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End-to-End UAV Messaging over Unreliable Data Links
In the complex software environments of both aircraft and ground station, many applications must communicate. Historically, developers built these as complex independent systems,Read More...
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The Dancing Elephants
No matter how hard I try to get away from talking about the budget and the shift in focus of military programs, current events just keep dragging me back to the elephant in the room.Read More...
Multicore Solutions Target a Variety of Emerging Military Needs
Embedded developers in many arenas are constantly facing competitive pressure to provide more application features and improve performance capabilities. As a result, it’s becomeRead More...
PCI/104-Express, PC/104 and EPIC SBCs Roundup
SBC Provides Right-Sized PC/104 Solution PC/104 has always shined in defense applications that need a modest amount of computer power. Adlink Technology has released the AmproRead More...
System, Board and Panel Innovations Fuel Rugged Display Demands
Leveraging cutting-edge graphics chips developed for the demanding gaming market, military graphics subsystems are now able to offer complex video and graphics functionality in highlyRead More...
The Inside Track
Parvus Awarded Follow-on Contracts for USMC EFV Subsystems Parvus has received new contracts from General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) in support of the U.S. Marine Corps’Read More...
Simultaneous Multiaxis Vibration Test: Vital for Rugged Box Systems
The words “simultaneous” and “multiaxis” are important when specifying a dynamic (vibration and shock) test for rugged box-level systems. The new Test Method 527 (multi-exciterRead More...
Stand-Alone Rugged Boxes Come into their Own
Technology developments that reduce complexity and enhance usability are always a welcome addition to military applications. That need is being fueled by the increasing availability ofRead More...
MicroTCA Gaining Ground in Military Applications
Deeply rooted in VME and CompactPCI platforms, military embedded design is undergoing a noticeable shift. Modern warfare initiatives are driving designers to find more bandwidth, whileRead More...
Technology Focus: Rugged Box-Level Systems Roundup
Small Core Duo Box Has PC/104 I/O Expansion The concept of the “stand-alone rugged” box has infiltrated the military embedded market in a big way. The latest example is ACCES I/ORead More...
Military I/O Solutions Look Beyond 1553
Tried and true I/O schemes, such as MIL-STD-1553 and ARINC 429, remain popular for pure control applications. But they’re bandwidth-limited by today’s standards. A slew of multipurposeRead More...
The Inside Track
Harris Awarded Contract for Aircraft Fibre Channel Net Switches Harris was awarded an $9.8 million follow-on contract to provide 209 Fibre Channel Network Switches for the U.S.Read More...
Unmanned Systems Face a Changing Market
The future of unmanned systems is here and the market is rapidly changing. The last year has seen the largest influx of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned ground vehiclesRead More...
COTS Products
Tiny SMD Fuse Approved for Space Applications Reliability and ruggedness take on a whole new meaning for electronics used in space applications. There’s no repair truckRead More...
Case Study: 24 GHz Short-Range Radar Chip for Mil Vehicles
Military vehicles use radar sensors to enable features such as all-weather operations, weapons control, altimeter measurements, reconnaissance and navigation. In all of theseRead More...
MIL-STD 461E: A Key Standard for Vehicle-Based Computing
For the DoD, specifying a computer’s electromagnetic interference (EMI) and its electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) is an important judge on how well the computer will operate withinRead More...
Computing, Power and Networks Take Priority in Mil Vehicle Modernization
For several years now, any discussion about the future of military vehicles revolved around the Army’s massive Future Combat Systems program. All that officially changed late lastRead More...
The Inside Track
ITT Awarded JTRS Support Contract ITT has been awarded a $22.9 million contract for Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio Systems (SINCGARS) Software In-Service Support (SwISS)Read More...
Many Factors Drive Uninterruptible Power Supply Choice
The process of finding, selecting and qualifying commercial off-the-shelf Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPSs) for military applications can be an exercise in frustration.Read More...
The Inside Track
GE Fanuc Secures 3U VPX Order from GD Land Systems GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, a unit of GE Enterprise Solutions, today announced that it had secured an order from GeneralRead More...
1U Rackmount Boards Serve Up a Diverse Array of Solutions
1U Blade Server computing solutions and other 1U rackmount boards are rapidly finding a niche in a variety of military applications such as SATCOM-On-the-Move systems. Now thatRead More...
SSPC Advancements Enhance Vehicle Power System Designs
Developers of electrical power management and distribution systems for current and future force ground vehicles face several challenges. As new applications increase the number andRead More...
