Strike UGV Crash Test: How UGV manufacturers turned military feedback received during the Strike UGV Forum into vital upgrades
“At the Crash Test, manufacturers weren’t there to pitch their UGVs; they had to listen to the military and put themselves in the shoes of those carrying out combat missions with strike UGVs. That immersion accelerates understanding of what needs fixing and speeds the development of technologies the military actually needs” — Viktoriia Honcharuk, “Tori”, Head of Defense Tech at SII.
Day 1: During the panel discussion with the representatives of the 3rd Assault Brigade, the 91st Separate Anti-Tank Battalion, the 37th Marine Brigade, and the Liut Brigade, the real problems were raised: what breaks in use, which “nice-to-have” upgrades waste time, and how to recover a stuck platform without risking people. Manufacturers of DevDroid, RoverTech, Terra Traverse, and Ark Robotics then took part in a candid panel to acknowledge shortcomings and discuss the needed fixes and the importance of producers’ cooperation.
Representatives of Strike UGV Company NC13, 3rd Assault Brigade, shared how they scaled their UGV capability to a full company, executed combat missions, and passed lessons to other units.
Day 2: Words met reality. The NC13 Strike UGV Company of the 3rd Assault Brigade ran a live, mission-like crash test. The manufacturers’ teams were operating their UGVs themselves from a dugout; each team established the control link for their vehicles; and UGVs had to push through mud, sand, trenches, felled trees, elevation changes, zig-zag route, etc. A live feed played on the big screen while Makar, the commander of the NC13 Strike UGV Company, provided real-time commentary, pressed the teams, and turned each stumble into a concrete task list for the next iteration.
Encouragingly, several manufacturers who took tough feedback during the Strike UGV Forum delivered strong performances in the crash test. That’s the point of our work: soldier feedback that leads to fast learning and visible improvement of the vital technologies.
The crash-test was organised by Snake Island Institute, NC13 Strike UGV Company of the 3rd Assault Brigade, AB3 TECH, and 3rd Army Corps.
