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U.S. Army ignores our advice, outfits troops with REDFLY terminals

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Oct 16th 2009 at 1:23PM

Ah, the REDFLY Mobile Companion. We've had some laughs at its expense, sure, but never doubted that someone out there would find a use for the thing. And what do we have here? It looks like our favorite Foleo doppelgänger is among a number of portable gadgets providing the backbone of the U.S. Army's "Go Mobile" system. Based around a WinMo phone that soldiers can use to connect to the Army Knowledge Online (AKO) service for all their mission critical e-mail, calendar, contacts, tasks, and documents, the kit includes a wireless smart card reader for authenticating onto Army networks, a printer, a charging kit (including various solar options), a pico projector, VR goggles simulating a 50-inch display, and an unspecified "dumb terminal" which -- as the picture above suggest -- could only be our old friend from Celio. Which is fine, sure -- but what ever happened to those bad-ass exoskeletons we were promised all those years ago?

Continue reading U.S. Army ignores our advice, outfits troops with REDFLY terminals

US Army wants 2.3 gigapixel camera for aerial surveillance

by Donald Melanson posted Aug 20th 2009 at 5:36PM

DARPA may have already gone to the trouble of building a 1.8 gigapixel camera as part of its ARGUS-IS project (pictured above), but it looks like the US Army is setting its sights a little higher, and it's now soliciting proposals for a 2.3 gigapixel camera that would be used for some super-wide aerial surveillance. While obviously still quite a ways from becoming reality, the Army hopes the system will be both smaller and lighter than previous systems, work in the infrared range to boot, and capture images at a rate of two frames per second. The key bit, however, is of course that 2.3 gigapixel sensor, which should let the camera provide continuous coverage of a range of about sixty-two square miles at a resolution of 0.3 meters, or just enough to make out the outline of your tinfoil hat.

US Army equipping all Windows PCs with Vista by end of 2009

by Ross Miller posted May 23rd 2009 at 3:01PM

While a good number of its machines are already running the OS -- about 13 percent at this point -- the United States Army has mandated that before the clock strikes midnight on December 31st, 2009 that all of its Windows-powered computers must switch from XP to Vista, presumably and hopefully with Service Pack 2. Additionally, all Office 2003 users will have to upgrade to the 2007 variant, but thankfully, someone with a little Vista experience made sure to omit standalone weapons systems from the mandate -- you know, because there's not really time to click through eight confirmation boxes when launching a time-sensitive homing missile. All jesting aside, we're flummoxed that the Army didn't just wait for Windows 7 to roll out in a few months before making this decision, but hey, what's a few more billion in upgrade costs next year, right?

[Via HotHardware]

Autonomous sniper system combines Xbox 360 controller, .338 rifle for deadly drone action

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Apr 17th 2009 at 10:23AM

You know how it is -- we're frightened and appalled by the thought of unmanned killing machines, but if they must exist we really, really want to play with one. The US Army's latest nightmarish deathcopter / awesome tech toy is a little something called the Autonomous Rotorcraft Sniper System (ARSS). Essentially a .338-caliber rifle mounted to the bottom of a Vigilante unmanned helicopter (though it could eventually be made to work on a Predator drone, for instance), this bad boy utilizes a modified Xbox 360 game controller for targeting while the vehicle itself stays put courtesy of its autopilot functions. Never again will your favorite sniper need to leave the comfort of his barracks! Airborne testing begins in July, with autonomy to come soon after that and a possible robot apocalypse estimated for Q4 2011.

New Zealander gives classified DAP back to US, gets a new one in exchange

by Darren Murph posted Jan 28th 2009 at 5:38PM

Aw, lookie here -- a happy ending! That suddenly popular Chris Ogle -- you know, the New Zealander who accidentally purchased an MP3 player full of classified US Army documents from a thrift store -- is basking in the glory of his 14th minute of fame. According to a new report from Reuters, Mr. Ogle peacefully handed the device back over to US authorities, and for his cooperation, a brand spanking new player was handed over to him. It's unclear what kind of unit he received and if it was your tax money paying for it, but we get the feeling we'll never truly know answers to either question. As for Ogle's next move? We hear he's jockeying for a guest spot on Flight of the Conchords.