HALT/HASS Testing Goes Beyond the Norm
The increased focus on network-centric warfare in today's military operations has expanded the use of embedded systems in the deployment of mobile, mission-computing andRead More...
Secure Network Communications Pushes Compute Limits
New and evolving technology initiatives such as Brigade Combat Team Modernization, JTRS (Joint Tactical Radio System) and WIN-T (Warfighter Information Network-Tactical) rely heavilyRead More...
New Solutions Attack the Defense Industry’s Most Compute-Centric Problems
There's a trend that should be obvious, but is often overlooked at higher echelons of the defense industry: More and more of system functionality is now implemented as software runningRead More...
Revamping Methods for Rugged Equipment Testing
Consider any electronic or mechanical piece of equipment intended for military use. Stating that the equipment is “rugged” is not sufficient. There’s no neat category that defines whatRead More...
Inside Track
Parvus Supplies Payload Interface Computers for MQ-5B Hunter UAV Parvus' DuraCOR 810 mission computers have been integrated into Northrop Grumman's MQ-5B Hunter Unmanned AircraftRead More...
Intelligent Power Switches for Harsh 24V Vehicle Systems
Intelligent Power Switches for Harsh 24V Vehicle Systems Engineers face a major hurdle designing vehicle junction boxes that meet tough new performance standards underRead More...
Ethernet Switches Connect With Military Needs
The success of net-centric warfare is dependent on fast, secure communications technology—specifically Ethernet. To meet the military’s demands for Ethernet-enabled vehicles, there isRead More...
Case Study: Li-Ion Polymer Battery Approach Meets Mobile Military Needs
Due to IEDs, RPGs and the penetrating power of the AK47, the military is installing a higher level of armor on vehicles to offer as much protection for the soldier as possible. ThisRead More...
It’s a Sandal That’s a Boot
Late last month, Jeff Child, COTS Journal’s Editor-in-Chief, and I made our annual trek to AUSA Winter. Once again, the AUSA conference was very interesting and showcased that allRead More...
OpenVPX Flourishes as it Readies for Prime Time
The goal of bringing together advanced switch fabric interconnects and all the features of a modern, rugged embedded computer architecture, is finally happening in the form of OpenVPX.Read More...
Slot-Card Systems Vie with Rugged Box Solutions
There’s no doubt that there has been a change occurring in the military embedded computing industry over the past five years or so. At the heart of that change is the risingRead More...
The Inside Track
Aonix Java VM Used on Modernized Guided Missile Cruiser USS Bunker Hill Development tools supplier Atego has announced the successful deployment of its industry-leading Aonix PERCRead More...
The Inside Track
Curtiss-Wright Awarded Contract for Upgraded Radar Signal Processing Curtiss-Wright has been awarded a $10.5 million contract by Northrop Grumman to provide an upgraded Radar SignalRead More...
Fresh Start and Net-Centric View Drive Vehicle Modernization
It’s taken some time, but the defense industry seems to be over the shock of life beyond the Army’s Future Combat Systems program. For over a decade FCS was an inherent part of anyRead More...
All Eyes Toward the New GCV
Five years ago we had a great looking cover on COTS Journal depicting graphical representations of several of the proposed Future Combat Systems vehicles. They were all linked by linesRead More...
Transitions and New Realities Shake Up U.S. Manned Space Program
Here we are again at a crossroads of National manned space policy—the most significant since the transition from the Apollo/Saturn to the Space Shuttle. The Space Shuttle program isRead More...
Graphics and Video Advances Feed Situational Awareness Needs
Leveraging cutting-edge graphics chips developed for the demanding gaming market, military graphics subsystems are now able to offer complex video and graphics functionality in highlyRead More...
Pre-Integrated Systems Move Up the Solution Food Chain
The rising trend toward stand-alone rugged box systems continues to pervade the military embedded computing industry. These box-level systems often resemble the end deliverableRead More...
New DoD Goals Boost Preconfigured Subsystem Opportunities
Recent changes in the U.S. military’s mission strategy—following the change of administrations, and reflected in the DoD’s new budget—are shifting the military procurement landscape.Read More...
OpenVPX: Cards Dealt, Ready to Play
Hailed as the next-generation fabric-based slot card standard, VPX has had a few rocky years getting started. But over the last year and a half, the goal of bringing together advancedRead More...
Multiple Vendor Fairy Tale
Even the military is following the trend of consumer electronics—more functionality, smaller, less power and cheaper. The only problem is that the military can’t accept a “use it forRead More...
