Posted on 05/19/2004 4:32:48 PM PDT by Cannoneer No. 4
Mike Riley spent part of his day Monday leading soldiers and civilians through the streets of Baghdad — without leaving Fort Knox.
Riley, director of new products and business for Raydon Corp., demonstrated the latest in combat training technology with the Raydon Virtual Convoy Trainer, one of the more popular vendor exhibits at the 2004 Armor Conference. More than 130 vendors attended the conference to showcase new technology for the armor force. Exhibits ranged anywhere from the latest in weaponry to enhanced vehicle armor to waterproof socks.
The virtual trainer is one example of new training techniques by the military. Riley said the system is brand new and won't be fielded by the military until this summer, when it will be put into use at mobilization stations for troops to practice before they're deployed.
Although it looks like a high-quality video game, the technology is no joke. The visual database, which features several virtual training sites including the Zussman Urban Combat Training Center at Fort Knox and the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif., takes months to complete.
The simulators also feature an exact replica of Baghdad so soldiers can practice missions similar to those in Operation Iraqi Freedom on a screen before they have to engage in combat in real life.
"They can do dangerous things without the danger," Riley said. "They can die here and not really die. They make mistakes and learn from them."
The database is so complete that it shows soldiers actual locations of buildings and street intersections.
"If there's a five-story building on a certain spot in Baghdad, there's a five-story building in that exact spot here," he said, pointing to the computer screen.
Other exhibits also showcased state-of-the-art technology. The latest, from Microvision Inc., is the Nomad Helmet-Mounted Display, currently being used by the Stryker Brigade in Iraq.
The display allows soldiers to view both the terrain in front of them and has thermal imaging and situational awareness maps at the touch of a button. A small screen mounted on the helmet and lowered into an operator's line of vision keep soldiers' heads up and hands-free, while they examine tactical information.
"You can be looking out at the horizon and still maintain situational awareness," Microvision market segment manager Bruce Westcoat said.
The 2-year-old system can be used during the day and at night, without being detected with night vision.
Westcoat said the display was receiving good reviews from the Stryker Brigade, where each vehicle currently has one system in use by the tactical commander. Eventually, Westcoat hopes there will be multiple systems in one vehicle and that all brigades will have access to the technology.
While high-tech exhibits kept the attention of many, some attendees were more excited about the armor force vehicles on display.
Seven-year-old Michael Prather Jr. mounted a M1A2 SEP tank, a modernized version of the M1 Abrams tank, with his father, Staff Sgt. Michael Prather, who is stationed at Fort Knox.
Michael Jr. said climbing inside the tank was fun and his favorite exhibit. He and his dad have been to the conference before, and he always looks forward to exploring the vehicles.
"It's small," he said, after exiting the tank. "There's lots of stuff in there. And it's kind of crowded."
But Michael Jr. wasn't the only one having fun. Prather, a tanker, also enjoys getting to see the modernized vehicles.
"A lot of times we don't get to use a lot of the new technology because we do a lot of support missions," Prather said. "This is pretty fun because we get to see the latest updates and what's out there."
Erica Walsh can be reached at 769-1200, Ext. 238, or e-mail her at erica@mail.the-ne.com.
Bruce Westcoat, salesman with Microvision, demonstrates how you can see through the Nomad helmet-mounted display and still see the surrounding area without closing an eye. Right, a soldier can see other soldiers walking in an area to his left, yet he can also see a person standing directly in front of him with the Nomad device.
Armor Conference ping
This pretty interesting .Wonder how the new V 100 is doing?
ping
How long until the gun is tracking with the tank commanders eyes ? That's old Apache technology that could be brought into play with the tank commander literally guiding the weapon with his eyes.
OF course a magnify function would be pretty handy to put the round right on target.
Gun tubes can do damage, especially to buses. I would probably have gotten away with it if I had been on the tank trail instead of the hard ball.
Ouch. Good luck and I hope no one was hurt.
Weird but cool.
Nobody got hurt but the bus.
My butt got hurt, but that was later.
Yep, built over in New Orleans East.. Now we can see a nice little, mission specific armored car do its thing.
Something for the next democRAT administration to give away to our declared enemies for a campaign contribution. (Wish it WAS sarcasm!)
Just had the opportunity to see the largest private collection of armor in the world. -- Eat your hearts out tank fans!
Littlefield armor collection
Address:http://www.ipmssantarosa.org/little/little.htm Changed:2:25 PM on Tuesday, July 8, 2003
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