Unmanned tracked vehicle could evacuate wounded warfighters, recharge batteries, or carry Marine cargo
CAMP LEJEUNE MARINE BASE, N.C. – At first glance, the Expeditionary Modular Autonomous Vehicle (EMAV) looks like the bottom half of a tank. It is a tracked vehicle, but one small enough to fit inside the hold of a V-22 Osprey aircraft. Popular Science reports. Continue reading original article
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
10 Aug. 2021 -- The vehicle, which the Marine Corps tested in North Carolina in June, is a literal platform for the future. As the Marines plan towards not just mechanized but wars of the 2030s, the EMAV will be there, a sometimes autonomous unmanned truck carrying wounded Marines on stretchers, or whatever else it needs to.
The EMAV is powered by a diesel-electric hybrid engine that enables it to run parts of its missions silently. It also can, with fuel on hand, provide electrical power for the Marines using it in the field. Its body weighs 7,000 pounds baseline, with capacity for as much as 7,000 more pounds of attachments, sensors, weapons, or cargo.
Fitting the robot inside a V-22 is crucial to the entire Marine Corps conception of future warfare. The vertical-takeoff and landing Osprey can transport 24 people in seats (or 12 on stretchers) in and out of small clearings zones, allowing it to get right into the action.
Related: Artificial intelligence (AI) in unmanned vehicles
John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics
