melissa Pina of Northrop Grumman told Defense News that the company will continue looking for its offering based on the latest development. Northrop Grumman previously offered its MQ-8C Fire Scout drone for Sea 129 Phase 5 Stage 2 for the RAN's future frigates. The Fire Scout is slated to be the platform of choice to go onboard U.S. Navy ships, . The RAN is currently conducting trials on the use of UAS under a “navy minor project,” operating Schiebel's Camcopter S-100, the ScanEagle by Insitu (a subsidiary of Boeing), and other UAS from land bases and onboard its ships. https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/avalon/2019/02/27/australia-changes-how-it-will-buy-drones-for-shipborne-operations-how-is-industry-reacting/