Enhancing Small Arms Target Engagement. Mike Tombu DRDC Toronto Research Centre

Transcription

1 Enhancing Small Arms Target Engagement Mike Tombu DRDC Toronto Research Centre

2 DMC A INFORMATIVE STATEMENTS (U) The data collected as part of this study was approved either by Defence Research and Development Canada s Human Research Ethics Board or by the Director General Military Personnel Research & Analysis Social Science Research Review Board. NOTICE (U) This document has been reviewed and DOES NOT CONTAIN controlled goods technical data. 1

3 Evolutionary Nature of Advancements in Assault Rifles Since its introduction in 1944, there have been evolutions in assault rifle design Material Ammunition Layout (Bullpup vs. conventional) Rifling Sighting systems Ancillaries StG AK M Steyr Aug 1977 C

4 Assault Rifle Effectiveness 1.0 Bench Hit Probability US Qualification Data.2 US Stressed Range (m) Radcliffe (2008) 3

5 Potential Sources of Marksmanship Error Lacking required information Range to target Speed of target Environmental factors (e.g., wind) Failure to use information Not compensating for wind or range to target Poor shooting mechanics Unsteady hold Unnatural alignment Poor breathing Improper target alignment Poor trigger squeeze 4

6 What is the target range? Watch my breathing What hold should I apply? Numerous sources of information must be gathered and integrated What is the target speed? Watch my point of What aim lead should I apply? quickly, often under less than ideal conditions How windy is it? Watch my trigger squeeze Is that a weapon? How can technology be applied to assist the shooter? How do these factors interact? Watch my hold 5

7 Moore s Law The number of transistors that fit on an integrated circuit doubles every two years Processing speed Price Memory capacity Sensor performance Pixels in digital cameras Powerful, lightweight computing and sensing can now be integrated into weapons systems Portable computer from 1982 and Apple iphone from The iphone is 100x times more powerful, 100x lighter, 500x less bulky and 10x cheaper

8 Next Generation Small Arms Laser Range Finder Sensor Suite Computer Vision + Algorithms with Ballistic Computer Fire Control System Augmented Reality Sight Networked to backbone Sensor Fusion, Networked data sharing, Automatic Target Detection & Assisted Target Engagement

9 Next Generation Small Arms Laser Range Finder Sensor Suite Computer Vision + Algorithms with Ballistic Computer Fire Control System Augmented Reality Sight Networked to backbone Sensor Fusion, Networked data sharing, Automatic Target Detection & Assisted Target Engagement

10 Assisted Target Engagement Weapon equipped with: LRF that determines the range to target Computer vision algorithm tracks the target Ballistic computer calculates firing solution (lead and hold), which is displayed in the sight FCS releases shot when firing solution is achieved 9

11 UNCLASSIFIED (NON CONTROLLED GOODS) Sight Picture Shift Tag UNCLASSIFIED (NON CONTROLLED GOODS)

12 UNCLASSIFIED (NON CONTROLLED GOODS) Sight Picture Shift Adjust UNCLASSIFIED (NON CONTROLLED GOODS)

13 Potential Sources of Marksmanship Error: Addressed Lacking required information Range to target Speed of target Environmental factors (e.g., wind) LRF Computer vision algorithm Failure to use information Not compensating for wind or range to target Poor shooting mechanics Unsteady hold Unnatural alignment Poor breathing Improper target alignment Poor trigger squeeze Ballistic computer Fire Control System 12

14 So, which Source of Error Correction Matter? Conducted a larger marksmanship trial to identify factors that improve shooting performance Two of the weapon conditions isolate the impact of the assisted target engagement capability Tested performance under a variety of shooting conditions Known distance, deliberate fire, static targets Unknown distance, snap fire, static targets 13

15 Known Distance Task Goal was to isolate the impact of the fire control system Should reduce or eliminate error associated with shooting mechanics by only releasing the round when the ballistic solution is achieved Provided shooters without ATE, range, known holds and adequate time to apply them If shooting mechanics contribute to marksmanship error and ATE eliminates them, performance should be better with ATE than without it 14

16 Known Distance, Deliberate Fire, Static Target Error Source Acquiring Range to Target Environmental Factors With ATE LRF Manual input* Without ATE Range provided Manual adjustment* Applying Right Hold Shooting Mechanics Ballistic Computer Fire Control System Adequate time and known holds No mitigation * Minimal wind, therefore minimal impact 15

17 Known Distance: Results Target Hits Incapacitation Hits Proportion Hits Without ATE With ATE Range (m) Proportion Hits Without ATE With ATE Range (m) No significant benefit provided by the assisted target engagement capability 16

18 Known Distance: Conclusion Given adequate time, shooters can effectively apply fundamentals of shooting FCS does not remove any error associated with shooting mechanics that cannot be controlled by the shooter

19 Unknown Distance Task Goal was to isolate the impact of the laser range finder Should reduce or eliminate error associated with range estimation by providing accurate range information 18

20 Range Estimation Results Absolute Error In Range Estimation 200 Average Absolute Error (m) Unassited Range (m) On average, estimate errors were ~36% of actual distance Underestimated < 200 m and overestimated > 200m 19

21 Unknown Distance Task Goal was to isolate the impact of the laser range finder Should reduce or eliminate error associated with range estimation by providing accurate range information Provided shooters without ATE, known holds and adequate time to apply them Shooters were responsible for estimating range Based on known distance task, shooter mechanics were not expected to differ across weapon conditions If range estimation contribute to marksmanship error and ATE eliminates it, performance should be better with ATE than without it 20

22 Unknown Distance: Results Target Hits Proportion Shots on Target With ATE Without ATE 2.34x Range ATE enhanced target engagement more target hits at mid-long target ranges 21

23 Unknown Distance: Results Incapacitation Hits Proportion Shots on Centre x With ATE Without ATE Range ATE enhanced target engagement more incapacitation hits at most target ranges 22

24 Unknown Distance: Conclusion Including an LRF as part of the weapon system results in dramatically improved shooting performance, especially at medium to long engagement distances Over 2x target hits at 450 m Over 5x the incapacitation hits at 300 m Comes at a cost in terms of time to engage System reliability and robustness issues remain

25 Results in Context Hit Probability Bench US Qualification Data With ATE.2 US Stressed Without ATE Range (m) 24

26 General Conclusions The overall results suggest that a full-on fire control system provides benefit, but also costs that must be taken into consideration Having the fire control system release the round was time consuming, resulting in significantly longer engagement times, especially at long distances A system that incorporates a laser range finder and easy to apply holds may be sufficient to achieve most of the benefits seen with ATE, without the accompanying penalty on time to engage A system with an LRF and ballistic computer that displays the firing solution to the shooter, but that leaves shot release to the shooter may represent a perfect balance of automation and manual control A trial to investigate sighting systems with these characteristics is currently being planned 25

27 Implications Assisted Target Engagement extends the effective range of small arms Dramatically improved probability of hit/probability of incapacitation is possible Finding the right balance of automation and skilled manual control is critical Has the potential to make even an untrained enemy lethal to much longer ranges Technology fails Preserving marksmanship skills so that shooters remain effective without assisted target engagement is vital Sighting systems must continue to function should the assisted target engagement system go offline (dead batteries, breakage, software fault) 26

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