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Copyright of Inorganic Chemicals Industry is the property of Editorial Office of Inorganic Chemicals Industry and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Smart bullets, developed under programs such as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), represent a groundbreaking advancement in precision warfare. This article offers a comprehensive review and critical analysis of smart bullet technology, exploring its technical intricacies, military applications, ethical implications, economic considerations, and future prospects. By integrating advanced optical sensors, guidance systems, and maneuverability mechanisms, smart bullets achieve unparalleled accuracy and lethality on the battlefield. Military applications range from precision targeting to rapid engagement of multiple threats, offering significant advantages in combat effectiveness. However, ethical concerns regarding civilian casualties, proliferation risks, and accountability issues necessitate careful consideration. Moreover, economic perspectives highlight both potential cost savings and ethical dilemmas associated with the commercialization of smart bullet technology. Looking ahead, advancements in AI, materials science, and miniaturization hold promise for further enhancing capabilities. Nonetheless, addressing ongoing ethical, legal, and technical challenges is imperative to ensure the responsible and ethical use of smart bullet technology in military operations, thus contributing to global security and stability.

Autonomous uncrewed aerial systems (UASs) are expected to operate without a human being in or on the loop. As there will not be a human to interpret the environment, the autonomous UAS is expected to make aeronautical decisions based on situational awareness (SA). This is a limiting factor in the field of truly autonomous systems. Before we can field systems that function without human oversight, we need methods to evaluate whether the SA of that system has been established. This study uses a hypothetical scenario and subject matter expert (SME) opinion to establish a quantifiable metric for SA within an established United States Department of Defense recognized modeling and simulation (M&S) environment. Within this environment, it is assumed that all errors within the UAS sensor suite are known. Through the M&S environment, we were able to vary six separate error variables, with three unique values to provide a total of 729 different data points to be analyzed in our attempt to develop predictive equations. Each data point was evaluated 2,000 times, which gave us a dataset consisting of over 1.4 million individual simulations. From the dataset, we developed linear and nonlinear statistical models to define a point where the SA formed by the UAS is no longer valid for making a sound aeronautical decision. We developed objective measures (inequalities) for the subjective end (SA) through both linear and nonlinear analyses. The M&S environment may not be a direct duplication of reality; however, the results of this study may influence how future autonomous UASs are fielded. This study demonstrates that if a point can be defined where an UAS possesses sufficient SA, decision-makers (Subject Matter Experts in this case) would permit the UAS to make decisions currently reserved for fully qualified human operators.

This article provides a detailed look at how cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX), cyclotetramethylene-tetranitramine (HMX), and hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (HNIW or CL-20) are currently being used for energy purposes in both civilian and military environments around the world. It highlights the significance of monitoring and prospecting for new technologies to promote innovation in developed and developing countries. This research was carried out by systematically analyzing nonpatent documents and patents from reputable databases such as Scopus, Derwent, and Espacenet. The report recognizes patent documentation as a valuable source of technical information and explores how analyzing patents can provide insights into using and developing high-performance compounds. Moreover, the article discusses the versatile applications of RDX, HMX, and CL-20, which are highly explosive substances that have found uses in multiple sectors. It delves into these materials’ chemical composition, structure, and importance in military and industrial contexts. The research methodology involved thoroughly searching and filtering documents from databases, focusing on titles, abstracts, and keywords. The results show the annual growth of publications related to the three explosive compounds and highlight the main research fields associated with each fabric. Overall, this article provides valuable insights into using and developing powerful compounds. It emphasizes the importance of technological monitoring and patent analysis in shaping strategic decision- making and fostering innovation. It is a foundation for further research and exploration of energetic materials and their applications.

