European Unmanned Technology Launched

European Unmanned Technology Launched

Photo illust Pixabay

This post is also available in: heעברית (Hebrew)

A European consortium submitted an application for a multi-mission unmanned ground system capable of being teamed with manned and aerial vehicles. The system will consist of a robust and modular unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) equipped with an electronic warfare resistant command, control and communications solution and secure autonomous mobility software that enables the operator to simultaneously and safely control multiple land and air platforms.

The consortium led by the Estonian Milrem Robotics and composed of several major defence, communication and cybersecurity companies and high technology SMEs established in the EU submitted their application concerning the iMUGS (integrated Modular Unmanned Ground System) to the European Commission’s European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP). 

According to the announcement on businesswire.com, the UGVs will be able to team with manned and aerial vehicles with the objective to provide flexibility, modularity and versatility for different missions, increase protection, sustainability and performance of military operations and enhance situational awareness of ground forces.

State-of-the-art virtual and constructive simulation environments will also be set up.

”A number of European nations will start using unmanned vehicles in logistics and ISR roles, reducing the physical and cognitive load and increasing the safety of our troops. It’s important that this new capability will be well integrated with existing capabilities and force structure,” explained Kuldar Väärsi, CEO of Milrem Robotics. “It’s equally important that these new unmanned systems are safe to use and cyber protected. This is exactly the scope that iMUGS is targeting,” Väärsi added.

The unprecedented cross-border cooperation will join all expertise and skills across EU necessary to achieve a significant step forwards in this domain. The objectives of the EDIDP programme are to contribute to the strategic autonomy of the European Union and to strengthen the cooperation between Member States. 

The priorities include enabling high-end operations of military forces with special focus on intelligence and secured communications and cyber. Actions include development of next generation ground combat capabilities and solutions in Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality and Cyber technologies.