Robotic Combat Vehicle-Light (RCV-L) es un veh\u00edculo de combate no tripulado peque\u00f1o y expandible desarrollado conjuntamente por la compa\u00f1\u00eda brit\u00e1nica de tecnolog\u00eda de defensa multinacional QinetiQ Group y el desarrollador estadounidense de veh\u00edculos militares Pratt Miller Defense para respaldar las operaciones de combate terrestre.\u00a0El alcance del proyecto implica la entrega de cuatro veh\u00edculos RCV-Light al USARMY e incluye una opci\u00f3n para la adquisici\u00f3n de hasta 16 unidades m\u00e1s.<\/p>\n
Robotic Combat Vehicle-Light (RCV-L) is a small and expandable unmanned combat vehicle jointly developed by British multi-national defence technology company QinetiQ Group and American military vehicles developer Pratt Miller Defence to support ground-combat operations.<\/p>\n
QinetiQ\u2019s subsidiary QinetiQ North America and Pratt Miller collaborated to work on the US Army\u2019s robotic combat vehicle (RCV) programme at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Annual Meeting in 2019. Pratt Miller was acquired by Oshkosh, a military vehicles manufacturer based in the US, in January 2021.<\/p>\n
The US Army is expected to start the engineering and manufacturing development phase of the RCV-L programme in 2023.<\/p>\n
RCV-L development background<\/strong><\/p>\n QinetiQ North America and Pratt Miller won the RCV-L prototype project, sponsored by the US Army, through the National Advanced Mobility Consortium, an alliance of government agencies, industry, and academia to provide ground vehicle system technologies to the warfighter, in March 2020.<\/p>\n The scope of the prototype project involves the delivery of four RCV-Light vehicles to the US Army and includes an option for the procurement of up to 16 more units.<\/p>\n The partners delivered the first RCV-L platform to the US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command\u2019s (CCDC) Ground Vehicle Systems Centre (GVSC) in November 2020, while the remaining three units were delivered by the end of 2020.<\/p>\n The unmanned vehicles<\/a> have been developed to be used in the Manned-Unmanned Teaming (MUM-T) Soldier Operational Experiment at Fort Hood, Texas, in \u00a02022 to advance autonomous capabilities. The MUM-T concept involves the deployment of manned vehicles in a teaming arrangement with unmanned resources and technologies within a co-ordinated military mission.<\/p>\n Manoeuvre testing will be conducted on the RCV-L prototypes at the Camp Grayling military training facility in Michigan throughout 2021 to evaluate the feasibility of integrating unmanned systems into ground combat vehicle formations.<\/p>\n Robotic Combat Vehicle\u2013Light features<\/strong><\/p>\n The RCV-L is a purpose-built, compact, diesel-electric hybrid unmanned ground combat vehicle (UGCV) primarily intended for reconnaissance. The vehicle is based on Pratt Miller\u2019s Expeditionary Modular Autonomous Vehicle (EMAV), a robotic vehicle designed by the company for the US Marine Corps.<\/p>\n It is incorporated with QinetiQ\u2019s modular open system architecture (MOSA) robotic control systems for improved flexibility and payload-agnostic capabilities. It can be transported by military aircraft to remote locations.<\/p>\n Weighing 3,855.53kg, the autonomous vehicle \u00a0has a top speed of 64.37km\/h. Its modular platform allows to carry a maximum payload capacity of 3,175.14kg. The unmanned vehicle is driven by a hybrid generator which powers high-voltage batteries, facilitating a silent watch and stealth-like capabilities.<\/p>\n The RCV-L can be either remotely controlled by a soldier or can be operated semi-autonomously along the programmed routes. Its autonomous capabilities are expected to enhance warfighter capabilities and mobility and lethality on the battlefield, while improving the efficiency of transporting supplies.<\/p>\n Weapons and equipment<\/strong><\/p>\n The RCV-L version of the EMAV will provide the US Army a mature high-performance platform with reduced risk and high future growth potential.<\/p>\n