News Report: The Made-in-Singapore Edge: Part 1 (ST 20060226)
The following is Part 1 of the report in Singapore's Sunday Times about Singapore's defence technnology making an impact locally and abroad.
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MADE-IN-SINGAPORE EDGE
Innovative and ingenious military inventions will provide critical advantage to soldiers in urban warfare
by Felix Soh
Photos: Ng Sor Luan and Singapore Technolgies Engineering
The size of a softball, it looks like a miniature black bowlling ball.
When hurled or rolled into a room, it automatically rights itself, rotates and starts transmitting 360-degree video pictures of the surounding environment with its wireless digital zoom camera.
Not only that, the "ruggedised" ball also eavesdrops on what's being said in the room with its in-built microphone.
The FIBUA (fighting in built-up area) Surveillance Ball, also called Vision Ball, enhances teh survivability of soldiers by scanning a room or a side alley in hostile territory without exposing the troops to physical danger.
The remotely controlled ball can be fitted with sensors to detect biological or chemical hazards in a contaminated environment.
Another piece of equipment looks like a standard Kevlar helmet with "leaf" camouflage that is worn by SAF troops. But it is no ordinary headgear. It saves lives by detecting and locating sniper fire.
Masked by the artificial foilage are 11 acoustic sensors embedded on the surface of the helmet. The sensors, which altogether weigh les than 100g, detect the muzzle blast and shockwave from supersonic bullets.
From the sensors' reading, the sniper's location and even the calibre of the bullet that he fired can be accurately determined to enable a swift offensive reaction.
The devices are among several high-tech equipment - made or developed in Singapore - that are undergoing experimentation by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).
Soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (3SIR), designated the SAF's urban warfare battalion, and the Army Developmental Force (ADF) are testing the new equipment as well as new tactics and weapons.
Said COL Leong Kwok Lung, Senior Project Officer with Army HQ: "We are at the experimental phase. Our soldiers are trying out the various technologies, such as remote-controlled vehicles, to get used to operating them. They provide a constant flow of feedback so that improvements and adjustments can be made."
The goal is to boost the SAF's combat capability, particularly in urban warfare, which is probably the most challenging battelfield today as seen in the bloody military operations in the labyrinthine streets of Iraqi cities.
Many of the inventions, like the surveillance ball, are robots and unmanned systems that would help put soldiers out of harm's way. They are also robust and easy to operate.
Commented COL Leong: "We want to make sure that the technology is not so complex that they are difficult to operate. They must be practical."
The smart equipment, which will provide a made-in-Singapore edge to the capabilities of the SAF, are on display in the Army's booth at the Asian Aerospace/Asian Defence Technology show ending today at the Changi Exhibition Centre.
The booth, called Task Force Singapore, has attracted much attention from visitors.
Military officers and industry officials from countries with mature armed forces and long-established defence industries, such as the US and the United Kingdom, were spotted investing a fair amount of time at the booth.
Their interest is understandable. The Singapore sniper detection system, for example, would be welcome by US soldiers who are vulnerable to sniper fire in the streets of Baghdad.
Uniformed officers from neighbouring countries like Indonesia have also shown keen interest in the exhibits.
The home-grown equipment are testimony to the state-of-the-art standards of the Singapore defence industry. The local players include the boffins of the Defence, Science and Technology Agency and Singapore Technologies Engineering subsidiaries like ST Kinetics.
ST Engineering is ranked 49th in the authoritative Defense News Top 100 list of the world's leading defence companies. Singapore is the only other Asian country besides Japan to be in the league of top 50 defence companies in the world.
The types of high-tech equipment being developed and tested fall under the "OODA loop" categories - that is, they will help SAF soldiers to observe, orientate, decide, and act (OODA) in the battlefield.
Basically, this means high-tech equipment that are in two groups: sensors and shooters.
Obeservation equipment being tested are mini-unmanned aerial vehicles, like the lightweight Extender Miniature UAV, which is less than a metre in length and width and is launched like a toy plane.
While larger UAVs provide wide-area surveillance, the smaller, low-cost ones give soldiers real-time information needed in close-range field operations.
The smallness of the Extender UAV belies its effectiveness. It is capable of over-the-hill surveillance. It is also robust, being made from strong but lightweight foam and carbon fibres, so that it is reliable after repeated landings.
Another made-in-Singapore sensor designed for urban fighting is a detection system that can "see" through walls.
