A Virtual Highway for Road Warriors
Upgraded and New Ground Vehicle Trainers
Help Operators Gain Proficiency Before
They Enter an Actual Vehicles' Cabin.
by Marty Kauchak, MT2 Editor
Military services have made recent, significant investments in high-fidelity training systems for their ground vehicle fleets. The training systems’ upgrades and new products help immerse operators in challenging, virtual scenarios that replicate the contemporary operating environment, help increase the training readiness of new cadres of operators and enable them to more safely operate vehicles in challenging on- and offroad conditions.
NEEDED: UNIQUE RIGOR
A walk about the conference floor of I/ITSEC or ITEC quickly reveals that government-industry teams use simulations, simulators and other technology applications to allow drivers and crew members to train as they operate in desert, urban, woodland and other environments. These technology applications have unique complexities compared to flight simulators, requiring unique rigor and physics-based applications for databases and other subsystems.
Arnold Free, Ph.D., vice president of business development, CMLabs, pointed out, “Military environments are extremely complex and involve many large scenarios with buildings and other cultural artifacts, debris and other vehicles, ground troops, civilians. Vehicles must be able to travel on and off of roads, and terrain types from desert sand, to marsh, to rough concrete must be supported.”
In addition, simulation scenarios often involve vehicles that interact with the environment. For example, a vehicle might ram another vehicle, push through debris or even drive through shallow bodies of water. “In the case of engineering tanks or ordinance disposal vehicles [such as the Buffalo], equipment such as front-end loaders, back-hoes, and manipulator arms need to be simulated. This involves real-time multiphysics simulations of the vehicle, terraintire/ track interaction, digging/compaction [deformable terrain] and interaction with many objects,” remarked Free.
SEVERAL U.S.DEVELOPMENTS
Dr. Free’s observations are among those being solved to allow U.S. DoD’s virtual vehicle trainers to meet an ever-expanding list of service requirements. One program, the U.S. Marine Corps’ Operator Driving Simulator (ODS) System, is reconfigurable to allow Marines to learn and master the basic operator handling characteristics of Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (and models with Marine Armor System), HMMWV (up-armored model) and Cougar mine resistant, ambush protected (MRAP) vehicles.
“We use virtual training to allow the drivers more time in the cockpit, so to speak, of the truck, rather than getting on the road to burn fuel and put miles on an actual vehicle,” Captain Garrett Hager, ODS program manager, PM TRASYS, told MT2.
The training audience supported by the ODS system and its licensing program ranges from the 18-year-old Marine who may have never received a driving license, to veteran operators needing sustainment training.
Self-sustaining trailers with a single ODS unit, or two ODS units, have been delivered in various quantities to major service bases with the promise of more on the way. A dual-system is scheduled for delivery this December to support Hawaii-based Corps operators. The service is also examining the procurement of static systems for fixed-site facilities that support forward-based units in the Western Pacific.
Eleven ODS systems have been fielded to the reserve component, with “at least five more systems to deliver to the reserves to various stations throughout the U.S.,” Captain Geraldine Carey, spokesperson, Marine Corps Systems Command said.
Two strategies supported the Corps’ decision to field this initial cadre of trailerbased systems. In addition to allowing the ODS trailers to be co-located at main bases and stations accessible to widely dispersed learning audiences, there were constructionrelated issues to address. “We asked many of the bases if they had existing facilities to put these units in, and they don’t,” pointed out Annette Pike, assistant program manger, virtual training systems, PM TRASYS. She added, “And military construction may take many years to complete—so, mobile was the quickest solution.”
On the ODS program’s horizon is an upgrade of systems to support Buffalo MRAP drivers. This June, FAAC Inc., part of Arotech Corp.’s Training and Simulation Division,received a contract modification to add Buffalo vehicle driver training capability to the ODS. The modification included simulation of the Buffalo vehicle operations, kits to add Buffalo capability to 42 simulators, as well as funding for three additional dual-simulator trailer systems.
Raydon’s expanding product portfolio provides virtual training solutions for Army convoy and MRAP operators—with more new trainers and upgrades planned for delivery.
The company has provided 49 trailer-based virtual convoy operations trainers (VCOTs) with 563 training seats. In October, Raydon was awarded a contract from the U.S. Army National Guard to provide a number of virtual combat training systems, including 17 additional VCOTs.
Raydon also has five virtual combat convoy trainers (VCCT) under contract (in the field, training soldiers) in Fort Hood, Alaska, Hawaii, Germany and Kuwait. VCCT unit 5 is being used for testing and training fleet services personnel. All told there are 144 fielded training seats for VCCT.
A number of convoy trainer systems’ enhancements are also scheduled. A partial list of upgrades includes “interchangeable weapons, improved radio solutions, planned release for an Afghanistan database, and touch screen Force XXI Battle Command Brigade and Below [FBCB2] with FBCB2 added to every vehicle [including LV3] at every station,” Don Ariel, chairman and chief strategic officer, Raydon Corp., told MT2.
