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UK defense company sold powerful surveillance tech to Mid East
The BBC reported today that the UK defense company BAE systems sold powerful surveillance technology to a number of countries in the Middle East. The report comes after a year-long investigation spearheaded by BBC Arabic and the Danish newspaper, Dagbladet Information.
Atmospheric 'lens' could shield troops from laser weapons
How do you defend yourself against laser weapons when they fire at the speed of light? BAE Systems has an idea. It's developing Laser Developed Atmospheric Lens technology that, as the name suggests, uses lasers to temporarily ionize the atmosphere to create lens-like structures. If you're facing a laser attack, you just have to form a lens to serve as a refractive shield. The technology could protect both aircraft and land-based forces from deadly blasts, and it could fill other roles as well.
Report: Bank network flaw helped hackers steal $80 million
Thieves who stole $81 million from the Bangladesh Bank may have been aided by a security flaw in the SWIFT international banking network, according to Reuters. Security researchers from BAE found malware designed to help thieves delete transfer information to hide their tracks. "I can't think of a case where we have seen a criminal go to the level of effort to customize it for the environment they were operating in," says BAE's Adrian Nish. SWIFT, a coop with 3,000 member banks, confirmed that it knew about malware targeting its client software, though Bangladesh police say they haven't found it on the bank's servers yet.
France and the UK want a fleet of minesweeping robot ships
The biggest threat to America's Navy over the past 60 years hasn't been China's rapidly modernizing military, North Korea's nuclear saber rattling or even Russia's arctic overtures -- it's been underwater mines. They've damaged 15 of our ships since 1950. Sure, you can disarm these explosive hazards manually but that means risking the lives of Navy seamen in an underwater Hurt Locker. Instead, the UK and France are teaming with European defense contractors Thales and BAE to develop a fully automated minesweeping system that keeps sailors out of harm's way.
New fighter pilot helmet delivers night vision without goggles
Fighter pilots have access to helmets with amazing abilities. However, they still have to strap on heavy night vision goggles to fly in the dark -- an all too literal pain in the neck. Much to aircrews' relief, BAE Systems wants to make that clunky headgear a distant memory. Its brand new Striker II helmet includes a night vision camera that projects its footage on to the visor's high-resolution display, giving the pilot a good look at the outside world without the need for extra equipment. The tech should be far more comfortable during lengthy missions, especially in sharp turns where G-forces make any added weight feel that much worse.
BAE Systems designs hard composite solar cells: could act as structure of UAVs, piece of soldier's gear
BAE Systems revealed that it's working on hardy, high-capacity solar cells that could power unmanned vehicles and even attach to an individual soldier's gear. According to Darren Buckle, a manager from BAE Systems' Advanced Technology Center, the cells are geared toward smaller, often airborne, military units, where weight is at a premium. The system, still in the development stage, could offer up power for heavy endurance unmanned air vehicles, provided the cells are made sensitive enough to absorb energy in less sunny situations -- something that the company's England-based engineers are currently contending with.
BAE Systems' NAVSOP does positioning without GPS, makes sure the only jammin' going on is yours
Just in case GPS and GLONASS didn't make for enough of an acronym soup, BAE Systems wants to add one more to the navigation broth. NAVSOP (Navigation via Signals of Opportunity) uses some of the basic concepts we know from cell tower triangulation and WiFi location-finding to lock down a position, but goes much further to geolocate from nearly anything that pushes out a signal, such as nearby radios and TVs. It doesn't even need to know what kind of signal it's looking at, and it can get its position in places there's no GPS to work from, whether it's in an urban canyon or the natural kind. BAE is most excited about the prospects of ending GPS jamming against soldiers and UAVs, once and for all: not only is the new technology mostly impervious to attempts to block its signal, it can use the jamming attempt itself to get the position fix. Thankfully, the company's roots in defense aren't precluding use for civilians, so there's a chance that future smartphones might never have to use guesswork to get their bearings -- provided that governments around the world sign off on the idea, that is.
Oxford researchers show off autonomous Wildcat vehicle, no GPS required
BAE Systems has spent years developing an autonomous vehicle based on the rather menacing Bowler Wildcat, but it recently turned the project over to Oxford University, which is now showing off some of the improvements that its researchers have made. Chief among those are a new array of sensors adorning the vehicle, which promise to let it more accurately map out its surroundings and navigate without relying on GPS -- that not only includes monitoring the road (or lack of road, as the case may be), but keeping an eye on traffic patterns and changing conditions, and watching for pedestrians and other obstacles. That's the same basic idea seen from the likes of Google's self-driving cars, of course, although we're pretty sure this could drive over one of those if it wanted to. Head on past the break for some videos showing off the vehicle's capabilities, and hit the source link below for a few more.
