Weapons – Page 2 – Impact Lab

Driverless vehicles, Military, Science & Technology News, Weapons

U.S. military getting closer to autonomous off road combat vehicles

September 4, 2020

Researchers at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s Army Research Laboratory and the University of Texas at Austin have developed an algorithm that could have big implications for autonomous vehicles. With the algorithm, autonomous ground vehicles are able to improve their own navigation systems by watching a human drive.

The approach developed by the researchers is called adaptive planner parameter learning from demonstration, or APPLD. It was tested on an Army experimental autonomous ground vehicle.

The research was published in IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters. The work is titled “APPLD: Adaptive Planner Parameter Learning From Demonstration.”

Continue reading… “U.S. military getting closer to autonomous off road combat vehicles”

Aviation, drones, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

The F-16’s replacement won’t have a pilot at all

July 16, 2020

Somehow, Skyborg will be an operational weapon system in just three years.

The U.S. Air Force is planning to field an operational combat drone by 2023.

The service says Skyborg will replace older weapon-slinging drones and even early models of the F-16.

Skyborg will be reusable but could be sacrificed in combat if necessary.

The U.S. Air Force plans to have an operational combat drone by 2023. The service plans to build out a family of unmanned aircraft, known as Skyborg, capable of carrying weapons and actively participating in combat. The Air Force’s goal is to build up a large fleet of armed, sort-of disposable jets that don’t need conventional runways to take off and land.

Continue reading… “The F-16’s replacement won’t have a pilot at all”

Military, new technology, Science & Technology News, Weapons

The US successfully tested a laser weapon that can destroy aircraft mid-flight

June 8, 2020

Hong Kong (CNN)A US Navy warship has successfully tested a new high-energy laser weapon that can destroy aircraft mid-flight, the Navy’s Pacific Fleet said in a statement Friday.

Images and videos provided by the Navy show the amphibious transport dock ship USS Portland executing “the first system-level implementation of a high-energy class solid-state laser” to disable an aerial drone aircraft, the statement said.

The images show the laser emanating from the deck of the warship. Short video clips show what appears to be the drone burning.

Continue reading… “The US successfully tested a laser weapon that can destroy aircraft mid-flight”

AI, Aviation, Military, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

The Air Force’s AI-powerd ‘Skyborg’ drones could fly as early as 2023

June 5, 2020

The drones would fly alongside Air Force warplanes, doing jobs too dangerous or dull for pilots.

The Air Force is soliciting the aerospace industry to provide flyable “Skyborg” drones by 2023.

The drones will be powered by artificial intelligence, capable of taking off, landing, and performing missions on their own.

Skyborg will not only free manned pilots from dangerous and dull missions but allow the Air Force to add legions of new, unpiloted, cheap planes.

The U.S. Air Force is finally pushing into the world of robot combat drones, vowing to fly the first of its “Skyborg” drones by 2023. The service envisions Skyborg as a merging of artificial intelligence with jet-powered drones. The result will be drones capable of flying alongside fighter jets, carrying out dangerous missions. Skyborg drones will be much cheaper than piloted aircraft, allowing the Air Force to grow its fleet at a lower cost.

Continue reading… “The Air Force’s AI-powerd ‘Skyborg’ drones could fly as early as 2023”

Drone, drones, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

Drone swarms use nets to catch other drones in flight

March 16, 2020

Sandia National Laboratories researchers leading the MARCUS project are working to develop a system that addresses current and future national security threats posed by small unmanned aircraft systems

Robotics engineers from Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) are developing drones that can capture hostile drones in flight. Funded by the NATO Science for Peace and Security Programme, the Mobile Adaptive/Reactive Counter Unmanned System (MARCUS) project uses swarms of four unmanned quad-copters working in concert to intercept a drone and catch it in a net.

As drones become more numerous and more sophisticated, they also pose a growing threat. Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are now a major component of the world’s major militaries but drones are also showing up in terrorist attacks, invasions of privacy, or acts of mischief at airports that could down an aircraft.

There have been a number of anti-drone systems developed over the years, including jammers, lasers, and even eagles trained to bring them down, but MARCUS aims to not only counter the threat of small UAVs but also to capture them for disposal or information gathering. According to SNL, this isn’t the first system to use nets but it is the first to combine nets with teams of drones controlled by a ground-based computer to coordinate the swarm’s course to ensure interception.

Continue reading… “Drone swarms use nets to catch other drones in flight”

Aviation, drones, Elon Musk, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

Elon Musk: ‘F-35 fighter jets would have no chance against drones’

March 10, 2020

Elon Musk has suggested Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II fighter jets, which are a key part of the Morrison government’s $200 billion investment in defence, would “have no chance” against an autonomous drone in the battlefield.

“The fighter jet era has passed,” Mr Musk said at the US Air Force’s Air Warfare Symposium in Florida.

“Drone warfare is where the future will be. It’s not that I want the future to be this – it’s just, this is what the future will be.”

