The Army is looking for information from industry on technology or systems that would advance combat identification.
The Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center, Intelligence and Information Warfare Directorate (CERDEC I2WD) April 25 issued a Request for Information (RFI) to find out what concepts industry has for technology or systems to provide it with “advanced and/or novel Combat Identification technologies or systems to identify Friend or Foe.”
The technologies or systems must provide very high confidence identification and accurate location of both single and multiple friendly soldiers/vehicles when interrogated from airborne or ground-based platforms, the announcement said.
Also, the technology or system must be secure if stolen or captured, and be resistant to jamming and spoofing.
The service said the interrogator could be new, stand-alone equipment, a hardware modification to an existing system, or a software / processor modification of an existing system. The transponder could be a new or modified active or passive device, an alteration of some portion of the soldier’s uniform or equipment, a synthetic signature that could be created chemically.
‘Of great importance is to minimize the size, weight, power and cost (SWaP-C) while maximizing the reliability and expected usable lifetime for the equipment and/or techniques that are utilized,” the RFI said.
The RFI will take a look at the capabilities and maturity of the technologies currently available–those available in the near term based on technology readiness levels and those only available in the far term.
The information will be used to assist I2WD in developing future Combat Identification requirements and capabilities, and to generate new programs.
The RFI for W15P7T-13-R-A926 is available on www.fbo.gov.