Oshkosh Intergrates UGV Technology To M-ATVs

Oshkosh Defense has integrated its TerraMax unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) technology onto an Oshkosh MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV) to demonstrate capabilities for route-clearance missions.

TerraMax UGV technology has the potential to reduce troops’ exposure to threats, such as improvised explosive devices (IED) in route-clearance missions, as well as optimize the number of troops needed for such operations.

Oshkosh is attending the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) Unmanned Systems 2014 in Orlando, Fla. beginning today through May 15, to demonstrate how TerraMax UGV technology can benefit route clearance and other missions, the company said in a statement.

Equipped on the M-ATV, as well as other heavy and medium tactical wheeled vehicles, TerraMax UGV technology enables one or multiple vehicles in a route clearance convoy to operate autonomously, resulting in fewer troops exposed to threats.
 
The TerraMax UGV system can be enhanced to intelligently incorporate counter-IED (C-IED) payloads such as ground-penetrating radar and mine rollers. The TerraMax operator control unit (OCU) also can provide over-the-horizon situational awareness to accompanying manned vehicles. The system is highly interoperable, using a widely adopted, non-proprietary open architecture messaging standard that enables modularity and easy integration of new subsystems.
 
Oshkosh is conducting this work independently and in parallel to efforts within the U.S. Marine Corps and Army to identify opportunities for using UGVs for route-reconnaissance and route-clearance missions. The effort expands on Oshkosh’s efforts with the U.S. Office of Naval Research Cargo UGV project, which seeks to bring UGV capabilities to logistics convoy missions to help reduce troops’ exposure to threats.
 
Oshkosh TerraMax UGV technology is designed as a modular appliqué kit that can be tightly integrated into modern production vehicles or retrofitted onto legacy platforms. Vehicles equipped with the TerraMax UGV technology can seamlessly collaborate with manned vehicles to carry out missions at full operational tempo. TerraMax UGVs function autonomously across varying terrains and in all weather conditions, day or night—and original vehicle payload and performance are retained.
 
Developed to support rapid deployment, troops can be trained to oversee TerraMax-equipped vehicles in only a few days to take advantage of an unsurpassed standoff and advance situational awareness capability.