In honor of our Independence Day this year, we want to focus on how 5G cellular technology and the military are working together to provide us a more autonomous world.
Defense One posted an article a few weeks ago that highlights the Navy’s “5G Living Lab.” With the backing of companies like QualComm and Verizon, Marine Corps Lt. Col. Brandon Newell (director of the Navy’s SoCal Tech Bridge) was able to begin experimentation with 5G. The tests he and his team have been working on look at the benefits of using 5G cellular connectivity across a base. It could unlock new uses for self-driving vehicles, provide greater energy efficiency on base, and even better teaming between drones and ground robots. They quickly discovered a stronger cellular connection enables a lot more than video conferencing and reliable internet (go figure!).
Newell spoke to Defense One as part of a special interview ahead of the 6th annual Defense One Tech Summit, taking place from June 21 to 25. Here’s some of the quotes they received from him:
“We were able to learn what that self-driving unmanned future looked like, but also the key enablers to it,” he said.
“What you are seeing is that sensor suites with artificial intelligence and machine learning aggregate the data at the software level, at the user interface level,” he said. “You can actually expand to multiple threat vectors. So we’re showing ground perimeter, [and] drones. We’re showing maritime counter-intrusion. We were able to show how a single police officer can have that kind of local and regional look at the threat.”