New Zealander buys used MP3 player, finds classified US Army files in like-new condition

by Tim Stevens posted Jan 26th 2009 at 1:29PM

While used and refurb'd electronics have a long history of delivering more than the purchaser bargained for, like assembly-line photos, MI6 documents, or the phone number to Sarah Palin's hair stylist, New Zealand man Chris Ogle's surprise find is a little more troubling. He picked up the above unidentified MP3 player at a thrift shop in Oklahoma for $18 used. On it were 60 files, many of which appear to be US Army property of a confidential nature, including one that lists soldier names, SSNs, and phone numbers, and another doc that appears to be a mission plan. Sadly the Government is choosing to ignore this little security breach, but we think it should step up and make Mr. Ogle an offer. He's likely to let the thing go cheap thanks to a second unfortunate discovery: it doesn't even play music any more.

[Via The Sydney Morning Herald]

US Army turns to toy company to develop new weapon

by Donald Melanson posted Jul 24th 2008 at 5:38PM

We're not quite sure how the pitch session went with this one, but it looks like the US Army was so impressed by toymaker Lund and Company's Hydrogen Fuel Rocket that it decided to recruit the company to build a decidedly more lethal version of it. The new system, dubbed the Variable Velocity Weapon System, will apparently be able to be switched between lethal and non-lethal modes, and be loaded with rubber bullets, actual bullets, or other projectiles, which are fired by mixing a liquid or gaseous fuel with air in a combustion chamber. What's more, the company says that the technology could be applied to any size weapon from a "handgun to a Howitzer," and it says a demonstration version could be ready in as little as six months, with full production possible within 18 months, pending approval.

[Via Danger Room]

Army generators turn garbage into energy, energy into freedom

by Joshua Topolsky posted Jun 20th 2008 at 1:03PM

Leave it to the Army to start putting garbage to good use. According to reports, a base in Baghdad known as Camp Victory has been getting some of its electricity from generators that turn waste products into sweet, succulent fuel. The device, dubbed the Tactical Garbage to Energy Refinery (or TGER, for short) can take food slop, plastic, paper, styrofoam, annoying kids, moist towelettes, or smaller, non-functioning versions of itself and mash them down to synthetic gas and hydrous ethanol. Of course the concept isn't without its shortcomings, as it pumps a hefty load of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere -- but for a place that's short of fuel and high on trash, it's a dream come true.

[Via Wired; Image courtesy US Army]

Army brings armed robots home from Iraq over control issues

by Nilay Patel posted Apr 10th 2008 at 8:19PM

Although other countries have deployed gun-toting robots and there's no shortage of companies trying to develop weaponized bots for Uncle Sam, it looks like the first test of actual killer robots in battle has ended in a whimper: the Army's TALON SWORD gunbots, are headed home, after being plagued with control issues. Yeah, that's right -- control issues. Apparently it was too hard to prevent the Army's gun-equipped robot from moving its gun "when it was not intended to move." Reassuring, no? The Army doesn't sound too enthused about another go-round, saying, "once you've done something that's really bad, it can take 10 or 20 years to try it again." Ouch. On the plus side, at least that's 20 more years before we're all put to work in the mines, no?

Army tests of Land Warrior high-tech uniform successful, soldiers request more

by Nilay Patel posted Mar 28th 2008 at 2:29AM

We knew the Army's supposedly-dead Land Warrior high-tech uniform program still had some life in it, but now it appears that good marks from tests in the field might mean it's going to make a full recovery. The Army sent the 4/9 Infantry (aka the "Manchus") off to war loaded down with the 16-pound Land Warrior kit, and after some on-the-fly adjustments that made the gear lighter and more functional, the soldiers had talked Land Warrior up to the point where the 2nd Infantry Division's 5th Combat Brigade Team has now officially requested 1,000 more Land Warrior rigs. The main change is the removal of six pounds of inessential gear, but the crew in the 4/9 also requested and added in a "digital chem light," which allows buildings and waypoints to be marked in green on an electronic map, and restricted Land Warrior deployment to team leaders and above. There's still some tricky funding problems to solve -- some $102M needs to be set aside for the request -- but the Land Warrior project managers say it's looking promising. Now if we could only get some of that HUD monocle action on the civilian side, our morning coffee run would be a lot more interesting.

