Mar 18

F-35B supersonic jet’s first mid-air hover (video)

Posted in: military, Today's Chili, wargadget
VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) is no great shakes in a wargadget these days — and a craft like the F-35B, with its short-take off and vertical-landing capabilities might be even less shocking — but jets that stop whatever they’re doing mid-air to just hover awhile? That’s another story entirely. The $83 million-plus, supersonic stealth jet did just that yesterday, according to Lockheed Martin. The flight began with a conventional takeoff and the aircraft hit about 200 knots before the pilot switched her into STOVL, culminating in a zero airspeed hover 150 feet above the runway. This is the first “mid-air hover” by the aircraft, and if development continues at the pace most of these programs do it should see active service sometime around Engadget’s 25th birthday. Video after the break.

Continue reading F-35B supersonic jet’s first mid-air hover (video)

F-35B supersonic jet’s first mid-air hover (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 09:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceThe Register  | Email this | Comments

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Mar 16

Military looking to build autonomous, bunker-busting killbot

Posted in: RobotApocalypse, Today's Chili, wargadget
We remember hearing something in the 1990s about SDI (or “Star Wars”) actually being a tool to fight UFOs, and that places like Area 51 contained vast underground bases positively teeming with ETs. We didn’t think much of it then, and neither do we now — although this request for information posted over on the FBO website has given us pause. The query is officially for info regarding “robotic underground munition technology,” meaning that Defense Threat Reduction Agency would really, really like to get its hands on an autonomous bunker-busting robot capable of being dropped on a target and digging into (and then blowin’ up) whatever it is that lies beneath the ground. Features specified include: a survivable underground communication system, capabilities to efficiently overcome natural and man-made obstacles, viable passive and active defensive and offensive systems, vehicle control logic to avoid, traverse, neutralize or defeat natural and man-made obstacles, and more. One one hand, this does sound like a bit of “war on terror” overkill, but again we don’t really expect the federal government to throw tons of money at a grandiose and over-expense project that will never come to fruition. We’ll be keeping a close eye on this one.

Military looking to build autonomous, bunker-busting killbot originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Gizmodo  |  sourceFBO.gov  | Email this | Comments

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Mar 11

DARPA looking to develop iPhone and Android apps, App Store

Posted in: Android, app, AppStore, iPhone, military, Today's Chili, wargadget
Sure, in the past we’ve got a hearty chuckle out of initiatives that involved Redfly terminals and Clippy variants, but the question remains: how can we get cutting-edge tech into the hands of soldiers faster? We’ve recently come across some RFIs for DARPA projects aimed at developing apps and an App Store for Android and the iPhone OS, with two in particular — Mobile Apps for the Military (DARPA-SN-10-27), and Transformative Apps (DARPA-BAA-10-41) — catching our eye. The agency is calling for apps for battlefield, humanitarian, and disaster recovery missions, including command and control, mission planning, surveillance, reconnaissance, and language translation. Of course, if you start taking commercial smartphones out to the field there’s the small matter of network coverage — if you thought that getting a reliable connection in midtown Manhattan was an issue, what about downtown Kabul? Looks like DARPA also has plans for a military that brings its own towers with them, light-weight mobile base stations that could create a “secure mobile tactical network … compatible with commercial smartphones.” What do you think? Looking to help your country out, make a bit of money, or maybe a little of both? Check the links below to start your lucrative career as a military contractor. And tell ’em Engadget sent you.

[Thanks, Sriram]

DARPA looking to develop iPhone and Android apps, App Store originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceFederal Business Opportunities, Federal Business Opportunities  | Email this | Comments

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Feb 24

DARPA longs for magnetic body healers, crazy respawn camps

Posted in: government, Medicine, military, science, security, Today's Chili, us, usa, wargadget

Even DARPA understands that its futuristic bubble shield can be penetrated given the right circumstances, and when it does, the soldier behind it is going to need some serious healing. In a hurry. In the entity’s newest budget, there’s $6.5 million tucked away “for the creation of a scaffold-free tissue engineering platform, which would allow the construction of large, complex tissues in vitro and in vivo.” As you well know, this type of mad science has been around for quite some time, and now it looks as if DARPA is ready for the next best thing: “non-contact forces.” Put simply, this alludes to replacing scaffolds with magnetic fields or dielectrophoresis, which could purportedly “control cell placement in a desired pattern for a sufficient period of time to allow the cells to synthesize their own scaffold.” It’s still too early to say how close we are to being able to instantaneously heal soldiers on the battlefield, but frankly, the public is apt to never know for sure.

DARPA longs for magnetic body healers, crazy respawn camps originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Feb 2010 04:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceDARPA [PDF], Wired  | Email this | Comments

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Feb 23

LIDAR-equipped robot maps dangerous areas in 3D so you don’t have to

Posted in: laser, robot, RobotApocalypse, robotics, Robots, Today's Chili, wargadget
Looks like the kids at MIT might have a little competition for their LIDAR-equipped 3D mapping drone. Researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology have teamed up with the University of Missouri-Columbia for a prototype robot that uses light detection and ranging (similar to RADAR, but with lasers) to map areas and send the 3D data to a nearby laptop. The technology not only provides detailed info on floor plans and physical structures (such as possible structural damage) but it can also “see” people inside a space. There are many possible applications for this, from spotting terrorists hiding in caves to seeing if your new internet girlfriend really looks like her profile pic, or — and this is especially important in the modern era — seeing if your new internet girlfriend is actually a terrorist (we wondered why she wanted that first meeting to take place in a cave). “Once you have the images, you can zoom in on objects and look at things from different angles,” says Dr. Norbert Maerz, associate professor of geological engineering at Missouri S&T — an ability that we wish we had while browsing PlentyofFish.com.

LIDAR-equipped robot maps dangerous areas in 3D so you don’t have to originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Feb 2010 11:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PhysOrg  |  sourceMissouri S&T  | Email this | Comments

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Feb 18

Cyber ShockWave training exercise tests US readiness for cyber-attacks

Posted in: security, Today's Chili, wargadget

If we’ve learned anything from Hollywood it’s that cybersecurity is a growing national concern. And there are a couple approaches the country could take to tackle the problem. The first, which we wholeheartedly endorse, involves relying on tough guys with bad attitudes, short fuses, and a propensity for tattered clothing (at least once the bombs start dropping). The other — endorsed by Washington think tanks with names like the Bipartisan Policy Center — would be actual preparation and policy-making. To this end, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in DC hosted Cyber ShockWave, which only sounds like an awesome energy drink — in fact, it was a simulated, 12-hour cyber attack held yesterday. In the words of the Wall Street Journal, organizers intended “to show how the U.S. government would respond to [attacks] against its networks and infrastructure.” According to a 367-page November report by the US-China Economic Security Review Commission, the DoD has had to deal with some 54,640 total cyber attacks in 2008 — with the number of attacks increasing to 43,785 in the first half of 2009 alone. That’s a lot of attacks! On second thought, maybe the whole “preparation” and “training” thing does sound like a good idea. So long as we keep John McClane around — just in case.

Cyber ShockWave training exercise tests US readiness for cyber-attacks originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 06:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceWall Street Journal  | Email this | Comments

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Jan 21

Cisco successfully tests orbital IP router, Pirate Bay ‘very interested’

Posted in: cisco, galaxy, government, military, space, Today's Chili, us, usa, wargadget, wifi

It’s been almost three years since Cisco and the DoD announced the IRIS project. Short for Internet Routing in Space, the idea is to route IP traffic between satellites instead of bouncing it on and off ground stations. The whole thing has moved forward steadily since we first caught wind of it, culminating with the launch of the first Cisco Space Router aboard an Atlas V rocket last November. According to The Register, the company has just finished its first in-orbit test of the thing, and — lo’ and behold — it’s a success! After some more testing by the DoD (which will go down between now and April), Cisco plans on running yet more trials. And after that? With any luck, IRIS will extend “constant and pervasive” Internet access to areas not served by traditional ground or 3G networks. And never again will a single person have to live their life without having seen the Bill O’Reilly “F**k It, We’ll Do It Live!” rant.

Cisco successfully tests orbital IP router, Pirate Bay ‘very interested’ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Register  |  sourceCisco  | Email this | Comments

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Jan 20

Eureka’s EMP cannon destined for the Marines? (video)

Posted in: military, Today's Chili, wargadget
Marines serving overseas have a low-tech, time-tested way of stopping cars that ignore checkpoints — namely, a .50-caliber slug to the engine block. Still, that hasn’t prevented companies like Boeing and Eureka Aerospace from pouring tons of money into EMP research. The cannon (whether mounted on aircraft or a squad car) is nowhere near ready for prime time — but when has that stopped the Pentagon from sinking tons of money into something? And the USAF isn’t the only organization getting involved: according to Flightglobal, the Marine Corps is getting its own demo of the 55lb device (which can disable cars up to 200 meters away) next month at Dahlgren naval warfare center. Vintage autos (really anything manufactured before the mid-1970s) won’t be harmed by the weapon, meaning that there still may be a place for lead slugs in modern peacekeeping missions after all. Video after the break.

Continue reading Eureka’s EMP cannon destined for the Marines? (video)

Eureka’s EMP cannon destined for the Marines? (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jan 2010 13:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Register  |  sourceEureka Aerospace  | Email this | Comments

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Dec 17

Cyber Technology’s UAV perches, stares, makes us a little uncomfortable (Update: now with video!)

Posted in: military, Today's Chili, wargadget
We’ve seen UAVs that hover in the past, but if you’re looking for something that eschews rotors for nearly silent ducted fans, you’ll need to get your hands on the cyberQuad by Cyber Technology. The fans don’t produce sparks (which is why this thing was recently tested with much success in an extended survey of an offshore drilling platform / oil rig damaged by fire), and its “perch and stare” capabilities mean that it can find a stable spot and sit unattended — not only saving battery time that would otherwise be lost by hovering in place, but taking it all in with whatever video equipment / sensors the operator might have placed on-board. Just the thing for sniffing out enemy combatants and relaying the info to your One Force Tracker-equipped iPhone, perhaps? Get a closer look after the break. [Warning: PDF source link]

Update: Thanks to Randers for hooking us up with some video of the thing in action. It still makes us a little uncomfortable, all that staring…

Continue reading Cyber Technology’s UAV perches, stares, makes us a little uncomfortable (Update: now with video!)

Cyber Technology’s UAV perches, stares, makes us a little uncomfortable (Update: now with video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Wired  |  sourceCyber Technology  | Email this | Comments

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Oct 04

Boeing’s air-to-ground laser test a success, and we have the video to prove it

Posted in: laser, Today's Chili, wargadget

Fans of future wars, heads up! What might at first blush look like a poorly placed roman candle is actually proof positive that Boeing’s Advanced Tactical Laser (ATL) is ready to do some damage. Sure, when we heard last month that the company’s tests at the White Sands Missile Range were a success, we responded the same way that we always do: “video or it didn’t happen.” But now that we’ve seen it in action, we have one more question: When will its big brother, the 747-mounted ABL, get its day in the limelight? We’ll keep you posted.

[Via The Register]

Continue reading Boeing’s air-to-ground laser test a success, and we have the video to prove it

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Boeing’s air-to-ground laser test a success, and we have the video to prove it originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 04 Oct 2009 18:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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