This article provides a detailed look at how cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX), cyclotetramethylene-tetranitramine (HMX), and hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (HNIW or CL-20) are currently being used for energy purposes in both civilian and military environments around the world. It highlights the significance of monitoring and prospecting for new technologies to promote innovation in developed and developing countries. This research was carried out by systematically analyzing nonpatent documents and patents from reputable databases such as Scopus, Derwent, and Espacenet. The report recognizes patent documentation as a valuable source of technical information and explores how analyzing patents can provide insights into using and developing high-performance compounds. Moreover, the article discusses the versatile applications of RDX, HMX, and CL-20, which are highly explosive substances that have found uses in multiple sectors. It delves into these materials' chemical composition, structure, and importance in military and industrial contexts. The research methodology involved thoroughly searching and filtering documents from databases, focusing on titles, abstracts, and keywords. The results show the annual growth of publications related to the three explosive compounds and highlight the main research "elds associated with each fabric. Overall, this article provides valuable insights into using and developing powerful compounds. It emphasizes the importance of technological monitoring and patent analysis in shaping strategic decisionmaking and fostering innovation. It is a foundation for further research and exploration of energetic materials and their applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article describes the 3D printing technology using the Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) method and the materials used in this technology in the context of military applications. The author presents the potential that this technology carries and discusses the use of 3D prints in the contemporary conflict in Ukraine. The article lists currently used materials and filaments, including a fiber technology that allows for printing of composites. Then the author presents a SWOT analysis of this technology in the context of national defense and its citizens who have 3D printers and can use them to produce socalled “war gadgetsˮ. The article contains many examples of the application of this technology in the defense sector and also discusses potential threats associated with it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human gesture detection, obstacle detection, collision avoidance, parking aids, automotive driving, medical, meteorological, industrial, agriculture, defense, space, and other relevant fields have all benefited from recent advancements in mmWave radar sensor technology. A mmWave radar has several advantages that set it apart from other types of sensors. A mmWave radar can operate in bright, dazzling, or no-light conditions. A mmWave radar has better antenna miniaturization than other traditional radars, and it has better range resolution. However, as more data sets have been made available, there has been a significant increase in the potential for incorporating radar data into different machine learning methods for various applications. This review focuses on key performance metrics in mmWave-radar-based sensing, detailed applications, and machine learning techniques used with mmWave radar for a variety of tasks. This article starts out with a discussion of the various working bands of mmWave radars, then moves on to various types of mmWave radars and their key specifications, mmWave radar data interpretation, vast applications in various domains, and, in the end, a discussion of machine learning algorithms applied with radar data for various applications. Our review serves as a practical reference for beginners developing mmWave-radar-based applications by utilizing machine learning techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article describes the possibilities of using the Maneuver Control System CZ (MCS CZ) in creating a multiple maneuver of a group of cooperating units. It is a tactical information system designed to support the decision-making of commanders in order to effectively deploy their units on the battlefield. The system evaluates the geographical and hydrometeorological battlefield influences as well as the enemy's situation to calculate the maneuver axes of a unit composed of up to three teams with the same goal. To verify the calculations of mathematical-algorithmic models of the system, two measurements were performed on model situations. In the first of them, a group of three unmanned systems carried out an attack on an identified delivery system of weapons of mass destruction. The second model situation included a hasty attack by three infantry squads on anti-aircraft equipment. In both cases, the resulting group of maneuvers used the fastest and safe axes of advance, spatially synchronized according to tactical principles. In both cases, the enemy's weapon systems were quickly attacked and destroyed immediately after their identification from three directions. The commander's decision-making process was largely replaced by the MCS CZ calculations in model situations, which significantly shortened its duration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of studies have considered the theoretical role that Artificial Intelligence (AI) may play in shaping the global balance of power in the future. While these studies are informative, we currently lack an understanding regarding the precise manner AI technologies are being applied and incorporated in militaries in major power states. Thus, in this study, we examine how AI technology is being applied in the militaries in the US, China, and Russia and analyse the implications for the future of AI, global military competition, and international security. We examine current research on the military application of AI technology in the