Increasing the Mobility of Dismounted Marines. Small Unit Mobility Enhancement Technologies: Unmanned Ground Vehicles Market Survey

摘要

In the Global War on Terror, particularly in Areas of Operation such as Afghanistan, there is an urgent need for a means of increasing the mobility of dismounted Marines in order to provide them with increased speed, lethality, and survivability in an inhospitable terrain. A promising avenue of inquiry is an investigation resulting in a market survey involving the rapidly-developing field of unmanned ground systems. To this end, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Expeditionary Maneuver Warfare and Combating Terrorism Department (ONR- 30)commissioned the Unmanned Systems Branch (7171) of the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific (SSC Pacific) to conduct a detailed survey and analysis of current and developing robotic technologies to support the Small Unit Mobility Enhancement Technologies(SUMET) strategy at ONR. The specific focus is on tactical unmanned ground systems capable of supporting an increase in the mobility of dismounted Marines operating in a tactical environment, lightening the load of the individual Marine, and possibly providing a logistical resupply capability for small units.