The operational context: 

A very harsh environment with high intensity activities will also characterize the future battlefield, including the land domain. Indeed, the land environment is recognized as hostile, very diverse on the planet scale, fast changing (so that existing maps rapidly do not apply anymore) and complex (with terrain compartments which may block vision as well as communication links), presenting various levels of structuration (from open to urban terrain, which represents a real challenge for image processing or for autonomous vehicles and robotics). It fully includes the 3rd dimension and thus the requirement for connectivity with other sensors and effectors in other domains (air, space and cyber) as well as underground infrastructures in urban areas. Depending on the geographical context connectivity with sensors and effectors of the maritime domain is also required. Furthermore, the cyber domain and the electromagnetic environment will be highly contested. Notably, the electromagnetic spectrum may be degraded with a dramatic impact on C2. However, the main scope of this call topic is related only to the land domain.

The technological context:

The overall protection of armoured vehicles keeps improving thanks to passive and active protection systems as well as additional layers of protection or new structure materials (lighter and more resistant). Future dismounted soldiers may benefit from mobility enhancement (with the use of light exoskeletons for instance), which will make them more agile. Automation may also play a key role in transforming future battlefields. Indeed, it may pave the way towards insensitive enemy lethal autonomous weapon systems and to fleets of UAV49s or ground robots, which would enefit from their numeric advantage to deal with traditional opponents. We can expect opponents that allow robotic attacks, unrestricted by man-in-the-loop for target engagements, forcing us to fight vehicle duels at machine speed. Moreover, long-range precision fires will keep developing, as well as electronic warfare capabilities. Finally, our forces may have to deal with classical ever-improving ammunitions as well as with CBRN50 and cyber-attacks or directed energy weapons.

Technical challenges:

• Integrate real time data from a variety of sources;
• Evaluate and process big data in constrained time;
• Elaborate a middleware architecture for a future secure network and battle management system allowing efficient data distribution as well as collaborative services between platforms from different countries possibly using heterogeneous hardware solutions51 also from different countries. The focus of this robust and secure network is on tactical level from brigade and lower since this is crucial for conducting land operations. In fact, multinational and national interoperability and data exchange is primarily lacking at the lowest levels (bottom-up approach to create a solution for the current capability gap). However, every nation requires joint interoperability and data exchange between all systems of systems at all levels. Moreover, the largest technical challenge can also be foreseen at the lower levels (company, platoon etc);
• Enhance interconnectivity and range of communication systems;
• Enhance interoperability between platforms, at platform (legacy and new) and dismounted soldier level;
• Ensure cyber security and active defence of the networks;
• Ensure maintainability and technical relevance of software-based systems;
• Ensure interoperability over different generations of digital systems;
• Ensure the integration of different Battlefield Combat Identification systems;
• Elaborate C2-system architectures to avoid information overload, adapting information push to different user groups, whilst ensuring mutual situational awareness across the network;
• Ensure Electronic Warfare (EW) security, e.g., by enhancing the ability to quickly adapt to EW-threats by automated switching between different communication platforms, in addition to the existing frequency jumps in current radios;
• Ensure provisions for trend analysis enabled by algorithms in order to predict possible future adversaries’ activities;
• Exploit space-based technologies, ensuring the full availability of space services;
• Develop data fusion functionality with possibility to use AI technology;
• Ensure compatibility and interoperability with Combat Cloud Services. A joint approach should be pursued from the beginning of the process. In fact, for some operations, with the development of EU collaborative warfare capabilities (ECOWAR) in the other subgroups (air, maritime, multi-domain), it is foreseeable that collaborative warfare will develop some joint capabilities for specific use-cases and interoperability with joint Strategic Command and Control Systems.