Monday, January 9, 2017

Department of Defense Announces Successful Micro-Drone Demonstration

 

Press Operations

Release No: NR-008-17
Jan. 9, 2017

In one of the most significant tests of autonomous systems under development by the Department of Defense, the Strategic Capabilities Office, partnering with Naval Air Systems Command, successfully demonstrated one of the world’s largest micro-drone swarms at China Lake, California. The test, conducted in October 2016 and documented on Sunday’s CBS News program “60 Minutes”, consisted of 103 Perdix drones launched from three F/A-18 Super Hornets. The micro-drones demonstrated advanced swarm behaviors such as collective decision-making, adaptive formation flying, and self-healing.  

“I congratulate the Strategic Capabilities Office for this successful demonstration,” said Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, who created SCO in 2012. “This is the kind of cutting-edge innovation that will keep us a step ahead of our adversaries. This demonstration will advance our development of autonomous systems.”

“Due to the complex nature of combat, Perdix are not pre-programmed synchronized individuals, they are a collective organism, sharing one distributed brain for decision-making and adapting to each other like swarms in nature,” said SCO Director William Roper. “Because every Perdix communicates and collaborates with every other Perdix, the swarm has no leader and can gracefully adapt to drones entering or exiting the team.”

The demonstration is one of the first examples of the Pentagon using teams of small, inexpensive, autonomous systems to perform missions once achieved only by large, expensive ones. Roper stressed the department’s conception of the future battle network is one where humans will always be in the loop. Machines and the autonomous systems being developed by the DoD, such as the micro-drones, will empower humans to make better decisions faster.

Originally designed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology engineering students, the Perdix drone was modified for military use by the scientists and engineers of MIT Lincoln Laboratory starting in 2013. Drawing inspiration from the commercial smartphone industry, Perdix software and hardware has been continually updated in successive design generations. Now in its sixth generation, October's test confirmed the reliability of the current all-commercial-component design under potential deployment conditions—speeds of Mach 0.6, temperatures of minus 10 degrees Celsius, and large shocks—encountered during ejection from fighter flare dispensers.

The “60 Minutes” segment also featured other new technology from across the Department of Defense such as the Navy’s unmanned ocean-going vessel, the Sea Hunter, and the Marine Corps’ Unmanned Tactical Control and Collaboration program.

As SCO works with the military Services to transition Perdix into existing programs of record, it is also partnering with the Defense Industrial Unit-Experimental, or DIUx, to find companies capable of accurately replicating Perdix using the MIT Lincoln Laboratory design. Its goal is to produce Perdix at scale in batches of up to 1,000.

Editor’s Note:

A fact sheet about Perdix can be found here.  

Perdix video footage:

Friday, January 6, 2017

Emailing: Announcement in RJ 6 Dec 2017.jpg

 Announcement in RJ 6 Dec 2017

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Bob,

Please get the word out any way you can. This may  be our best chance to let the Veteran community know what is going on with the  Memorial Monument at the SNVMC.

Thanks.

Joel


 
Subject: Emailing: Announcement in RJ 6 Dec 2017.jpg

In today's RJ. It does state "Doors open at 8:30 AM for networking"! THEY WANT US TO NETWORK!

Joel

Veterans Town Hall Southern NV, VA. N. LAS VEGAS

15578302_1215648991836004_2932732051476439123_o

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Nevada Attorney General Office of Military Legal Assistance

 

2017 Vegas Flyer.pdf388 KB

State Flyer 2.pdf3 MB

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Subject: Nevada Attorney General Office of Military Legal Assistance

Please find the attached flyers and text below, which is being forwarded to you from one of the members of the State Commander’s Group; for the good of the whole.

Thank you,

                D.C. Martinez

To all Veteran Organization Commanders:

Please disseminate to your veteran membership,

WHO:             The Nevada Attorney General’s Office of Military Legal Assistance @EASE Program and Nevada Legal Services.

WHAT:           Free civil legal assistance to Veterans and their families.

                        Free wills, medical/financial powers of attorney and legal advice pertaining to family law, bankruptcy, consumer issues, landlord/tenant and access/denial to public benefits. Veteran Service Officers will be on hand to assist with VA benefit questions.

WHERE:        The January workshops will take place on 1/27 at the VA Hospital Auditorium located at 6900 N. Pecos Road, North Las Vegas, Nevada, and on Jan 28th at American Legion Post 40 located at 425 E. Van Wegenen Street, Henderson, Nevada.  

WHEN:           Attorneys will be available to assist veterans and family members from 10am to 2pm both days.

NOTES:          Workshops will take place at least once per month throughout the State of Nevada. Please refer to our attached flyers. For more information or to receive email alerts on upcoming workshops, please email Hcooney@ag.nv.gov and we will add you to our email list.  Also, please visit our site at: nvagomla.nv.gov.

Ryan McDonald | Outreach Director
State of Nevada | Office of the Attorney General | Office of Military Legal Assistance  

T: (775) 684.1216 | F: (775) 684.1162 | E: rmcdonald@ag.nv.gov

http://ag.nv.gov/uploadedImages/agnvgov/Content/About/AGLogoColor-lrg-2072x2024.jpg?n=3014

From: Martinez, David C. (LV) [mailto:David.Martinez2@va.gov]
Sent: Wednesday, January 4, 2017 3:45 PM
To: Ryan J. McDonald <RMcDonald@ag.nv.gov>
Subject: OMLA Flyers - Corrected

If this rendition is final, you can send over the message for the commanders and I’ll send it out.  It will give them time to get the word out.

                D.C. Martinez

From: Ryan J. McDonald [mailto:RMcDonald@ag.nv.gov]
Sent: Wednesday, January 04, 2017 3:23 PM
To: Martinez, David C. (LV)
Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: OMLA Flyers - Corrected

Yeah, couple of needed corrections. Thanks David. Ryan

Ryan McDonald | Outreach Director
State of Nevada | Office of the Attorney General | Office of Military Legal Assistance  

T: (775) 684.1216 | F: (775) 684.1162 | E: rmcdonald@ag.nv.gov

http://ag.nv.gov/uploadedImages/agnvgov/Content/About/AGLogoColor-lrg-2072x2024.jpg?n=3014

 

Hi Ryan,

Here is the newest rendition.

                D.C. Martinez

 

Attached.

Heather T. Cooney

Assistant to Nic Danna

Special Assistant Attorney General

Director Office of Military Legal Assistance

Nevada Office of the Attorney General

775-684-1202

Notice: This e-mail message and any attachments thereto may contain confidential, privileged or non-public information.  Use, dissemination, distribution or reproduction of this information by unintended recipients is strictly prohibited.  If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately and destroy all copies.

Len Yelinek

Commander, Las Vegas Chapter 711

Military Order of the Purple Heart

(702) 362-7673-H    (702) 460-0769-C

5116 Longridge Ave, Las Vegas NV 89146