Kutta Technologies, Inc. announced today that it was awarded a prime contract to integrate and flight test their Bi-Directional Remote Viewing Terminal Technology (BDRVT) with AAI Corporation's One System Remote Video Terminals (OSRVTs) on a Shadow® Unmanned Aircraft System.
The new contract worth $3.7 M is in addition to a $1.25 M SBIR Phase II Plus Up from the US Army Aviation Applied Technology Directorate (AATD) and the Project Manager for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (PM UAS). The new funding will certify the system with the U.S. Army's Aviation Engineering Directorate (AED) and prepare the system for deployment in early 2010.
Kutta's software-based BDRVT system allows minimally-trained soldiers to control a camera onboard a UAS to track fixed and moving targets. It also allows the UAS operator to track himself in a stationary position or while on the move (e.g. convoy operations). "This technology will put key real-time reconnaissance capabilities in the hands of our front-line soldiers. It will protect our forces from ambushes, increase the operational tempo of war, and allow convoys to scout areas for potential improvised explosive devices (IEDs). This technology will dramatically change the way the Army fights," says Doug Limbaugh, CEO of Kutta Technologies.
Kutta worked closely with personnel at AATD and PM UAS to develop the user interface that provides upgraded functionality while maintaining all the features of the OSRVT. The BDRVT is equipped with an improved sensor footprint and footprint history feature that includes terrain shadowing effects, easy-to-use camera controls to lock onto fixed and moving targets, and the ability for the operator to command the payload to stare at a designated side of a building.
Kutta is based in Phoenix, AZ and markets several Unmanned System Products. Kutta's core competencies in UAVs and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-approved software and systems development made them a perfect candidate for integrating this new technology into the U.S. Army's OneSystemTM. The BDRVT is an extension of Kutta's Unified Ground Control Station (UGCS) technology that was developed under an Army SBIR from AATD.
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