US, China, and Russia and conduct expert interviews with leading AI experts in academia, think tanks, multinational technology companies, and the military to better understand how AI technology is being applied in the three major powers states and the implications for global security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advances in AI research have brought increasingly sophisticated capabilities to AI systems and heightened the societal consequences of their use. Researchers and industry professionals have responded by contemplating responsible principles and practices for AI system design. At the same time, defense institutions are contemplating ethical guidelines and requirements for the development and use of AI for warfare. However, varying ethical and procedural approaches to technological development, research emphasis on offensive uses of AI, and lack of appropriate venues for multistakeholder dialogue have led to differing operationalization of responsible AI principles and practices among civilian and defense entities. We argue that the disconnect between civilian and defense responsible development and use practices leads to underutilization of responsible AI research and hinders the implementation of responsible AI principles in both communities. We propose a research roadmap and recommendations for dialogue to increase exchange of responsible AI development and use practices for AI systems between civilian and defense communities. We argue that generating more opportunities for exchange will stimulate global progress in the implementation of responsible AI principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, a lot of advanced technologies have come into light. Amongst them, Internet of Things (IoT) is one of the most used technologies which has improved the lifestyle worldwide. IoT helps to interconnect the information network and the real world of concrete objects and places called "things" to achieve the demand of the future. In this concern, this paper presents the overview of IoT architecture, its key features, and advancements in the field of IoT. Further, paper discusses the challenges, issues and future scope of the technology. The paper also demonstrates an example of optical IoT based model in the field of humidity and dust monitoring using optical sensors with simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 21st century, biotechnology is no doubt one of the fields in science and technology with the most developmental potential. Modern-day biotechnology is a multidisciplinary field where its utility has grown from traditional uses like agriculture and medicine. The ongoing revolution in biotechnology has great potential for application for both civilian and military uses. This review describes the major biotechnological revolution as well as some aspects of their general usefulness. Furthermore the application of the major research breakthroughs in biotechnology to military operations is discussed. Major militaristic utility of biotechnology are in therapeutics, electronics and computing, materials and logistics and biodefence.

The growth of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) has revolutionized the field of technology and it is used in different application frameworks. Unmanned edges and other critical locations can be monitored using the navigation sensor node. The WSN required low energy consumption to provide a high network and guarantee the ultimate goal. The main objective of this work is to propose hybrid energy optimization in local aware environments. The hybrid proposed work consists of clustering, optimization, direct and indirect communication and routing. The aim of this research work is to provide and framework for reduced energy and trusted communication with the shortest path to reach source to destination in WSN and an extending lifetime of wireless sensors. The proposed Artificial Fish Swarm Optimization algorithm is used for energy optimization in military applications which is simulated using Network Simulator(NS) tool. This work optimizes the energy level and the same is compared with various genetic algorithms (GA) and also the cluster selection process was compared with the fission-fusion (FF) selection method. The results of the proposed work show, improvement in energy optimization, throughput and time delay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The issue of the impact of emerging and disruptive technologies on security policy is a major concern of the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance. This is also demonstrated by the meeting between the Board members and the newly-established Advisory Group for Emerging and Disruptive Technologies, consisting of top experts in the fields of Cyber, Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Computing, Big Data, Space, Robotics and Autonomous or Biotechnological Systems, to find new synergies between NATO, the private, governmental and academic sectors and to maintain the technological supremacy of the Alliance. At the same time, the fact that the Romanian Army has mastered the defining elements of the impact of emerging and disrupted technologies on security policy and acts to make them operational is demonstrated by the meeting of July 12, 2021, of the Minister of National Defense, Nicolae-Ionel Ciuca with Heidi Grant, director of the US Defense and Security Cooperation Agency, on which occasion Romania received from the US the name of “Dependable Undertaking (DU)” under which contracts for the purchase of military equipment can be concluded without any payment in advance. Based on these elements, we would like to continue to talk about some aspects of innovation in dual military technologies, such as the influence of emerging and disruptive technologies on the organization and use of the armed forces. The research method undertaken consisted in identifying bibliographic resources, studying them, drawing relevant conclusions and formulating points of view on the impact of emerging and disruptive technologies on security policies.