BAE's infrared invisibility cloak makes tanks cold as ice, warm as cows
Warfare's constantly evolving. Daylight battles became late-night duels, and pre-noon skirmishes shifted to sundown slaughters -- some might say we're just getting lazy, but either way, thermal imaging now plays quite the vital role. Now BAE and the FMV -- Sweden's equivalent to DARPA -- have a way to mask the heat signature of heavy machinery. Adaptiv is a wall of 14 centimeter panels that monitor the ambient heat and match it, so it can't be picked out from the background radiation. The tech can also be used to replicate the profiles of other things -- you know, like a spotted calf or a Fiat 500. BAE believes the tech is scaleable for buildings and warships, the only downside being that all future commanders will have to make sure their operations are finished before dawn. Wouldn't want your soldiers to see that five o'clock (AM) shadow, now would we? [Thanks, Rob]
Boeing and BAE partner to put a laser on a machine gun, make the world a better place
Automated, computer-targeting machine guns are okay in a pinch, but sometimes putting 180 25mm slugs down range every minute just isn't enough. Sometimes you need a little more energy, and that's when you strap a laser on the thing. Boeing and BAE are partnering up to take the existing Mk 38 Mod 2 Machine Gun System, which offers a 25mm M242 barrel, and pair it with Boeing's directed energy system. The resulting beautiful machine is called the Mk 38 Mod 2 Tactical Laser System, offering the ability to fling both hot metal and even hotter photons against whatever targets would dare come in range. This integration is said to allow for these upgraded turrets to be easily installed and controlled on our naval vessels, vessels that are, for now, still stuck on the water. Apparently we're still a few years away from the Wave Motion Engine and FTL battleship travel.
BAE Systems develops e-ink camo for tanks and war zone e-readers
BAE Systems, long known for its wargadgets that blind and obfuscate, has recently announced that it is developing an e-ink camouflage system that displays images on the side of a vehicle which reflect the environment -- and which change in real time. This is well-suited for areas such as those found in Afghanistan, where terrain can vary from plain ol' desert beige to a lively and vibrant green, and -- provided it doesn't break down in the desert sand -- probably seems a lot more convincing than paint on metal. (We also wonder if this technology will work on cocktail dresses.) The company hopes to have a prototype within four years, while for our part we hope to have our troops out of the region in much less time than that.
UK defense firm pumps data through solid submarine walls
Wireless power may still be on the drawing board, but wireless data is here today, and a UK defense contractor has figured out a way to pipe the latter through several inches of steel. Using a pair of piezoelectric transducers on either side of a watertight submarine compartment, BAE's "Through Hull Data Link" sends and receives an acoustic wave capable of 15MHz data rates, enough to transmit video by essentially hammering ever-so-slightly on the walls. BAE impressed submarine commanders by streaming Das Boot right through their three-inch hulls, and while metadrama is obviously the killer app here, the company claims it will also save millions by replacing the worrisome wiring that's physically routed via holes in a submarine's frame. See the company's full US patent application at our more coverage link.
Britain's Ministry of Defence unveils unmanned Taranis combat aircraft
Well, it looks like Boeing's unmanned Phantom Ray stealth aircraft just got a bit of company courtesy of Britain's Ministry of Defence. It's now unveiled the BAE-built Taranis, which is not just an unmanned aircraft, but an unmanned combat aircraft that promises to be capable of penetrating enemy territory -- as opposed to something like a Predator drone that's only suitable for use if the airspace is under control. As you might expect, complete details on the aircraft are still being kept under wraps, but the MoD says there's "more than a million man hours" behind it, and that its first flight trials will begin early next year. And, no, "unmanned" doesn't mean autonomous -- the MoD is quick to point out that, "should such systems enter into service, they will at all times be under the control of highly trained military crews on the ground." [Thanks, Rob]
Shear-thickening liquid hardens upon impact, makes for lighter and more effective body armor
Scientists at BAE Systems in Bristol, UK have come up with a "shear-thickening" (or dilatant) liquid that can be combined with Kevlar to create a new, more powerful bullet-proof material. Similar to the "body armor" used by some Olympic skiers, shear-thickening material acts as a lubricant at low velocities, but quickly hardens upon impact. The scientists describe it as "bullet-proof custard," which shouldn't make us hungry but is for some reason. According to the company, recent tests in which a large gas gun fired metal projectiles at over 300 meters / second into both thirty-one layers of untreated kevlar and ten layers of kevlar combined with the liquid have determined that the liquid armor could be used to effectively protect soldiers from bullets and shrapnel.
British border guards recruit robots to root out stowaways
It looks like attempts to sneak across the border into Britain could soon become a battle of humans versus the machines, as the country's border guards have now recruited some robots normally used in warzones to help root out folks trying to smuggle themselves into the country. Developed by BAE Systems, the so-called "Hero" bots are equipped with searchlights and high-resolution video cameras that let it search the inside and undersides of vehicles, and they could potentially be outfitted with heartbeat detectors as well, or even sensors to detect chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear materials being smuggled into the country. While it's apparently only been tested in one location so far, the Border Agency seems to be all but sold on the bot, and it's now looking at rolling 'em out to other locations in the country. No word if they have any plans to employ BAE's spider bots, though.[Via Danger Room, image courtesy of BAE Systems]
BAE's GA22 unmanned blimp makes its debut, we love blimps
We're not sure what's going on here, but we're not going to complain: Blimps are making a comeback. There are powerful hauling blimps, sure, but BAE is hopping on the autonomous systems bandwagon with its nimble GA22. The 22-meter (72 feet) dirigible is meant to carry high-tech surveillance equipment weighing up to 330 pounds at an altitude around 6,500 feet. The unmanned craft could also be used for sporting events, floods, and forest fires, says BAE. Right now the vehicle is radio-controlled but the ultimate release will be completely autonomous. Unfortunately, this means we can't take a ride, but, as we said, it's still a blimp, and blimps are just straight-up cool.[Via Danger Room]
