Pentagon Wants To Use Virtual Reality To Prepare Troops For Nuclear War

NextGov: Pentagon Looks into Virtual Reality to Prepare Troops for Nuclear War

The tech would let troops run through more exercises more frequently and at less cost than traditional training in the real world.

The Defense Department is considering investing in virtual reality platforms to prepare troops to face nuclear threats.

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency on Tuesday began seeking information on virtual reality training systems that would allow troops to rehearse different scenarios involving “radiological threats.”

The agency, which focuses on countering weapons of mass destruction, could one day use the tech to train troops to intercept radiological weapons on the battlefield, respond to radioactive contamination and even prepare for full-fledged nuclear war, officials wrote in the solicitation.

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WNU Editor: Simulating to a certain degree of accuracy what a nuclear battlefield looks like is not going to be a pleasant experience for anyone.

Virtual Training Is Playing A Bigger Role In Determining If A Soldier Is Ready For War

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Bobby McDonald sits in front of a large screen depicting a simulated battle field, to practice calling in precision airstrikes during joint U.S.-Latvian military exercises at a base in Ādaži, Latvia. CBS/CAMI MCCORMICK

Business Insider: This smart tech can tell instantly whether or not a US Army soldier is ready for war

* The Army is modernizing to ensure that it is ready to fight wars in an age of competition with adversarial powers like China and Russia.
* Training is changing as the Army pursues dynamic live, virtual, and mixed-reality training that offers data analysis supported by artificial intelligence and other smart systems.
* AI and machine learning are very important, Maj. Gen. Maria Gervais, the director of the Army's Synthetic Training Environment team, told reporters Wednesday, "Being able to take the data from your training to be analyzed for trend analysis and predictive analysis is going to be a game changer."

The Army is changing the way it prepares for war, and one of the ways the service is doing this is by turning to augmented reality and artificial intelligence for advanced training, putting combat readiness not only in the hands of experienced officers but also smart machines.

Let's say there's a four-man team preparing to clear a building in a training exercise. As the first man busts through the door, a biometric feedback sensor indicates that his adrenaline spiked off the charts while muzzle and eye tracking sensors showed the soldier looking one way while his gun pointed another. When the third man enters, a motion sensor indicates that he froze momentarily.

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WNU Editor: Virtual simulators are being used to train pilots before they enter the cockpit of a real fighter, so why not ground soldiers. 

Are 'Holodecks' The Next Thing For Military Training

The Star Trek 'Holodeck' That Could Allow US Soldiers To Train On A Virtual Battlefield -- Daily Mail

* System also being considered by police and firefighters
* Allowing training in an 'immersive' environment
* Soldiers can take part in virtual mission wherever they are in the world
* Portable system could even be installed on the battlefield to allow 'test runs' before missions

A giant 'holodeck' that soldiers, police and firefighters could use to train in virtual environments has been revealed.

Built by Northrop Grumman, the Virtual Immersive Portable Environment system, known as the Vipe Holodeck, uses huge screens to make soldiers feel they are really at war - and bears an uncanny resemblance to the holodeck used in the Star Trek TV show.

The system can even be used with 3D glasses, and link with others to allow soldiers to take part in training even if they are on opposite sides of the world.

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My Comment: One can only imagine where this technology will be going.

Pros & Cons Of Video Games For Combat Training

The Pros & Cons Of Video Games For Combat Training -- Breaking Defense

This summer, the US Army’s research & development command, RDECOM, has kicked off an experiment to try infusing the latest commercial video game technology into the Army’s most important combat simulator. The new tech brings real potential for better military training – but also a very real danger.

Famous for powering games like 2012’s Borderlands 2 and XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Epic Games, Inc.’s award-winning Unreal Engine is already used for military software ranging from medical simulators to the free game/recruiting tool America’s Army. But what the Army wants to do this time is much more ambitious. It wants to use the latest version of the software, Unreal Engine 3, to improve the revolutionary but still somewhat stilted Dismounted Soldier Training System. Unlike earlier simulators that trained aircraft pilots in mock cockpits or tank crews in dummy vehicles, DSTS is the Army’s first attempt at immersive virtual reality for ordinary infantrymen – who after all suffer the vast majority of casualties in war.

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My Comment: I do not know how effective this training program is .... but I know computers and programming .... and I know that a lot of money (a hell of  a lot of money) was spent in constructing this platform.

Trying To Develop A Better Virtual Battle Simulation

Photo: Army commanders are trying to work out what resources their budget should be spent on

British Army Stages Record-Breaking Virtual Battle -- BBC

The British army has conducted its largest virtual battle simulation, involving 220 soldiers.

The experiment was carried out at the Army's Land Warfare Centre in Warminster, Wiltshire.

The two-hour scenario saw soldiers on computers completing virtual missions in a fictional French town.

The Army says the simulation will help it to find out which resources it needs to invest in, once it takes control of its own budget in April 2013.

"The aim is to understand how various changes have an impact on the speed at which command can respond," said Col Tim Law, assistant head of army force development.

"We're trying to determine exactly what we need to fight and win the wars of tomorrow."

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My Comment: Not exactly the real world .... and they do still have a long way to go with the tech .... but it is a start.