The US technology and defense player L3Harris has upgraded its T7 robot or unmanned ground vehicle with advanced electronic warfare (EW) capabilities, enhancing battlefield effectiveness.
The system enables the T7 to detect and disrupt enemy communications, radar, and electronic signals from several miles away, protecting military units from threats.
Tested successfully at a US Army exercise, the robot neutralized small drones and demonstrated its ability to operate remotely. The EW system can be switched on or off as needed, allowing the T7 to minimize detection risk by shutting down its own signals and repositioning quickly.
Beyond EW operations, the T7 can retrieve downed friendly drones or deploy small unmanned aerial systems using its robotic arm, adding versatility to its mission set.
Battlefield signal dominance
L3Harris recently showcased an advanced multirole electronic warfare (EW) capability by integrating it with its T7 multi-mission robotic system at Vanguard 2024, the US Army’s annual capstone experiment at Fort Huachuca, Arizona.
The T7 is a robot that is purpose-built to meet the rigorous demands of commercial and military operations, including HAZMAT cleanup, explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), as well as SWAT missions.
The EW equipment in use was the firm’s CORVUS-RAVEN, which is a counter-drone system that brings operators passive signal detect capability, enhanced situational awareness, and defeat jamming capability.
The new upgraded T7 successfully detected and neutralized small uncrewed aircraft systems (sUAS) using its CORVUS-RAVEN system while sensing, monitoring, and decoding electronic signals through the Individual CORVUS Node.
Vanguard provided a platform for L3Harris and other industry leaders to demonstrate emerging technologies and future warfighting concepts in an interactive setting.
The event highlighted the growing importance of EW capabilities, especially in light of recent conflicts like Ukraine, where stand-off protection and mobile force survivability against targeted artillery strikes have become critical.
According to the firm, the demonstration underscored the need for advanced EW systems to enhance battlefield awareness and protect personnel by disrupting enemy communications and surveillance, offering a glimpse into the future of electronic warfare operations.
Robot to enhance warfare capabilities for US
L3Harris rapidly integrated the CORVUS-RAVEN system onto a T7 robot, completing the project in just six weeks to meet Vanguard 2024’s requirements.
The goal was to use unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) like the T7 and T4 for stand-off electronic warfare (EW) operations, allowing them to detect and disrupt signals several miles ahead of troops, keeping personnel out of danger.
According to Dr. Paul Bosscher, Robotics Chief Engineer at L3Harris, the ability to remotely activate and deactivate EW effects enables these robots to minimize detection risks. By shutting down their own signals and repositioning quickly, they can avoid becoming targets for enemy artillery.
The T7 and T4 robots are particularly well-suited for deployed EW missions due to their aerospace-grade shielding, which protects them from electromagnetic interference (EMI). This allows them to operate the CORVUS system without performance degradation. Additionally, their low radiated emissions ensure they do not interfere with CORVUS when it is actively scanning for adversarial signals.
The demonstration at Vanguard 2024 also highlighted new operational possibilities, such as using the robots to recover downed drones during missions or employing their robotic arms as launch platforms for small unmanned aerial systems (UAS), further expanding their battlefield versatility.
“The experiment enabled the team to successfully demonstrate the potential of the T7 and T4’s deployed capabilities above and beyond explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) missions. Using readily available technologies, the concept showed how CORVUS’ EW capabilities could be operated through the T7’s network, expanding the future roadmap of the robots even further,” said the firm in a statement.
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