Payload Systems Field Revolutionized

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The dominance of the RF spectrum is critical to successful military operations. Today the US military does this using discrete radar, EW, and communication payloads that are separately designed, procured, and integrated.

These payloads typically use dedicated apertures, have tightly coupled hardware and software, and are not well-coordinated in their use of the RF spectrum, which makes it difficult and time consuming to adopt new technology, adapt to rapidly changing threats, change RF functions quickly, and create compact RF systems.

In search for a solution, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is involving three RF and microwave technology companies in $23.2 million effort to develop a blended RF system that combines radar, electronic warfare (EW), and communications components aboard medium-sized unmanned aircraft.

The contracts for integrating blended RF systems aboard medium-sized UAVs relate to phases 2 and 3 of the Converged Collaborative Elements For RF Task Operations (CONCERTO) program. The program seeks to move away from collections of rigid and constrained RF systems to one converged approach that is scalable, agile, easily modified, facilitates technology insertion, and that makes the most of common RF apertures. The program, moreover, will demonstrate this converged RF approach in an RF payload that fits aboard medium-sized unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that weigh less than 1,320 pounds like the AAI RQ-7 Shadow, or the Boeing Insitu RQ-21 Blackjack.

According to militaryaerospace.com, contracts were awarded to Perspecta Labs; L-3 Mustang Technology Group; and the Northrop Grumman Corp.

CONCERTO systems could carry out multi-function operations in less space and power than the combined collections of discrete systems, increase the capability of small- and medium-sized UAVs, and speed technology insertion by decoupling hardware from software and firmware.