“Currently, tank crews use a very manual process to detect, identify and engage targets,” explained Abrams Master Gunner Sgt. 1st Class Dustin Harris. ATLAS uses advanced sensors, machine learning algorithms and a new touchscreen display to automate the process of finding and firing targets, allowing crews to respond to threats faster than ever before.
Roughly speaking, ATLAS is the mounted sensor collecting data, the machine learning algorithm processing that data, and the display/controller that the crew uses to operate the tank.
However, a demo video shown at Aberdeen Proving Ground claimed ATLAS allows “the operator to engage three targets in the time it now takes to just engage one.”
Starting in August, the Army began bringing in small groups of tank operators to test out the new system, mostly using a new virtual reality setup that replicates the ATLAS display and controller.
First were the automatic target recognition AIs. These machine learning algorithms processed the massive amount of data picked up by the Army’s sensors to detect and identify threats on the battlefield, producing targeting data for weapon systems to utilize.
Taking in the targeting data from the other AI systems, FIRESTORM automatically looks at the weapons at the Army’s disposal and recommends the best one to respond to any given threat.
It’s AI automatically detects threats and recommends the best response to the human operators.