Continue reading… “Elon Musk: ‘F-35 fighter jets would have no chance against drones’”

drones, Military, Science & Technology News, Weapons

US Navy deploys first anti-drone laser dazzler weapon

February 27, 2020

Artist’s concept of a laser weapon in action

The US Navy has successfully installed its first Optical Dazzling Interdictor, Navy (ODIN) laser weapon aboard one of its warships. During dry-dock operations, the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey (DDG 105) received the stand-alone laser system, which is designed to blind the sensors on Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS).

The ODIN laser isn’t the first to be deployed on a US Navy warship. That honor goes to the Office of Naval Research’s (ONR) Laser Weapon System (LaWS), which was deployed on the USS Ponce (LPD-15) in 2014. However, this experience by the team behind LaWS at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Dahlgren Division provided the expertise needed to complete the development of ODIN.

Continue reading… “US Navy deploys first anti-drone laser dazzler weapon”

Aviation, Military, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

Drones are making America’s F-22 and F-35 more deadly than ever

February 3, 2020

US Air Force F-22s and F-35s will soon launch and control recoverable attack drones from the cockpit of the plane.

Key point: This technology, which hinges upon higher levels of autonomous navigation, brings a wide swath of improved mission possibilities.

US Air Force F-22s and F-35s will soon launch and control recoverable attack drones from the cockpit of the plane to expand air-combat operations, test enemy air defenses, conduct long-range ISR and even deliver weapons.

This fast-approaching technology, which calls upon advanced levels of autonomous navigation, is closer to reality due of DARPA’s Gremlins program which plans to break new ground by launching – and recovering – four drones from an in-flight C-130 next year.

Continue reading… “Drones are making America’s F-22 and F-35 more deadly than ever”

Automation, Military, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

Amazing : Meet the robot tank Estonia and Singapore built to deter Russia

January 27, 2020

Flexible and deadly.

Key point: Armed robots are becoming the norm of future warfare. The question is how long humans will stay in the loop.

An Estonian company has teamed up with a Singaporean firm and joined the expanding global race to develop robotic fighting vehicles.

More and more firms are developing armed unmanned ground vehicles, some as private ventures and others in response to formal government programs. But it’s unclear how quickly armies might actually field meaningful numbers of tank-like ground robots.

News broke in June 2019 that Estonia’s Milrem Robotics and Singapore’s ST Engineering had tested a new UGV. “The companies demonstrated the UGV during a live-fire exercise held in Tapa, Estonia,” Estonian World reported.

“The new UGV is armed with a 40-millimeter automatic grenade launcher and a 12.7-millimeter heavy machine gun,” according to Estonian World.

Continue reading… “Amazing : Meet the robot tank Estonia and Singapore built to deter Russia”

Aviation, Military, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

TOP GUN RAF Top Guns to fly new 4,000mph Tempest jets with new ‘virtual cockpit’ from 2035

January 24, 2020

RAF Top Guns will fly new Tempest jets with a “virtual cockpit” instead of traditional controls.

The 4,000mph fighter is due to replace the Typhoon from 2035 and will be piloted or guided remotely.

Pilots will wear virtual-reality gloves and will be able to charge course with a wink or gesture.

Rather than the familiar control column, the cockpit will feature a computer which relays information into a helmet-mounted display screen.

Continue reading… “TOP GUN RAF Top Guns to fly new 4,000mph Tempest jets with new ‘virtual cockpit’ from 2035”

China, Military, Science & Technology News, Weapons

‘Wolf pack attack’: China launches new killer robot ship

January 23, 2020

China’s new killer robot ship that can carry out anti-submarine and anti-ship missions has undergone its first sea trial, according to a Chinese defence industry magazine.

Called the JARI, the unmanned surface vessel is said to be the world’s first USV with multiple roles – anti-submarine, air defence and surface combat – and powerful weaponry.

The prototype was launched in August and was recently photographed during a sea trial, according to a report in the latest issue of Ordnance Industry Science Technology.

It did not give details of when or where the trial took place.

Continue reading… “‘Wolf pack attack’: China launches new killer robot ship”

Aviation, China, Science & Technology News, Weapons

China’s airborne laser weapon would change dogfighting forever

January 14, 2020

Airborne lasers can be used offensively or defensively.

The Chinese military put out notice it wants airborne laser pods.

The pods could be used offensively or defensively, against aircraft or even missiles.

Airborne lasers, moving at light speed, could end dogfighting as we know it.

China’s military is soliciting would-be suppliers for a new airborne laser weapon. Notices on a government website invited defense contractors to provide information on an airborne laser attack pod. Depending on the level of power, the pod could be used to defend a friendly aircraft from incoming missile threats or destroy enemy aircraft and ground targets. Laser weapons are the next revolution in aerial warfare and could make dogfighting obsolete.

Continue reading… “China’s airborne laser weapon would change dogfighting forever”