On the battlefield, early detection of armored vehicles can have a positive effect. Because according to this issue, timely and appropriate reactions can be done. The purpose of this study is to achieve the required algorithm in the vehicle control system by considering the car sensor vision, which is necessary to identify and determine the equipment needed to control the military drone based on car sensor vision. Today, the use of wireless networks, especially inter-vehicle wireless networks, in military applications is inevitable. Therefore, in the first step of this research, a new method has been proposed to control and steer unmanned vehicles based on car vision. In the proposed method, two 180-degree panoramic cameras with horizontal vision are used from the recorded images. The simulation results of the proposed method show increased accuracy and reduced implementation cost compared to using LIDAR and RADAR technologies. In the second step, a new approach is introduced to identify four common classes of armored vehicles (tanks, personnel carriers, firing tanks, and military vehicles) that are more likely to be present on battlefields. For this purpose, the latest image processing methods, which is deep learning, have been used. The results of the simulation of the proposed approach show the high accuracy of the proposed approach in detecting armored vehicles in a short time. In the third step of this research, a new method has been proposed to increase the connection of wireless networks. In the proposed method, queue theory is used and the results of the simulation of the proposed method show the high efficiency of the method. As a result, accurate and fast detection with unique features makes the users of the system superior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For military warfare purposes, it is necessary to identify the type of a certain weapon through video stream tracking based on infrared (IR) video frames. Computer vision is a visual search trend that is used to identify objects in images or video frames. For military applications, drones take a main role in surveillance tasks, but they cannot be confident for longtime missions. So, there is a need for such a system, which provides a continuous surveillance task to support the drone mission. Such a system can be called a Hybrid Surveillance System (HSS). This system is based on a distributed network of wireless sensors for continuous surveillance. In addition, it includes one or more drones to make short-time missions, if the sensors detect a suspicious event. This paper presents a digital solution to identify certain types of concealed weapons in surveillance applications based on Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) and Convolutional Long Short-TermMemory (ConvLSTM). Based on initial results, the importance of video frame enhancement is obvious to improve the visibility of objects in video streams. The accuracy of the proposed methods reach 99%, which reflects the effectiveness of the presented solution. In addition, the experimental results prove that the proposed methods provide superior performance compared to traditional ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum technology is an emergent and potentially disruptive discipline, with the ability to affect many human activities. Quantum technologies are dual-use technologies, and as such are of interest to the defence and security industry and military and governmental actors. This report reviews and maps the possible quantum technology military applications, serving as an entry point for international peace and security assessment, ethics research, military and governmental policy, strategy and decision making. Quantum technologies for military applications introduce new capabilities, improving effectiveness and increasing precision, thus leading to 'quantum warfare', wherein new military strategies, doctrines, policies and ethics should be established. This report provides a basic overview of quantum technologies under development, also estimating the expected time scale of delivery or the utilisation impact. Particular military applications of quantum technology are described for various warfare domains (e.g. land, air, space, electronic, cyber and underwater warfare and ISTAR—intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance), and related issues and challenges are articulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the Department of Defense, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) mission planning is typically in the form of a set of pre-defined waypoints and tasks, and results in optimized plans being implemented prior to the beginning of the mission. These include the order of waypoints, assignment of tasks, and assignment of trajectories. One emerging area that has been recently identified in the literature involves frameworks, simulations, and supporting algorithms for dynamic mission planning, which entail re-planning mid-mission based on new information. These frameworks require algorithmic support for flight path and flight time approximations, which can be computationally complex in nature. This article seeks to identify the leading academic algorithms that could support dynamic mission planning and recommendations for future research for how they could be adopted and used in current applications. A survey of emerging UAV mission planning algorithms and academic UAV flight path algorithms is presented, beginning with a taxonomy of the problem space. Next, areas of future research related to current applications are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An all-textile H-plane substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) horn antenna for millimeter-wave wireless body area network applications is proposed. A coaxially fed SIW H-plane horn is designed for radiation toward a human body surface. To reduce the radiation to a human body and simultaneously increase the radiation to the human body surface, an extended corrugated ground is attached in front of the aperture of a horn. All components are made of textile materials. The simulated 10 dB return loss bandwidth is 2,400 MHz (26.7–29.1 GHz), which covers a potential candidate frequency band for 5G communication. The simulated and measured results show that the proposed antenna has a directional radiation pattern toward the body surface and a low power density below the antenna.

