Military Embedded Systems

RF and microwave solutions are a critical ingredient in the U.S. military’s plans to adapt fifth-generation wireless technology, or 5G, as the technology will be essential to create more tools for the joint forces.

Vetronics systems today are increasingly focused on C4ISR [command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance], interoperability with other battlefield elements, and the capability to be optionally unmanned if necessary. They are also more likely to be built on open architectures as the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) continues the push toward a modular open systems approach (MOSA) in upgrades and new designs.

Welcome to our 2022 September Resource Guide, which for the tenth year in a row is 100 pages or more. This feat follows on the heels of our July/August MES issue of 48 pages plus the 76-page SOSA Special Edition. We also added a new print brand this year, mailing with our April/May issue – the FACE Special Edition. Thanks as always to our loyal readers and advertisers for their support. And a special thanks to our editorial staff and contributing authors for providing content that keeps people turning our pages.

Welcome to the 2022 SOSA Special Edition, our second of what is an annual issue, highlighting editorial content on SOSA from the pages and website of Military Embedded Systems Magazine, as well as the products aligned and conformant to the technical standard – all put together exclusively by our staff. Learn about it all in the 2022 SOSA Special Edition!

The procurement challenges facing defense technology companies range from a slow U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition process to supply chain headaches to when and where to leverage commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) technology and open architectures.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado. Leveraging commercial technology and managing risk in military unmanned systems is the subject of a live Q&A with David Michleson, Program Manager, Defense Innovation Unit (DIU); James Poss (Maj. Gen USAF Ret.); and Dawn Zoldi, (Col., U.S. Air Force, Ret.), Founder & CEO of P3 Tech Consulting LLC, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, during Law-Tech Connect Workshop (LTCW) Online virtual event.

Following what has been a busy springtime returning to in-person military conferences and trade shows like the Sea-Air-Space Expo and SOFIC, launching our own virtual events, and keeping up with all the latest defense electronics news and trends like the Department of Defense’s (DoD’s) modular open systems approach (MOSA) strategies, the summer slowdown has been sweet.

WATERLOO, Ontario. Pixus Technologies engineers released a VITA 46.11 compliant chassis manager aligned to the Sensor Open Systems Architecture (SOSA) Technical Sttandard that sits behind an OpenVPX backplane.

DAYTON, Ohio. Registration is live for the U.S. Air Force - FACE and SOSA Consortia Technical Interchange Meeting (TIM) and expo being held on September 27, 2022 at the Dayton Convention Center in Dayton, Ohio. The event will feature expert presentations and demos by a cross-section of the defense community and industry on Future Airborne Capability Environment (FACE) and Sensor Open Systems Architecture (SOSA) related topics by a cross-section of the defense community, industry, and academia.

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Florida. Engineers at EIZO Rugged Solutions Inc. released the Condor GR2S-A4500 – a 3U OpenVPX form factor video graphics & GPGPU output card designed for high-performance embedded computing (HPEC) apoplications that is also aligned to The Open Group Sensor Open Systems Architecture (SOSA) Technical Standard, Edition 1.0.

Military funding – not only for traditional long-life missions but also for nontraditional shorter life, lower-cost small satellite applications – continues to grow. Radiation-hardened component designers are working to meet the reduced size, weight, power, and cost (SWaP-C) demands of these new missions while maintaining radiation tolerance and dealing with the supply-chain headaches that continue to plague the electronics industry.

Imagining military artificial intelligence (AI) applications can make one dream up scenarios like those in the Terminator films, but in reality, AI solutions for defense are much more mundane and focused on improving decision-making for humans, whether they’re aircraft maintenance personnel; pilots; or intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) analysts, says John Canipe, Director of Business Development, Air Force, at SparkCognition Government Systems, during a conversation we had at his company headquarters in Austin, Texas. We also discussed the difference between AI and machine learning (ML), how AI is being applied across multiple military domains, and more. Edited excerpts follow.

Enthusiastic crowds were a theme at each show I attended over the last six months, as folks were eager to be back among their defense industry colleagues, clients, and partners. None were more excited than attendees at the annual Special Operations Forces Industry Conference (SOFIC) in Tampa, Florida, a show put on by the National Defense Industries Association (NDIA). Navigating the exhibition aisles of that show was like trying to walk through a crowded bar, as this was SOFIC’s first in-person get-together since 2019.

WHITE SANDS, New Mexico.  The Starliner Spacecraft completed its first flight test at the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, according to officials from Boeing, the Starliner builder. This test of an uncrewed orbital flight vehicle was flown to demonstrate the quality and performance of the transportation system prior to crewed flights.

WILSONVILLE, Oregon.  The new Enhanced Flight Vision System (EFVS) from Collins Aerospace is now being installed on Boeing 737 aircraft. The new EFVS includes the Collins’ EVS-3600, a multi-spectral imaging sensor to that enables pilots to “see through” poor visibility and darkness better than the human eye. 

PARIS--EUROSATORY 2022. Battlefield-systems integrator Rheinmetall will debut a number of new technologies at the Eurosatory 2022 exhibition -- slated to run June 13-17 in Paris -- including an updated tank, an augmented-reality system, and a line of light airborne vehicles. 

PARIS--EUROSATORY 2022. Defense technology company Leonardo plans to display a variety of technologies at the Eurosatory 2022 exhibition -- slated to run June 13-17 in Paris -- ranging from sensors that acquire information and scenario awareness to operations management systems using a series of highly effective and accurate effectors.

PARIS--EUROSATORY 2022. Defense and security sensor company Hensoldt (Taufkirchen, Germany) is presenting its range of sensor solutions for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations as well as sensors to improve mission safety and operational effectiveness at the Eurosatory exhibition in Paris. 

SAN DIEGO. U.S. Navy leaders deployed the MQ-8C Fire Scout autonomous, runway-independent helicopter system, to the Indo-Pacific Area of Responsibility aboard the USS Jackson (LCS-6) to deliver improved maritime intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and targeting (ISR&T) capability to military commanders. This is the unmanned aircraft system's (UAS's) second operational deployment.

Welcome to the FACE Special Edition, which details the technology and solutions being developed under The Open Group Future Airborne Capability Environment (FACE) Consortium. This magazine is the first of what will be an annual issue, highlighting editorial content on the FACE approach from the pages and website of Military Embedded Systems Magazine, as well as the products aligned and certified conformant to the FACE Technical Standard – all put together exclusively by our staff. Learn about it all in the 2022 FACE Special Edition.