Innovega/DARPA AR Contact Lens concept (via DARPA)

As if calling in air-strikes with augmented reality glasses wasn't enough, now every soldier will get the virtual-world overlay on their eyes. DARPA is funding Innovega, a company looking to change the way we look at our digital and real worlds. The Air Force and Army both presently use head-up display (HUD) units to superimpose information about enemies, their environment, and other status updates in front of their field of view. However, Innovega offers a new technology that increases their field of view of the projection and greatly decreases the size of the product.

Innovega's system, called iOptik, uses contact lenses that have two different zones. This works by two different filters, an outer one used to see objects in your surrounding environment, and one at the very center that allows you to focus on very near objects with precise resolution. This dual-focus system will allow light rays to pass through the eye to the retina with two images in focus. The human eye has the amazing ability to choose which image it would like to see depending upon the user.

The system will also use small projectors placed on the side of the head near the ears to display the image on the lenses. According to Innovega, the image projected will appear very wide, similar to the experience of viewing a movie at an Imax. Additionally, the system can be used in different applications outside military purposes. It has a very big potential for 3D movies due to its ability show the eyes two different images at once. It can also be used to create augmented reality video games or superimpose digital information into the real world.

There are some eye-experts who are skeptical about the whole system, stating that it may cause a condition similar to motion sickness. On the other hand, not all people get motion sickness and Google's Project Glass is going to need some competition.

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SeeMe concept (via DARPA)

In the military, it’s usually the SOF (Special Operations Forces) community are that get all the toys. For example, new body armor designs, improved weapons platforms and the latest electronic equipment are usually given to ‘Tier 1’ (the term is actually from the DOD’s budget rather than elite soldiers) operators. However, DARPA is seeking to develop and supply the average military units (as well as SOF) with the ability to recon over the horizon with cheap/disposable real-time satellite imagery.

Called ‘SeeMe’, DARPA’s project aims to use cheap already in-orbit satellites (about a dozen or so) that can be accessed with the push of a button and give the soldiers an area image within 90 minutes. DARPA is trying to combine the low-cost manufacturing processes from the cell-phone industry, propulsion systems designed by the auto-racing community, and valve tech from the medical field to get the SeeMe project off the ground (so to speak). The satellites are expected to cost around $500,000 US (which is pretty cheap as far as satellites go) and will remain in orbit anywhere from 60 to 90 day’s at which point the will re-enter the earth’s atmosphere and burn up on re-entry.

DARPA plans to use their ALASA (Airborne Launch Assist Space Access) platform to send these ‘prying eyes’ into space over conventional rocket deployment since the payload is expected to be 100Lbs or under. The company is hosting a get-together (called Proposers’ Day) on March 27 of this year to hear prospective proposals from interested parties interested in the SeeMe project. If you have an idea on how to make this happen, have a go at SeeMe. Maybe I will 'SeeYou' there!

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(Left) F-Bomb in 3D printed enclosure (Right) F-Bomb hardware hidden in a CO monitor

Of all the mini computers available, this one might have the biggest potential of all. It is appropriately called the F-Bomb, which stands for, Falling or Ballistically-launched Object that Makes Backdoors. Malice Afterthought's Brendan O’Connor, a security researcher, has developed a system made from commercially available components and put together, costs less than 50 dollars and is capable of breaking into a network with the right software.

The purpose of the device is exactly as its name dictates. When dropped, the F-Bomb searches for networks within its range and infiltrates all the networks it finds. The size of this computer is 3.5 in by 4 in by 1 in. It is made using a Pogo Plug, 8 gig flash memory, small antennae, and a case made on a 3D printer. The components of the F-Bomb are so small that they can be easily be fitted inside any ordinary device, like a smoke detector, and covertly operate for as long as the batteries last.

The F-Bomb will be inexpensive, around $50 USD, on purpose. O'Connor explained why, "If some target is surrounded by bad men with guns, you don’t want to have to retrieve this, but you also don’t want to have to pay four or five hundred dollars for every use The idea is that it’s as close to free as possible. So you can throw a bunch of these sensors at a target and get away with losing a couple nodes in the process.”

In essence, the F-Bomb is a data collecting device. O’Connor designed it with Wi-Fi cracking software to create back doors into the network and collect private information. However, any applications and programs compatible with its Linux OS can run on the F-Bomb. With the correct sensors, it can performs other valuable data collections like meteorological or atmospheric information.

Originally, O'Connor won the DARPA awarded project "Reticle: Leaderless Command and Control" for the Cyber Fast Track program. F-Bomb was a follow up project, funded independently. The purpose of Reticle is on the hush-hush.

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UAV’s are everywhere these days. It seems I can’t even walk out of my house without running into a quad-rotor of some sort. Even local law enforcement agencies are getting into the act with their recent acquisition of military surplus.

For those of you who love them, Darpa (Defense Research Products Agency) has teamed up with SSC Atlantic (Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center) to give us average ‘Joes’ the opportunity to design the next generation of Unmanned Ariel Vehicles. Called "UAVForge," (started at the end of 2011) contest is heating up in competition with both the crazy and conventional designs. The collaboration uses ‘crowd-sourcing’ as well as a virtual environment and a fictional scenario that participants use to design their UAV’s. You can design by yourself, with a team or you may join an existing team but the contest states that participants have until Feb. 23 2012 to do so.