Biomaterials are evolving quite rapidly over the last decade. Many applications have been considered toward their involvement in saving lives in the line of duty for law enforcement agencies and military operations. This article discusses recent work on the role of biomaterials that can be considered as a competitive alternative to composites, being used against ballistic impacts. The fish-scaled biomaterials are focused on in this paper, highlighting their excellent mechanical properties and structural configurations. In its natural environment, the scale provides fishes with an armor plating, which is significantly effective in their survival against attacks of predator and the impact inflicted from sharp teeth. These bioinspired materials, if engineered properly, can provide an excellent alternative to current Kevlar® type armors, which are significantly heavier and can cause fatigue to the human body over long-term usage. The investigated materials can provide effective alternatives to heavier and expensive materials currently used in different industrial applications. Additionally, some recent development in the usage of fish scales as a biomaterial and its applications in rapid prototyping techniques are presented. Finally, this review provides useful information to researchers in developing and processing cost-effective biomaterials.

This paper considers the Peacekeeping Troops-to-Tasks Problem (PTTP). The PTTP deals with assigning battlegroup resources to a set of tasks associated with a given peacekeeping mission. The tasks may be spread across several locations, and have requirements regarding the time at which they can be handled, and the skills and skill levels needed to complete them. There is also a utility value related to each completed task that reflects its importance. The resources are bound by a hierarchy of command, limiting their movement in relation to one another. The aim is to decide which tasks to complete, when, and by whom. We present a mathematical compact model for the PTTP, which includes a number of complicating real-life factors. Due to the complexity of the compact model, it is difficult to solve large instances using a commercial solver. Therefore, we also propose a decomposition-based solution approach, with a decomposed model where possible travel routes for the resources are generated a priori. The computational study shows that the decomposed model has better performance than the compact model, and that it can be used as a good starting point for developing a useful decision support tool for military peacekeeping operations planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces the background and connotation of human performance modeling (HPM), HPM models, and the application of artificial intelligence algorithms in HPM. It deeply analyzes the connotation and uncertainty of each model and finally puts forward its military application. The aim is to provide relevant researchers in the field with an in-depth understanding of domain knowledge and related uncertainties and to indicate future research directions. The first part is a general overview of human factors engineering, where the definition, origin, research field, importance, and general problems of HPM are elaborated. The composition of the man–machine system and its corresponding relationship with the observe–orient–decide–act loop are described. The second part reviews the models of perception, cognition, understanding, and decision making. Among them, models of cognition consist of visual search, visual sampling, mental workload, and goals, operators, methods, and selection rules; models of action consist of Hick–Hyman law, Fitts's law, and manual control theory. The third part is a review of the source and importance of the integrated models and focuses on the principles, composition, and successful application cases of the three models, namely SAINT, IMPRINT, and ACT-R. The fourth part is a review of the application of the algorithms and models in the fields of artificial intelligence, deep learning, and data mining in analyzing multivariate datasets in HPM. In addition, future HPM military applications are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses required personnel, training capacities and equipment for participation in the United Nations peacekeeping operations with the riverine elements. In order to meet necessary capabilities for engagement in United Nations peacekeeping operations, Serbian military riverine units have to be compatible with the issued UN requirements. Serbian Armed Forces have the potential to reach such requirements with the River Flotilla as a pivot for the participation in UN missions. Serbian Military Academy adopted and developed educational and training program in accordance with the provisions and recommendations of the IMO conventions and IMO model courses. Serbian Military Academy has opportunities for education and training military riverine units for participation in the United Nations peacekeeping operations. Moreover, Serbia has Multinational Operations Training Center and Peacekeeping Operations Center certified to provide selection, training, equipping and preparations of individuals and units to the United Nations multinational operations.

