Global security and aerospace company Lockheed Martin will helm a U.S. Army project to develop an unmanned convoy system in combat environments over the next three years.
“We are leveraging 15 years of experience in developing autonomous capabilities for our customers,” said Gaylia Campbell, vice president of Precision Fires & Combat Maneuver Systems at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. “Our goal as the Integrated Systems Developer is to help coordinate a number of systems and vendors in achieving mature, reliable autonomous convoys to support our warfighters in complex environments.”
The private contractor’s official role will be as Integrated Systems Developer, working on behalf of the U.S. Army’s Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC). While the company will develop, integrate, and test the prototype technology, soldiers will demonstrate the technology’s operational use to begin creating appropriate operating procedures.
Soldier-run convoys can be long endurance challenges and face, above and beyond the stressors of combat, adverse weather and night operations. These conditions degrade situational awareness, adversely impact operator safety, and reduce resupply efficiency.
“The Expedient Leader Follower effort will equip a number of existing military ground vehicles with scalable robotic technology through the integration of modular kits, common interfaces and an open architecture to increase operator safety, improve situational awareness and increase resupply efficiency,” Campbell said.