Raydon also continues to bolster the Army’s MRAP virtual training program with its VRCT (Virtual Route Clearance Trainers) solution. In August, the company announced an initial contract valued at $20.5 million with three options, which, if exercised, could bring the total contract value to $53 million. The VRCT, a virtual reality simulator, provides instruction in route clearance operations, improvised explosive device (IED) detection, and the recognition and removal of other hazards. Each of the eight systems will allow a team of 31 soldiers to train together in the same virtual environment to improve soldiers’ route clearance skills, teach the latest tactics, techniques, and procedures for route clearance, and how to operate and employ MRAP route clearance vehicles, in particular: Buffalo; MPCV (mine protected clearance vehicle); Husky; VMMD (vehicle mounted mine detector); RG-31 and JERRV—MMPV (medium mine protected vehicles); and Talon IIIB–MTRS (man transportable robotic system).
“This award will deliver eight additional VRCT systems to the U.S. Army and will allow more warfighters to prepare themselves for use of mission-critical MRAP vehicles immediately upon entering the theater of operations,” said Ariel.
One of the interesting subsystems supporting Raydon’s simulators is the AI.implant. The technology is an artificial intelligence authoring and runtime software solution that enables simulated entities to execute and engage in complex, sophisticated decision-making. “A flexible, multi-platform solution, AI.implant enables Raydon to create realistic military convoy driving scenarios that accurately depict the movement and load of different vehicle models and entities within the environment,” remarked Nick Giannias, vice president, research and technology, Presagis.
Giannias also said the ability to reuse programmed behaviors is a must-have capability for organizations developing mission-critical scenarios. “Raydon can integrate existing data—such as where vehicles can travel or how they should interact with the environment under different conditions—from existing scenarios into new programs easily without having to start from scratch. This saves an incredible amount of time and helps developers focus on new, innovative applications of the technology.”
Giannias further explained how AI.implant operates. To accurately program vehicle behaviors, AI.implant needed to have a pathfinding system that accounted for the load, balance and model of different vehicles under a variety of conditions. “Imagine if you will, a semi-trailer truck making its way through a city. Not only should the truck follow basic traffic rules to avoid collisions, but it must also avoid taking narrow paths or making sharp turns—something a small car would not have to do. AI.implant takes these constraints into consideration, and Raydon can plan appropriate routes and speeds based on vehicle type,” said Giannias.
Fidelity is another goal of the AI.implant team. Presagis has worked with industry experts and key partners to better understand vehicle properties and ensure that AI.implant pathfinding and navigation accurately depicts the movement of vehicles. By understanding where the blind spots are, how load affects steering, or simply the length of a vehicle making a sharp turn, the minutest details become incredibly important to creating effective training scenarios.
SAIC’s Common Driver Trainer (CDT) portfolio also continues to evolve. The newest CDT sibling, the mine resistant ambush protected (MRAP) Cougar variant (CDT/MCV), uses the physics and dynamics of a heavy 6x6-wheeled vehicle. The CDT/MCV cab can also be used to model a 4x4 driver cabin with minor differences. “The CDT platform can support different size cabins or cabs,” Mike Kerrigan, CDT product line manager, SAIC told MT2. “However, at this time, SAIC has no plans to develop different size MRAP cabins,” he added.
Significant mechanical solutions impart fidelity to SAIC’s CDT. Using a force steering system and six-degrees-of-motion base together with vehicle modeling, the CDT/ MCV provides soldiers with the realistic drive and feel of the actual vehicle. “The realism is enhanced with the use of identical instrument panel components and digital gauges found in the actual vehicle. The dash board instrument panel components communicate information to each other using J1939 native protocols over a controller area network,” said Kerrigan.
The company’s newfound successes with the CDT variant comes on the heels of delivering 14 Common Driver Trainers/Stryker variant (CDTs/SV) simulators to the Army’s PEO STRI in 2007. For its part, the Army also continues to invest in the Close Combat Tactical Trainer-Reconfigurable Vehicle Simulator (CCTT-RVS) program that provides training to HMMWV and Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT) operators. This August, the Army awarded Lockheed Martin a one-year contract valued at $37 million, with three options which if exercised, could bring the total contract value to $147 million. The company will produce a CCTTRVS and the follow-on Reconfigurable Vehicle Tactical Trainer (RVTT/ CCTT-RVS). Andre Elias, director, virtual training solutions, Lockheed Martin, told MT2 that what has been fielded to the Army in the past is a reconfigurable vehicle simulator for the HMMWV or HEMTT. “That is what we mean by reconfigurable, to change from one type of vehicle to another—at site locations that already have CCTT buildings.” Elias added, “What this is, is an expansion of that concept. In addition to having the reconfigurable vehicle simulator that attaches to an existing CCTT building, the Army is going to field stand-alone sites, where there is no existing CCTT infrastructure.”