In the article principles, pertaining to the safety of transport for explosives and unexploded ordnance of military origin and procedures that guarantee maximal effectiveness of the process of their neutralization, are presented. Since the end of the 2nd World War operations of neutralizing unexploded ordnance (UXO) of that era that still lie in ports, roadsteads and coastal areas are continuously conducted. During that war the Polish coast was one of the major battlegrounds and till now unexploded ordnance are found either on the sea bed or along the coast. Various analyses state that searching the sea and the coastline for unexploded ordnance is a task still to be carried out in the foreseeable future.

Passive radar (PR) systems are attractive for various military and commercial applications, where illuminators of opportunity are used. Using the fact that most target scenes are very sparsely populated makes it possible to apply compressive sensing (CS) for PR. CS provides higher resolution than that obtained by using traditional ambiguous function, but suffers from increasing coherence associated with the finer grids whether for monostatic radar or multistatic radar. A novel incoherent CS dictionary construction method is presented here to deal with the case of finer grids. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed CS-based processing scheme with incoherent dictionary can work well for high-resolution PRs.

Drone inexpensive and operational flexibility contributed to its exponential increase by civil users, apart from military applications. This resulted in posing threats due to drone misuses, such as smuggling, unlawful imaging and other significant vulnerability that makes its detection necessary. The study demonstrated a theoretical model of extracting the m-Doppler signature due to rotating blades of a quadcopter drone, in forward scattering radar (FSR) geometry. The model was further validated experimentally by using a parabolic dish antenna in the receiver system of the FSR geometry. Before these, some reported efforts made to detect the drone by using different methodologies such as acoustic, video, audio-visual, radio frequency, radar systems and other non-technical approaches like netting were briefly presented. The result of the authors’ investigation revealed that the drone could be detected from the signature generated due to rotating blades based on the blade orientation. This signature can further be used to identify the drone from other flying targets existing within the same surveillance area.

A Wideband octogonal patch antenna intended for the Ka band applications with a working recurrence scope of 32.16GHz to 37.5GHz covering 5.34GHz of transfer speed. The patch is shorted with the ground by utilizing a shorting pin which prompted the wide bandwidth. Fire resistant Glass epoxy is substrate and a 50ω coaxial link is utilized to energize the antenna. Shorting pin strategy has been executed to achieve the wideband width of activity. The general element of the antenna is 8.4mm×8.4mm×0.21mm. It is having wide data transfer capacity covering the ka band recurrence go from 32.16GHz to 37.5GHz covering 5.34GHz of transmission capacity with an arrival misfortune esteem not exactly -10dB for whole data transmission. Monetarily accessible 3D test system Ansys HFSS programming has been utilized to plan the proposed antenna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drone inexpensive and operational flexibility contributed to its exponential increase by civil users, apart from military applications. This resulted in posing threats due to drone misuses, such as smuggling, unlawful imaging and other significant vulnerability that makes its detection necessary. The study demonstrated a theoretical model of extracting the m-Doppler signature due to rotating blades of a quadcopter drone, in forward scattering radar (FSR) geometry. The model was further validated experimentally by using a parabolic dish antenna in the receiver system of the FSR geometry. Before these, some reported efforts made to detect the drone by using different methodologies such as acoustic, video, audio-visual, radio frequency, radar systems and other non-technical approaches like netting were briefly presented. The result of the authors' investigation revealed that the drone could be detected from the signature generated due to rotating blades based on the blade orientation. This signature can further be used to identify the drone from other flying targets existing within the same surveillance area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Passive radar (PR) systems are attractive for various military and commercial applications, where illuminators of opportunity are used. Using the fact that most target scenes are very sparsely populated makes it possible to apply compressive sensing (CS) for PR. CS provides higher resolution than that obtained by using traditional ambiguous function, but suffers from increasing coherence associated with the finer grids whether for monostatic radar or multistatic radar. A novel incoherent CS dictionary construction method is presented here to deal with the case of finer grids. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed CS-based processing scheme with incoherent dictionary can work well for high-resolution PRs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gaining information about an unknown gas source is a task of great importance with applications in several areas, including responding to gas leaks or suspicious smells, quantifying sources of emissions, or in an emergency response to an industrial accident or act of terrorism. In this paper, a method to estimate the source term of a gaseous release using measurements of concentration obtained from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is described. The source term parameters estimated include the three‐dimensional location of the release, its emission rate and other important variables needed to forecast the spread of the gas using an atmospheric transport and dispersion model. The parameters of the source are estimated by fusing concentration observations from a gas detector on‐board the aircraft, with meteorological data and an appropriate model of dispersion. Two models are compared in this paper, both derived from analytical solutions to the advection–diffusion equation. Bayes' theorem, implemented using a sequential Monte Carlo algorithm, is used to estimate the source parameters to take into account the large uncertainties in the observations and formulated models. The system is verified with novel, outdoor, fully automated experiments, where observations from the UAV are used to estimate the parameters of a diffusive source. The estimation performance of the algorithm is assessed subject to various flight path configurations and wind speeds. Observations and lessons learned during these unique experiments are discussed, and areas for future research are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the development and control methodology of a military rescue robot for a casualty extraction task. The new rescue robot (HURCULES) equipped with electric actuators for the casualty extraction task on the battle field is introduced. In this paper, mechanical designs of the HURCULES are described in detail. One of the noticeable features in the mechanical design is to use the worm gear in the joint to maintain the safety of the casualty even with power‐off and to reduce the energy through a selected operating mode. Moreover, unlike the upper body of a conventional humanoid robot, the chest plate is installed and used to properly distribute the casualty's weight to the dual‐arm manipulator and the chest plate when carrying the wounded person. The HURCULES is valuable because the rescue robots for use on the battle field are very rare. And, the HURCULES is the first rescue robot for use on the battle field in South Korea. Primarily, a semiautonomous control strategy is applied to the HURCULES. The maneuvering stability of the HURCULES is needed when approaching and escaping a casualty while maneuvering on uneven terrain, and it maintains autonomously by the HURCULES. A variety of maneuvering experiments on various terrains were conducted, and satisfactory results for the casualty extraction task were obtained. In particular, the field experiments in this paper were performed at an accredited test site. Besides, additional experiments were conducted to enhance the field applicability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Military Engineer / Hadmérnök is the property of National University of Public Service and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Ordnance Industry Automation is the property of Editorial Board for Ordnance Industry Automation and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this paper, a new method for designing an active dual-band dipole antenna is proposed. The operating frequencies of the proposed antenna are 150 and 450 MHz that are usually used in military applications. Using a series stub is the main idea in the proposed dual-band antenna, where it makes an independent resonance frequency higher than the main resonance frequency of a conventional dipole. To make appropriate matching impedance in the two frequency bands, the technique of creating an internal coaxial cable is used. Furthermore, to improve the antenna gain, an amplifier is in series part connected to the proposed dipole antenna. The simulated and measured results of the return loss, radiation patterns and antenna gain show that this antenna has a good operation in both resonance frequencies.

This research effort presents a tabu search algorithm to solve the dynamic airlift loading problem. Given a set of palletized cargo items which require transportation from an aerial port of embarkation to an aerial port of debarkation within a pre-specified time frame, the dynamic airlift loading problem seeks to partition the pallets into aircraft loads, select an efficient and effective subset of aircraft from available aircraft, and assign the pallets to allowable positions on those aircraft. The dynamic airlift loading problem differs from many partitioning and packing problems described in the literature because, in addition to spatial constraints, factors such as allowable cabin load, balance restrictions, and temporal restrictions on cargo and aircraft are included. The algorithm developed in this research, the dynamic airlift loading problem-tabu search, was tested on a variety of problem instances. Since real-world solutions are hand generated by subject matter experts and no previous research effort has solved this specific problem, the algorithmic results are compared to compute lower bounds on the number of aircraft trips required.