Dr. Orian Welling and Michael Parker from the U.S. Army...

The Virtual Autonomous Navigation Environment (VANE) is a suite of modeling and simulation tools developed by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC). Users can leverage VANE to analyze environmental effects on an autonomous vehicle system, from sensors and algorithms to tire-soil interactions and the vehicle's mechanical performance. VANE was created from ERDC's near-surface phenomenology and sensor research that supported IED detection in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and its rich expertise in ground vehicle mobility research dating back to World War II. Unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) must undergo rigorous testing to ensure their autonomy is reliable under challenging conditions. VANE's physics-based simulations are particularly valuable in UGV development. Using VANE, DoD researchers can explore how autonomous systems will behave in various operationally relevant environmental conditions that are often difficult to replicate with physical testing. This virtual testing capability is valuable across the complete robotic life cycle by enabling both early stage autonomy prototyping and final performance evaluation.

As missions evolve for the U.S. military, so have the requirements for Airfield Damage Repair or ADR. The Department of Defense’s existing ADR capability requires significant manpower, equipment, and pre-positioned material at key bases. But under its new adaptive basing concept of operations, ADR will need to be lighter and more agile. Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory collaborated with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) to develop an Expedient and Expeditionary Airfield Damage Repair (E-ADR) solution to deliver just enough, just in time solutions for the Warfighter. Their efforts culminated in a multi-year joint capability technology demonstration, or JCTD, and military utility assessment at McEntire Air National Guard Base, South Carolina.

As missions evolve for the U.S. Military, so have the requirements for Airfield Damage Repair (ADR). The Department of Defense’s existing ADR capability requires significant manpower, equipment and pre-positioned material at key bases. But under its new adaptive basing concept of operations, the military’s ADR capability will need to be lighter and more agile. Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory collaborated with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) to develop an Expedient and Expeditionary Airfield Damage Repair (E-ADR) solution to deliver just enough, just in time solutions for the Warfighter.

As missions evolve for the U.S. Military, so have the requirements for Airfield Damage Repair (ADR). The Department of Defense’s existing ADR capability requires significant manpower, equipment and pre-positioned material at key bases. But under its new adaptive basing concept of operations, the military’s ADR capability will need to be lighter and more agile. Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory collaborated with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) to develop an Expedient and Expeditionary Airfield Damage Repair (E-ADR) solution to deliver just enough, just in time solutions for the Warfighter.

Army acquisition of mobility systems such as wheeled and tracked vehicles can be a lengthy process often driven by changing requirements and budgets. Over the last several decades of ERDC’s mobility research, we have played a critical part in the entire acquisition process using mobility modeling and simulation tools. These tools have helped the Army define requirements and test vehicle designs against those requirements in many different operational environments. For acquisition stakeholders, this could lead to accelerated decision making and cost savings in the absence of physical testing.

Army acquisition of mobility systems such as wheeled and tracked vehicles can be a lengthy process often driven by changing requirements and budgets. Over the last several decades of ERDC’s mobility research, we have played a critical part in the entire acquisition process using mobility modeling and simulation tools. These tools have helped the Army define requirements and test vehicle designs against those requirements in many different operational environments. For acquisition stakeholders, this could lead to accelerated decision making and cost savings in the absence of physical testing.

During bouts of severe weather, including tropical storms and hurricanes, coastal dune systems provide crucial protection for coastal communities, but these dunes can be torn apart by high winds and strong surf. The very surf that at times causes damage is also delivering natural materials that may prove to be the key to a more resilient dune system. Researchers at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, along with partners at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mobile District and The University of Southern Mississippi, are developing methods to use this natural material – known as wrack – to build coastal dunes crucial to protecting the coastline during hazardous weather events like hurricanes. As part of the USACE Regional Sediment Management Program, researchers are conducting a field study in which wrack that washes up on the beach is collected and placed on existing dunes to incrementally increase dune stability. Harness the Power of ERDC at ERDCInfo@usace.army.mil

By combining its decades of experience in modeling the maneuverability of both watercraft and ground vehicles, the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center provides capabilities that enable virtual planning and rehearsal of military littoral operations. Benefitting from ERDC’s superior numerical modeling expertise, ERDC’s Ship Simulator has been used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers since the 1980s to detect potential problems in navigational channel design, enabling safer and more efficient waterways. Meanwhile, ERDC’s expertise in ground vehicle mobility modeling traces its roots to World War II. Now, ERDC works to pair its modern watercraft and ground vehicle simulation tools to provide a solution for operational planners, commanders, and operators to enable ship-through-shore mission planning and rehearsal in multi-domain environments.

Army Terrestrial-Environmental Modeling and Intelligence System (ARTEMIS) ARTEMIS is an analytical engine to merge terrain and weather effects and provide military applications and tactical decision aids across Warfighting functions. ARTEMIS tools and predictive models identify threat patterns, adapt to emerging threats and rapidly respond to emerging threats ARTEMIS requires minimal training ARTEMIS products: Terrain Suitability Mounted Cross-Country Mobility Landing Zones Sensor Planning Degraded Visual Environment To find out how ERDC can help you: ERDCINFO@USACE.ARMY.MIL Visit our wiki page: https://wiki.erdc.dren.mil/ARmy_Terrestrial-Environmental_Modeling_and_Intelligence_System_(ARTEMIS)

Early in the space program, NASA asked ERDC to conduct investigations to determine the best mobility characteristics of wheels for use on lunar rover vehicles (LRV). Using large quantities of dune sand from the Arizona desert and crushed basalt from the Napa Valley, ERDC was able to simulate the soil conditions on the moon’s surface. ERDC successfully tested and recommended Boeing-General Motors’ wheel design that consisted of woven zinc-coated music wire, with titanium chevrons riveted to the wire mesh for enhanced traction on the moon’s surface. Apollo 15 landed on the moon with the first operational LRV. ERDC’s recommended solution ensured the successful performance of the LRV and provided a geological bonanza for scientists back on Earth. ERDC - Innovative Solutions for a Safer, Better World - Contact Us: ERDCinfo@usace.army.mil

PHOENIX AIRFIELD, Antarctica (Nov. 15, 2016) -- A McChord Air Force Base C-17 Globemaster III crew and the Army Corps of Engineers teamed up to make the first landing and takeoff of a wheeled and fully-loaded cargo aircraft on a compacted-snow runway an otherwise routine event. A collaboration between the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center's Cold Regions Lab and the National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs, the surface design required the development of unique certification standards and was engineered to provide a reliable wheeled-runway solution to replace Antarctica's Pegasus Ice runway. “This novel runway design and construction took more than 16 continuous months to complete,” said Terry Melendy, a CRREL research civil engineer. “The runway was designed using a compaction technique to modify the deep snow using heavy rollers weighing up to 160,000 pounds, to change the snow’s strength properties from its natural state creating a denser, higher strength snow foundation (32 inches deep) that can withstand the impact of a C-17 landing. And, in this particular case, the Phoenix was designed to withstand approximately 60 wheeled flights a year.” Throughout design and construction, the team maintained close liaison with NSF and Air Mobility Command standards and evaluation personnel and with the Air Force’s Antarctic C-17 flight group. “The runway was certified in the field for heavy, wheeled aircraft by the Air Mobility Command,” said Melendy. “With the successful completion of the Phoenix runway, we have done something that no one else has done.” ERDCinfo@usace.army.mil