Free Republic

DOD officials await April tests to determine future of software radio BY Frank Tiboni Published on Feb. 21, 2005 More Related Links FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Amid concerns that the innovative Joint Tactical Radio System may be behind schedule and over budget, Defense Department officials are considering a wholesale change in the system's delivery. Pentagon officials are considering asking JTRS' prime contractor, Boeing, to build and deliver a part of the system for ground vehicles and rotary-wing aircraft. The change comes after Boeing officials notified DOD in December that they would need more time and money to finish the job....

Everyone has heard the horror stories—from rescue units frantically trying to communicate during the terrifying first hours after the Twin Towers were struck, to communications crises during the most recent war. The cause? Emergency radios that could not find a clear channel amidst the noise of all the other signals, and systems that are not compatible. The Office of Naval Research has moved the Navy—and all the services—a big step closer to needing only one radio to talk to the many already in service with the development of an all-digital radio receiver. The inherent accuracy and very high processing speed...