The contest consists of 6 ‘milestones’ each group or person must go through before the winner is chosen.

● Milestone 1: Contestants create a concept video to show of the design to which it’s then voted on to which the winners proceed to the next level.

● Milestone 2: Proof of flight. It has to be able to fly. The winners of this stage advance to the next round of competition.

● Milestone 3: This is where things get riveting as contestants compete with a live video demonstration.

● Milestone 4: This is the competition ‘fly-off’ where contestants compete for the prize of $100,000 US and have an opportunity to pilot the vehicle in an operational exercise.

● Milestone 5: Winners are transported all expenses paid to an operational field scenario.

● Milestone 6: The winner is awarded a contract to produce 15 operational vehicles.

Concept UAV from the competition (via DARPA)

The video’s for these UAV designs give two impressions to the viewer, ‘I can’t believe that flies’ to the ingenious. Standings for milestone 2 were based off of 385 individuals casting 1511 votes along with 255 comments making GremLion, an electrical and computer engineering team from the University of Singapore coming in at number 1 out of ten so far for this round. Their design looks like a hovering shop-vac with a helicopter rotor positioned vertically in the center of it. As crazy as that sounds, the design is incredibly stable and also features ground-tracking as well as obstacle avoidance capabilities. You can see all the entry videos along with all the contest rules and regulations at the UAVForge website found here: http://www.uavforge.net/

Whether you join in on the fray or not, this is one competition to follow.

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(From 2011)

It's a BIRD?.. It's a PLANE? It is the latest in war technology. The U.S. Military released new details about their most recent test flight of a prototype aircraft named, Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2 (HTV-2). During the August 11^th demo flight, officials announced the HTV-2 separated smoothly from the Minotaur IV launch vehicle. It flew on to break records.

HTV-2 is a part of the Conventional Prompt Global Strike which is an advance weapon program. The program is working to develop systems to reach its destination anywhere in the world within one hour of dispatch.

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) was on-sight to oversee the flight  and collect a massive amount of data about the flight. According to DARPA the HTV-2 was able to be controlled for several minutes while traveling effortlessly through the air to about 13,000 mph. Officially  billed as the fastest aircraft ever built.

Traveling to speeds up to 13,000 mph there is a grantee of high temperatures inside  and out of the aircraft. The HTV-2 reached up to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit (1,927 degrees Celsius) at times during flight.

DARPA was able to capture the "mouth dropping flight" on amera. DARPA director Regina Dugan stated, “We were fortunate to also obtain handheld camera footage of the HTV-2 flight. It gives us a visceral feel for what it means to fly at Mach 20."

It may be able to set flight but still there are many tweaks to be made to HTV-2. Officials said more than 20 air, land, sea and space data collections systems tracked the craft during the test flight. Now it is onward for our military scientists. The next version awaits. (I find it odd they were so public about this vehicle and test.)

Update: During the test flight, Darpa lost contact with the HTV-2 hypersonic aircraft. After an exhaustive search, nothing was found, and DARPA went silent on the issue. They release this statement, "Range assets have lost telemetry with #HTV2. More to follow.”

Eavesdropper

ADAPT concept (via DARPA)

I bring word of a job opportunity for the hungry engineer, become a military app developer. DARPA is seeking to bring the energy and speed of cell-phone app developers to their Adaptable Sensor System (ADAPT) Program. The project is to stream data from UAVs and ground robots, and provide control, to a soldier carrying a tablet or phone. The goal is to avoid the current long development times for sensor applications, up to 10 years.

DARPA program manager Mark Rich explained,  "DARPA is looking to tap the smartphone application development community with experience in application creation... The rapid advancement and sophisticated capabilities in today's smartphone technology provide opportunities to revolutionize the way sensor systems are developed and used. The integrated processing, storage, communications, navigation and orientation functions built into smartphone hardware and software can be leveraged to create far more powerful distributed sensor devices than we use today... We’re actively looking for commercial app developers to address specific sensor challenges including collecting, organizing, storing and sharing video information; sharing information over communications interfaces; developing and implementing rich user interfaces to display and understand what happens in a sensor array; novel uses of smartphone capabilities to rapidly develop and deploy sensor networks."

If you feel this is your calling, see the ADAPTable Sensor System website.

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Stock image of the honeycomb graphene structure

Graphene is almost assuredly poised to replace silicon based devices in the future. From low cost, faster electron movement, to cooling effects, and now showing of a transistor that can operate at 155Ghz. IBM showed off its record breaking graphene transistor as of April 7th, 2011, defeating their previous record of 100Ghz set in February of 2010. IBM conducted the research to make a high-performance RF transistor for a DARPA project. The gate length of this new transistor in 40 nanometers, down from 550 from the 2010 demonstration.

The main issue with why graphene has taken over for silicon is the energy gap of the material. Graphene, at the moment, does not have a deep enough ratio to create and on-off digital switch.  However, the constant flow of energy makes graphene excellent at processing analog signals. According to IBM researcher, Yu-Ming Lin, "Graphene's high electron speed allows for faster processing of applications in analog electronics where such a high on-off ratio is not needed."

Our 155Ghz computers still await more research in gaphene, but IBM is definitely showing off a little glimpse at the future.

Eavesdropper