iRobot awarded $286 million military contract

by Joshua Topolsky posted Dec 18th 2007 at 9:49AM

In a shocking tale of totally expected events, iRobot has been awarded a tidy $286 million army contract to produce a merciless, bone-crushing battalion of 3,000 peaceful, loving, bomb-disarming robots (and their spare parts). This comes hot on the heels of Robotic FX getting its walking papers (as well as a canceled contract) on the same military work, so we can't exactly say we're surprised. Just another chapter in the ever-unfolding legal and philosophical drama that is the iRobot / Robotic FX story. iRobot -- this round is all yours.

U.S. military turns to competition for robot "surge"

by Donald Melanson posted Aug 14th 2007 at 3:27PM

The US military has already upped the arsenal of its robots deployed in Iraq, and it now looks to be planning to expand its non-human forces even further, with it recently putting out word of a competition to find a company that can quickly deliver a slew of new bots. According to Wired's Danger Room, these new robots won't be armed, but will instead mainly be used for reconnaissance duty, and must include the ability to look inside car windows and peer underneath vehicles. Due to the urgent need for the bots, the Army's done away with the usual formal bid process and will effectively be awarding a contract on the spot to the winner of the competition, who will be required to deliver its first bots within ten days. The Army then hopes to have 1,000 new reconnaissance bots by the end of the year, with another 2,000 planned for the next five years. As Danger Room reports, iRobot seems to be the favorite to win the competition, especially considering the requirement get the bots off the assembly line as quickly as possible.

Remotely controlled armed robots deployed in Iraq

by Darren Murph posted Aug 3rd 2007 at 5:26AM

While the Army is already taking good care of our wounded robots patrolling through Iraq, a recent deployment of three special weapons observation remote reconnaissance direct action systems (SWORDS) has placed rifle-equipped bots in the line of fire. The trio, which all handle M249s, are "are remotely controlled by a soldier through a terminal," and while their exact whereabouts and missions remain classified, the armed machines were reportedly designed to handle "high risk" combat scenarios if necessary. Currently, there's no record of a SWORD actually firing its weapon, but considering that each of these devices can potentially remove a human from harm, don't be surprised to see full blown platoons being unleashed when finances allow.

[Via Wired]

Boeing developing truck-mounted laser cannons for US Army

by Donald Melanson posted Jul 25th 2007 at 4:55PM

Boeing is certainly no stranger to lasers of various sorts, and it's now extending its expertise to the US Army, recently snagging a $7 million contract to begin developing a truck-mounted laser weapon system. From the sound of it, the system appears to be not unlike a mobile version of the still-in-development Skyguard laser defense system, with it designed to shoot down rockets, artillery shells and mortar rounds. According to Boeing, the laser cannon would be mounted on a Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (not exactly as pictured above) and, if the Army approves, could end up costing a cool $50 million for a "significant component" of the system to be built and tested.

[Via Slashdot]

Army's Land Warrior program back in action

by Joshua Topolsky posted Jun 25th 2007 at 3:11PM

Back in the wild, cost-be-damned heyday of 2006, the US military was flying high with its "Land Warrior" technology, a multi-part combat system combining wearable GPS sat-nav, weapon-mounted sensors, and a full color heads-up display (viewed via a sinister looking monocle). But like all good military spending parties, this one came to a close just a few months after it was announced with an order to cut $3.3 billion in funding for the Future Combat Systems initiative. Now, however, it seems that the Senate Armed Services Committee has opted to partially reinstate the program (likely to the chagrin of some soldiers, for whom the gear adds 15 lbs of extra load), allowing two additional battalions to be equipped (joining the single battalion currently using the technology), and spending another $30 million on development and improvement. Now, if only the army would reinstate that Skynet program.