Defense tech company Forterra introduced a new platform on Monday at the Association of the United States Army conference in Washington that will allow service members to control different autonomous systems using one user interface.
OASIS-OneLink builds upon Forterra’s OASIS-Fabric, a shared data network that allows unmanned machines to connect in communication-degraded environments where they can’t log onto a shared data grid.
“Requiring operators to start an integration process from scratch every time a new system is introduced is both inefficient and burdensome for the end user,” Phil Cotter, Forterra’s head of growth, told Military Times. “OneLink gives operators one place from which to monitor and command, and it’s designed to grow and adapt as mission requirements change.”
OASIS-Fabric was essentially the internet, but for battlefield products, according to Jenna Tuck, vice president of distributed warfare at Forterra.
While Fabric provided a new way for machines to connect, OneLink provides a new way to control them.
New systems and pieces of technology come with their own operating systems and visual layouts, not unlike different computers or phones.
The same often goes for the military.
If a service member wants to control several different autonomous systems, or if a new one is introduced to the mix, they may have to learn a completely new user interface or remember several different ones while toggling between them.
But OASIS-OneLink would allow several different autonomous machines, potentially all from different companies, to be controlled using the same operating control framework, said Tuck.
This would make switching between them much more seamless and easier for users.
The shared interface could also speed up the testing and evaluation phase before fielding new technology, since it would allow the Defense Department to focus on the performance of new autonomous systems and reduce time otherwise devoted to the tedious mastery of new controls.
The Army’s Joint Readiness Training Center has already begun using OASIS-OneLink to pilot unmanned systems, Forterra said.
Oasis-OneLink wasn’t the only shiny new toy the company showed off at AUSA.
The company unveiled a new autonomous ground vehicle that it created with Hypercraft, integrating its AutoDrive autonomous software platform to form a machine capable of carrying out high-risk missions without endangering soldiers’ lives.
Forterra has a proven track record of supplying cutting-edge technology to support missions in contested environments.
It was the first ground autonomy company to be actively deployed in Ukraine and has deployed for 88 casualty evacuation missions to rescue Ukrainian soldiers from the front lines.
Forterra was also selected by the Army as a prime contractor for its Engineer Autonomous Breaching Capability program focused on the development of unmanned vehicles to assist with mine-clearing in combat zones.
Riley Ceder is a Navy reporter at Military Times, where he covers issues directly affecting service members and their families, as well as breaking news.