Called the Through-wall Survellance Technology", developed by DSO National Laboratories, it can detect motion through a one-layer brick wall.
There are also civilian applications, as the portable device will come in handy in time-critical situations, such as search and rescue operations in collapsed buildings.
The ingenuity of Singapore's defence equipment is that low-cost, off-the-shelf products are sometimes purchased and then converted, modified and "ruggedised" for military use.
A case in point is the miniature scouting platform called the Remote Control Surveillance System (RCSS). The four-wheel-drive mini-vehicle is converted to detect booby traps in the urban battlefield.
Information obtained by the wireless video transmitter mounted on the vehicle is sent back to the operator in real-time. Soldiers can deploy the RCSS to spot the enemy hidden around corners.
There are also robotic systems that are fighters or, in military parlance, shooters. Take, for instance, the Portable Battle Robotic System, where a weapon such as a rifle is integrated into the man-portable robot for remote operations.
The robot, which is both rugged and mobile, can be used as a remote sentry to guard and protect key installations or for riot control.
It can be easily switched to a non-lethal role. The modular platform can be dismantled and re-configured with cameras for remote reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition.
Among the heavy-duty products being tested by the SAF is the Terrex AV81 armoured vehicle, which is developed by ST Kinetics. It is being evaluated as a mobile command and control centre for urban operations.
It has a built-in central tyre inflation system which allows automated inflation and deflation of tyres to suit different terrains while on the move.
An innovative Singapore-developed shooter that continues to create buzz in global arms circles is the 120mm Super Rapid Advanced Mortar System, which is a very low recoil mortar that fires up to 10 rounds a minute.
It is the first mortar system in the world with a recoil force of less than 20 tonnes when firing a maximum charge so that it can be mounted on a wide range of of light tracked or wheeled vehicles, such as the highly mobile light strike Spider vehicle.
But at the end of the day, the key to any high-tech system is still the soldier who operates the equipment.
Fortunately, the SAF has an edge in this area, too.
"We are tapping on a new generation of Singaporeans who are tech-savvy and have little problem handling and using high-tech equipment," said COL Leong.
That aside, even humble low-tech equipment plays a vital role in this high-tech world.
Occupying a prominent space in the Task Force Singapore booth are good, old-fashioned tools used in urban warfare like the sledgehammer to break down doors and the bold cutter to cut through chains.
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*********
MADE-IN-SINGAPORE EDGE
Innovative and ingenious military inventions will provide critical advantage to soldiers in urban warfare
by Felix Soh
Photos: Ng Sor Luan and Singapore Technolgies Engineering
The size of a softball, it looks like a miniature black bowlling ball.
When hurled or rolled into a room, it automatically rights itself, rotates and starts transmitting 360-degree video pictures of the surounding environment with its wireless digital zoom camera.
Not only that, the "ruggedised" ball also eavesdrops on what's being said in the room with its in-built microphone.
The FIBUA (fighting in built-up area) Surveillance Ball, also called Vision Ball, enhances teh survivability of soldiers by scanning a room or a side alley in hostile territory without exposing the troops to physical danger.
The remotely controlled ball can be fitted with sensors to detect biological or chemical hazards in a contaminated environment.
Another piece of equipment looks like a standard Kevlar helmet with "leaf" camouflage that is worn by SAF troops. But it is no ordinary headgear. It saves lives by detecting and locating sniper fire.
Masked by the artificial foilage are 11 acoustic sensors embedded on the surface of the helmet. The sensors, which altogether weigh les than 100g, detect the muzzle blast and shockwave from supersonic bullets.
From the sensors' reading, the sniper's location and even the calibre of the bullet that he fired can be accurately determined to enable a swift offensive reaction.
The devices are among several high-tech equipment - made or developed in Singapore - that are undergoing experimentation by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).
Soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (3SIR), designated the SAF's urban warfare battalion, and the Army Developmental Force (ADF) are testing the new equipment as well as new tactics and weapons.
Said COL Leong Kwok Lung, Senior Project Officer with Army HQ: "We are at the experimental phase. Our soldiers are trying out the various technologies, such as remote-controlled vehicles, to get used to operating them. They provide a constant flow of feedback so that improvements and adjustments can be made."
The goal is to boost the SAF's combat capability, particularly in urban warfare, which is probably the most challenging battelfield today as seen in the bloody military operations in the labyrinthine streets of Iraqi cities.
Many of the inventions, like the surveillance ball, are robots and unmanned systems that would help put soldiers out of harm's way. They are also robust and easy to operate.
