The following is from the New York Times, it is interesting that they see
the need for both diesel hybrid and fuel cells. It has been my experience
that when the military gets interested in throwing money at technology that
large gains are often made and they filter back to commercial or private
use products fairly quickly. It also tends to cause some interest in the
general public regarding the new technology being implemented which may
cause greater interest in diesel hybrid and fuel cell automotive
applications.
Best regards,
Vern
On Horizon, Military Sees High-Technology Trucks
By SUE MEAD
When today's military warhorses roll into the sunset, what will take their
place? Military officials, government agencies and the Detroit-based
automakers are working to develop trucks and technologies for future
missions.
Under a $14 billion initiative called Combatt — for commercially based
tactical truck — the Big Three have worked with the Army's National
Automotive Center and other service branches to develop military vehicles
from the architecture of existing trucks. DaimlerChrysler, Ford Motor and
General Motors have all built prototype Combatt trucks based on heavy-duty
versions of their full-size pickups, although Ford recently dropped out of
the program.
Hybrid diesel-electric versions of military trucks have also been
developed by Dodge and Chevrolet.
The goal is a truck with the latest technology, more off-road versatility,
improved fuel economy and easier maintenance. Most significant, adapting
an existing truck should hold down costs. The National Automotive Center,
which works to adapt commercial technologies for military applications,
estimates that the government could buy trucks based on the prototypes for
$30,000 less than a Humvee.
The National Automotive Center says Humvees currently cost about $62,000
each, an amount that it projects to rise to $75,000. The center estimates
that pickups with Combatt modifications would range from $40,000 to
$50,000.
Requirements are for a light tactical truck remanufactured to Army
specifications to carry troops and cargo. Such a truck could replace, in
some applications, the Humvee.
"Our mission directly affects the fighting men and women in today's Army,"
said Maj. Gen. N. Ross Thompson III, commander of the Army's Tank,
Automotive and Armaments Command. "But we look at a support horizon that
spans 70 years — from equipment built in the mid-1960's to equipment that
will still be in soldiers' hands in 2035."
The Combatt trucks receive heavy-duty modifications to meet military
standards, including air springs that adjust the ride height, advanced
differentials, antiroll bars of varying stiffness, bigger wheels and
tires, a system that inflates or deflates the tires while moving and a
"black box" data recorder.
As the Combatt program nears completion, it remains unclear whether
officials will pick a single winner, but it is clear that the
modifications make the trucks appealing to government agencies and even
commercial customers who need extreme off-road vehicles for logging,
mining and rural firefighting. The Combatt trucks are being evaluated by
26 government agencies.
The third, current phase of the Combatt program includes hybrid electric
prototypes. These hold great promise, because the trucks could use
electric power to operate silently in stealth mode. They could also
generate power at remote sites.
G.M.'s Combatt hybrid also has a 5-kilowatt fuel cell that renders the
vehicle largely undetectable when parked. (The fuel cell generates
relatively little heat.) The fuel cell could provide up to five hours of
power for the truck's surveillance hardware.
Another program, called SmarTruck, seeks to integrate high-tech gadgetry
into the Army's medium tactical vehicles, or five-ton trucks.
The first SmarTruck concept, shown last year, was built on a Ford F-350
pickup as a platform to test antiterrorist and homeland defense systems.
Like a James Bond prop, it had hidden body armor, high-voltage door
handles, roof-launched grenades and devices to create oil slicks and
spread tire-damaging tacks.
A new prototype, SmarTruck II, is based on a modified Chevy Silverado. The
six-wheel all-wheel-drive truck has a global communications system linked
to an interactive Web site, 360-degree video cameras, a laser-guided
missile and an "unmanned air vehicle" — a drone that can detect chemical
weapons.
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