Autonomous vehicles in science fiction and lore – think Asimov’s “Sally” self-driving car, Arthur C. Clarke’s automatic cars, or Knight Rider’s KITT automobile with an attitude – are often able to operate independently and in concert with their humans. The phrase “no longer science fiction, but science fact” gets thrown around so much that it’s lost some of its punch, but in the case of the Army Research Lab’s work on artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled vehicles, it’s an apt observation.

SAN DIEGO. BAE Systems has signed an initial order with the U.S. Army under the service's Distributed Common Ground System (DCGS) Capability Drop 2 Program -- a multiple-award, indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract worth up to $823 million -- under which BAE Systems will provide systems enabling enhanced intelligence to see and better understand threats and other relevant aspects of the operational environment.

HUDSON, N.H. BAE Systems has signed a $33 million multiyear contract with the U.S. Army to further develop its Long Range Precision Guidance Kit (LR-PGK) for 155 mm artillery shells, which will enable the Army to take advantage of BAE Systems' enhanced antijam GPS-based navigation and antenna array aimed at improving long-range precision strikes in challenging electromagnetic environments. 

PORTLAND, Ore. PacStar has garnered a contract to support the U.S. Army’s Expeditionary Signal Battalion-Enhanced (ESB-E) program with its PacStar 400-Series modular communications platform that is aimed at enhancing agile and reliable tactical communications for the Army's expeditionary-style warfare units.

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. The U.S. Army's Combat Capability Development's Army Research Laboratory's Center for Distributed Quantum Information saw researchers at the University of Innsbruck achieve a record for the transfer of quantum entanglement between matter and light ? a distance of 50 kilometers using fiber optic cables. Such an internet could offer the military security, sensing, and timekeeping capabilities not possible with traditional networking approaches.

GRAYLING, Mich. The U.K.?s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), and the United States Army Combat Capabilities Development Command?s Ground Vehicle Systems Center, have hosted an experiment of prototype semi-autonomous logistic convoys with ground and aerial autonomous resupply systems at Camp Grayling Joint Manoeuvre Training Center.

ADELPHI, Md. The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command's Army Research Laboratory and industry, academic, and government partners are working to provide reliable robot teammates that will have the ability to classify the environment for quality of surface and potential hazards, then maneuver behavior to adjust to conditions.