Commented COL Leong: "We want to make sure that the technology is not so complex that they are difficult to operate. They must be practical."
The smart equipment, which will provide a made-in-Singapore edge to the capabilities of the SAF, are on display in the Army's booth at the Asian Aerospace/Asian Defence Technology show ending today at the Changi Exhibition Centre.
The booth, called Task Force Singapore, has attracted much attention from visitors.
Military officers and industry officials from countries with mature armed forces and long-established defence industries, such as the US and the United Kingdom, were spotted investing a fair amount of time at the booth.
Their interest is understandable. The Singapore sniper detection system, for example, would be welcome by US soldiers who are vulnerable to sniper fire in the streets of Baghdad.
Uniformed officers from neighbouring countries like Indonesia have also shown keen interest in the exhibits.
The home-grown equipment are testimony to the state-of-the-art standards of the Singapore defence industry. The local players include the boffins of the Defence, Science and Technology Agency and Singapore Technologies Engineering subsidiaries like ST Kinetics.
ST Engineering is ranked 49th in the authoritative Defense News Top 100 list of the world's leading defence companies. Singapore is the only other Asian country besides Japan to be in the league of top 50 defence companies in the world.
The types of high-tech equipment being developed and tested fall under the "OODA loop" categories - that is, they will help SAF soldiers to observe, orientate, decide, and act (OODA) in the battlefield.
Basically, this means high-tech equipment that are in two groups: sensors and shooters.
Obeservation equipment being tested are mini-unmanned aerial vehicles, like the lightweight Extender Miniature UAV, which is less than a metre in length and width and is launched like a toy plane.
While larger UAVs provide wide-area surveillance, the smaller, low-cost ones give soldiers real-time information needed in close-range field operations.
The smallness of the Extender UAV belies its effectiveness. It is capable of over-the-hill surveillance. It is also robust, being made from strong but lightweight foam and carbon fibres, so that it is reliable after repeated landings.
Another made-in-Singapore sensor designed for urban fighting is a detection system that can "see" through walls.
Called the Through-wall Survellance Technology", developed by DSO National Laboratories, it can detect motion through a one-layer brick wall.
There are also civilian applications, as the portable device will come in handy in time-critical situations, such as search and rescue operations in collapsed buildings.
The ingenuity of Singapore's defence equipment is that low-cost, off-the-shelf products are sometimes purchased and then converted, modified and "ruggedised" for military use.
A case in point is the miniature scouting platform called the Remote Control Surveillance System (RCSS). The four-wheel-drive mini-vehicle is converted to detect booby traps in the urban battlefield.
Information obtained by the wireless video transmitter mounted on the vehicle is sent back to the operator in real-time. Soldiers can deploy the RCSS to spot the enemy hidden around corners.
There are also robotic systems that are fighters or, in military parlance, shooters. Take, for instance, the Portable Battle Robotic System, where a weapon such as a rifle is integrated into the man-portable robot for remote operations.
The robot, which is both rugged and mobile, can be used as a remote sentry to guard and protect key installations or for riot control.
It can be easily switched to a non-lethal role. The modular platform can be dismantled and re-configured with cameras for remote reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition.
Among the heavy-duty products being tested by the SAF is the Terrex AV81 armoured vehicle, which is developed by ST Kinetics. It is being evaluated as a mobile command and control centre for urban operations.
It has a built-in central tyre inflation system which allows automated inflation and deflation of tyres to suit different terrains while on the move.
An innovative Singapore-developed shooter that continues to create buzz in global arms circles is the 120mm Super Rapid Advanced Mortar System, which is a very low recoil mortar that fires up to 10 rounds a minute.
It is the first mortar system in the world with a recoil force of less than 20 tonnes when firing a maximum charge so that it can be mounted on a wide range of of light tracked or wheeled vehicles, such as the highly mobile light strike Spider vehicle.
But at the end of the day, the key to any high-tech system is still the soldier who operates the equipment.
Fortunately, the SAF has an edge in this area, too.
"We are tapping on a new generation of Singaporeans who are tech-savvy and have little problem handling and using high-tech equipment," said COL Leong.
That aside, even humble low-tech equipment plays a vital role in this high-tech world.
Occupying a prominent space in the Task Force Singapore booth are good, old-fashioned tools used in urban warfare like the sledgehammer to break down doors and the bold cutter to cut through chains.
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posted by Global Citizen at 1:14 AM
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