Lockheed Martin’s expanded responsibility under the terms of this contract is to provide additional training equipment (after-action review and controls) for a total training solution.
The RVTT/CCTT-RVS systems will be fielded in either a mobile configuration (in trailers) or at government- furnished fixed sites. Lockheed Martin expects to take advantage of its extensive competencies in this virtual training area to meet its customer’s new requirements. The company has delivered 28 CCTT-RVS units to the Army since a 2007 contract was awarded.
CMLabs provide another virtual solution— Vortex—a simulation platform with several integrated modules: rigid body dynamics, vehicle simulation, cable simulation and particles. These modules work together to provide accurate, highly interactive real-time simulations for vehicles and robotics. “Since Vortex is built upon physics-based vehicle dynamics models and general tools for dynamic mechanical behavior and not traditional empiricallybased models, it can easily be generalized and adapted to many situations. This saves development time and allows the simulation to be adapted to a wide range of scenarios,” said Free.
As Vortex is a general toolkit, the Vortex VxVehicles module can simulate both wheeled and tracked vehicles in any configuration. It is based on the fundamental physics of vehicle dynamics and not limited to specific vehicles. “It has been used to simulate a wide range of military vehicles such as M1 tanks, tracked armored personnel carriers such as the M113 and 4, 6 and 8-wheeled vehicles such as LAVs and HMMWVs and combat engineering tanks. In addition, Vortex is not only able to simulate the complete vehicle, it can also simulate trailers, mechanical systems such as manipulators and diggers, and the complete interaction of the vehicle with its environment. Scenarios involving IED disposal, mine-clearing, ramming other vehicles or pushing through debris can all be simulated accurately in real-time. Vortex greatly expands the training possibilities in defense applications,” concluded Free.
ONE OVERSEAS SYSTEM
Representative of overseas developments is BVR’s Matador training system. The Matador is an advanced armored fighting vehicle (AFV) driving simulator, mounted on top of a motion platform, specifically designed to provide vehicle drivers with the capability of performing high-fidelity training. While the Matador integrates the capabilities of the company’s Armor Gunnery and Tactical System and Mobile Autonomous AGTS Crew Station, it retains the professional focus on the needs of the contemporary AFV driver.
Three of the Matador’s many capabilities cited in a company product brochure include:
- support several types of AFV per cabin, with full scale authentic replica of the driving cabin;
- allow driving in any given arena (terrain, weather, etc.), and participating in a range of contemporary combat and noncombat scenarios; and
- provide basic to advanced driving courses with real-time trouble-shooting training.
Another emerging technology that caught our attention is the Drive Square Simulation System. The product is based on the patent-pending Drive Square Portable Road Simulator, which emulates real road driving conditions. It facilitates training and assessment of drivers in the actual vehicle.
“As opposed to all other simulators, which try to imitate both the vehicle and the road, using artificial environments, the Drive Square Portable Road Simulator models the road, while using the actual vehicle,” noted the company.
Using his or her own car, the client drives onto a computer-controlled road simulator ramp. Simulator sensors and actuators are quickly and non-invasively attached to the vehicle.
The company continued, “Panoramicsimulated views of the road are presented to the trainee via virtual reality goggles otherwise known as head-mounted display. The scenery is computer-generated by virtual reality software. The software receives data from the wheels and pedals of the vehicle to provide an extremely interactive experience recreating various driving conditions.”
The simulator is said to recreate not only typical everyday situations encountered frequently while on the road (e.g., driving in the rain, haze, manipulating car on crowded highways, exits), but also the most extreme of conditions (e.g., driving on ice, driving intoxicated, emergency maneuvers), while preserving both car and driver safety.
DOWNSTREAM PLANS
SAIC is working on the development of two new simulators, the Abrams M1A1 and a new prototype medical compartment cab for first responders called MedSim, which will support both air and ground vehicles.
“MedSim will train soldiers in the administration of emergency, life-saving treatment in battlespaces and tactical environments. Moving wounded soldiers across desert sands, bumpy roads, and dangerous terrain can be logistically challenging for medical personnel when their rapid response is critical to saving lives,” David Rees, senior vice president and senior director of business development, pointed out.
SAIC is planning to introduce the two new simulators at 2008 I/ITSEC and again at 2009 AUSA’s Institute of Land Warfare Winter Symposium and Exhibition.
“We’re expanding our rapid prototyping capability,” said Dutch Sley, vice president. He added, “Now we’re looking into developing a variant trainer for heavy equipment, such as a bulldozer. The Army’s PEO STRI has a vision to develop a CDT program that services the entire Army, and we want to be right there alongside of them, helping to make that vision a reality.” ♦