An international assemble of scholars has concluded in a three-piece
study that unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) are a definite game changer
that greatly enhance the capabilities of armed forces.
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During EW Live Milrem Robotics deployed their THeMIS UGV equipped with ST Engineering’s ADDER DM remote weapon station to engage targets that were identified by a UAV.(Photo: Business Wire)
“The range of possibilities with military robots is immense and will
very likely be one of the major changes in the art of warfare in the
future,” writes Gérard de Boisboissel, a research engineer at Research
Centre Schools (CREC) of Saint-Cyrone in the third book of the Digital
Infantry Battlefield Solution.
The book, part of a three-piece study, was written by military and
academic research experts and addresses the employment of UGVs in
support of land operations.
The study was initiated by Milrem Robotics who together with partners
demonstrated the capabilities and cooperation between unmanned systems
during EW Live 2019 held in Tartu, Estonia.
During the event Milrem Robotics deployed their THeMIS UGV equipped with
ST Engineering’s ADDER DM remote weapon station to engage targets that
were identified by the Titan KX-4 LE multirotor developed by Threod
Systems.
“Using the integration of unmanned ground and aerial systems to identify
and engage targets reduces the risk to soldiers who can stay in a safe
distance,” explained Kuldar Väärsi, CEO of Milrem Robotics. “Also, it
increases the efficiency and firepower of small units significantly.”
James Rogers, the Director of the Global Britain Programme at the Henry
Jackson Society and Robert Clark, a British Army instructor give a
further example that when soldiers need to engage the enemy, UGVs would
be crucial casualty evacuation tools.
“In an incident involving two casualties requiring extraction, ten
personnel would normally be utilised. To mitigate against this, a THeMIS
transport platform could be set remotely for pre-designated waypoints
and can carry at least two casualties, and at a much higher pace of
extraction than by foot. Not only does this potentially result in a
casualty being extracted much quicker to receive treatment, it
additionally frees up vital manpower during the battle.”
The third DIBS book provides an analysis of the EU initiatives aimed at
the digitalisation of the battlefield through research and innovation
and offers a comprehensive assessment of the defence research and
innovation ecosystem in the Baltics. The second part of the book
considers the development of UGVs in Canada, France, Germany, the United
Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
The first volume of this project, published in December 2016, provided a
retrospective and prospective analysis of the development of UGVs, also
addressing current tactical, technical, and legal issues and challenges.
The second volume, published in August 2017, provided an analysis of
ethical and legal aspects of the employment of UGVs, taking a closer
view on People’s Republic of China, Israel, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, and
the United States.
DIBS is a result of collaboration between the Baltic Defence College,
DRDC-CORA, General Tadeusz Kościuszko Military Academy of Land Forces
(Poland), Latvian Institute of International Affairs, Latvian National
Defence Academy, Military University of Technology (Poland), Rīga
Stradiņš University and War Studies University (Poland).
All the publications can be downloaded here.
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