Army Fast-Tracks New Robotic Combat Vehicles to Surveil Enemies, Carry Supplies and Attack Targets

Related Video Above: Army to Assess Robot-Combat Tactics

By Kris Osborn – President & Editor-In-Chief, Warrior Maven

Penetrating enemy armored defenses, launching attack drones, firing anti-tank missiles, breaching obstacles, conducting surveillance under enemy fire and delivering ammunition amid intense firefights are all missions anticipated for the Army’s new Robotic Combat Vehicle-Medium.

The now underway RCV efforts are fast progressing with Army-industry collaborative initiatives to test, refine requirements and ultimately send armed robotic vehicles to war. The new robots, prototypes of which resemble mini-tanks, strykers or robotic infantry carriers, can be seen as lightweight, all terrain surveillance and attack platforms.

“The idea is that through universal controlling software, we are going to fly UAVs and maneuver unmanned ground vehicles,” Maj. Gen. Ross Coffman, Director, Next Generation Combat Vehicles Cross Functional Team, Army Futures Command, told reporters at the 2021 Association of the United States Army Annual Symposium.

TRX by General Dynamics Land Systems

One industry offering now being assessed and explored by the Army for the RCV-M mission is the TRX by General Dynamics Land Systems. 

GDLS unveiled the TRX family of medium class robots at the 2021 Association of the United States Army Annual Symposium. The 10-ton tracked robotic TRX vehicle leverages capabilities and lessons learned from GDLS program called Multi-Utility Tactical Transport (MUTT), a high tech, innovative robotics program designed to push the envelope of autonomous operations and change or improve paradigms for manned-unmanned warfare.