Weapon Sight Showcases Data Import and Export Capabilities

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Advanced ground combat electro-optical/infrared systems will be supplied to the US Department of Defense. Those systems are the sensors that will watch the battlefields of the future, transmitting what they see to humans safely ensconced in armor, or observing the vehicles remotely, some step removed from the danger of simply watching with bare eyes.

Those robot sensors include horizontal technology integration second-generation FLIR, for ground vehicles, which Leonardo boasts as providing “armored vehicle crews with the ability to see clearly, regardless of light level, adverse weather conditions, and battlefield smoke and dust.”

Leonardo DRS will receive up to $800 million in funding for the deal, according to c4isrnet.com.

In another contract, Leonardo will provide stabilized infrared camera sensors for assault breaching vehicles. While most armored vehicles are designed to face some danger, the assault breaching vehicles are built to clear paths through minefields and over explosives, so anything that puts more distance between the humans in the vehicles and the danger is good.

The company will also supply a lightweight laser targeting system to guide precision munitions, a thermal weapon sight for SOCOM and Marine snipers, and a family of uncooled infrared weapon sights for the U.S. Army. Of those, the most stand-out futuristic feature is that ability of the improved night observation device thermal weapon sight to “import data and export images,” adding a hint of data collection and analytics to the shooting.