In the works: A virtual lab to help soldiers get BATTLE READY

In the works: A virtual lab to help soldiers get BATTLE READY#
In the works: A virtual lab to help soldiers get BATTLE READY
From defusing bombs to gauging response time in hostile terrains, Pune-based Armament tech institute embarks on R&D project to simulate war tactics.
Manu Pubby

Pune, May 28: The virtual world can be fun. Video games have shown us how much. Use it to train real-life soldiers, and it’s more than useful. For, forget the rough and tumble of the battlefield, it is the one place where mistakes can be made without getting hurt or killed!

Armed and convinced by its obvious advantages, the Pune-based Institute of Armament Technology (IAT) is developing a virtual reality lab for training defence personnel — and hopes to get it up and running within a year’s time.

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‘‘We will be using virtual reality immersive technologies to create a three dimensional (3D) virtual world where war tactics can be simulated,’’ Arvind Dixit, Scientist D at IAT who is working on the project, told Newsline. While this technology isn’t new — it’s used in, yes, multiplayer video games - its application in training defence personnel is being attempted for the first time in the country.

‘‘This system has been used successfully by the American forces,’’ said defence analyst Col Anil Athale, who has observed the virtual reality systems at the University of Illinois, a pioneer in using this technique.

‘‘At a tactical level, this technology is very useful. Specially in decision-making situations like entering a hostile house. It is good for gauging response,’’ he said. Also, everything is recorded precisely so that an accurate feedback can be generated.

Detailing the virtual battlefield, Dixit said soldiers would be fitted with head mounted displays, immersive goggles and gloves and will then be hooked on to a network (similar to the Internet). ‘‘It will be an exact replica of the battleground and soldiers, once they log on to the network, will interact with each other and take part in war simulations,’’ he said.

Dixit talks of bomb handling as an example. ‘‘Three to four officers can meet in a virtual room to defuse a virtual bomb. They can learn how to defuse any kind of bomb on the network and can be given instructions and corrections in real time.’’

By using a secure network, it will also be possible for officers posted at different locations to take part in the same exercise. ‘‘Our virtual lab will be really beneficial for training people at different locations. There won’t be space problems as ‘classrooms’ can be located anywhere,’’ Dixit adds.

But there’s a hitch: A 2 Mbps data line available with the defence forces, restricts use to only three or four personnel undergoing simulation training at any given time.

THE BATTLEFIELD
Project to use virtual reality immersive technologies (already in use in multiplayer video games)
Soldiers, fitted with head mounted displays, immersive goggles and gloves, will get into battle (training) by hooking on to the network
A secure network will enable officers from all over the country to log in
All possible war scenarios can be tested, each move recorded

THE IAT STORY
THE Institute of Armament Technology, established in 1953 to meet the requirements of a technology-starved Army, has grown over the years and achieved deemed university status last year. The institute trains both defence services officers and DRDO scientists on armament and weapons systems. Each year more than 700 students graduate from the institute