DARPA Tactical Technology Office (TTO)

Bradford C. Tousley, Director

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January 29, 2014

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) was established in 1958 to prevent strategic surprise from negatively affecting U.S. national security and create strategic surprise for U.S. adversaries by maintaining the technological superiority of the U.S. military.

To fulfill its mission, the Agency relies on diverse performers to apply multi-disciplinary approaches to both advance knowledge through basic research and create innovative technologies that address current practical problems through applied research. 

As the DoD’s primary innovation engine, DARPA undertakes projects that are finite in duration but that create lasting revolutionary change.

Mission

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1957

Sputnik

34th President of the United States 1953-1961.Coined the term “military-industrial complex” and warned against its unwarranted influence. Created DARPA in response to Sputnik.

First orbiting satellite. The satellite was not a threat, but the level of technology indicated that the Soviet Union possessed superior capability for intercontinental reconnaissance and bombing.

Dwight D. EisenhowerDwight D. Eisenhower

1958

DARPA

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DARPA technical offices

• Physical sciences

• Neuroscience

• Materials

• Mathematics

• Biology

• Cyber

• Data analytics at massive scale

• ISR exploitation

• Electronics & Photonics

• Imaging

• PNT

• Computing

• Engineering Biotech

• Biological Microsystems

• Directed Energy

• Battle Management, Command & Control

• Communications and Networks

• Intelligence, Surveillance, and Recon

• Electronic Warfare

• Positioning, Navigation, & Timing (PNT)

• Ground, Maritime, Air, & Space systems

• Agile Development

• Cooperative Autonomy

• Unmanned Systems

• Power and Propulsion

DSO MTOI2O STODefense Sciences Office

Microsystems Technology

Office

Information Innovation

Office

Strategic Technology

Office

Tactical Technology

Office

TTO

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Tactical Technology Office (TTO)

Aero-& Hydrodynamic Systems (13)

Tactical Technologies (8)

VisionTTO will rapidly develop new prototype military capabilities that create an asymmetric technological advantage and provide U.S. forces with decisive superiority and the ability to overwhelm our opponents.

ObjectiveTo provide or prevent strategic and tactical surprise with very high-payoff, high-risk development of revolutionary new platforms, weapons, critical technologies and systems, approaches addressing affordability, as well as rapid agile development.

Ground, Air, Space, and Maritime Systems

Agile Development

Cooperative Autonomy

Unmanned Systems

Power and Propulsion

TTO Focus Areas

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TTO past and current programs

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The environment

Multipolar- Diverse threats- Low to high intensity spectrum- Counter-insurgency

Peer/Non-peer threats- Pacific and other- Denied environments- Countermeasures

Cost challenge- Rapid and expansive red force modernization- Long U.S. development cycles of complex systems - Smaller U.S. defense industrial base-Increasing lifecycle cost

Global market and tech proliferation- Medium technology swarms- Rapid countermeasure development- Cost of labor

Areas of potential threats

Source: DARPA; based on collation of publicly available metrics, including (1) Foreign Policy Failed States Index, (2) Aon Political Risk Map, (3) Control Risks Political Risk Map, and (4) Bradburys Security Risk Map.

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Source: DefenceWeb.co.za

Source: NavyTimes.com

Source: AirForce-Technology.com 7

What we look for in programs

DARPA Robotics Challenge

Phoenix

VTOL X-Plane

ACTUV

ALASA

• Big wins; decisive superiority

• Drive cost-effectiveness (system and countermeasures)

• Decisive and flexible systems (unbalance)

• Rapid developmental program execution (agile)

• Demonstrating prototypes (new capabilities)

• Unmanned leverage (maximize effectiveness)

• Develop Service buy-in (transition)

• Cross-domain capabilities – cover the “seams” across Service stovepipes

Artist’s concept

Artist’s concepts

Artist’s concepts

Artist’s concept

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Ground Systems

Air Systems

Space Systems

Systems focus areas

Robotics Challenge

Amplify unit / soldier effectiveness

ACTUV VTOL X-Plane

Control the air anytime / anywhere

Control the sea, influence events on land

Phoenix

Normalize and simplify space

Cross-cutting Themes Agile development approach, autonomy, unmanned systems, power and

propulsionApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited. 9

Artist concept

Artist concept

Artist concept

Artist concept

Partnerships with industry and universities

• Focus on business case and capabilities

• Focus on enabling technologies through the BAA and contracting process

− TTO BAA link:

https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=5ac6c5b92db270c8

f96fc1124145e3ce&tab=core&_

cview=1

• Demand the A-team from performers; if we don’t get it, we don’t start

• Develop good relationships with partners

• Develop platforms and aim for demonstration

• Partners with resources can really help us make a difference

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A vision for the futureInfrastructure beyond LEO and GEO

Civilian accessible space

Global Hawk

Seamless exchange of information from all domains

This is a translation of "Changdi Airport" © 2007 by J Petersen, used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en.

Space traffic control

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Ground SystemsLegged Squad Support System (LS3)DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC)Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordinance (EXACTO)Persistent Close Air Support (PCAS)

Maritime SystemsASW Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV)Tactically Exploited Reconnaissance Node (TERN)Hydra

Air SystemsHypersonic TechnologiesVertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) X-Plane

Space SystemsSpace Surveillance Telescope (SST)OrbitOutlookGalileoExperimental Spaceplane (XS-1)Airborne Launch Assist Space Access (ALASA)Phoenix

Current TTO programs

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www.darpa.mil

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Ground Systems current programs

Legged Squad Support System (LS3)

Develop a highly mobile, semi-autonomous quadruped ground vehicle to lighten the Soldiers’ load

DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC)

Develop human-compatible robot system for response to natural and man-made disasters

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Artist’s concept

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Ground Systems current programs (cont.)

Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordinance (EXACTO)

Demonstrate closed-loop guided flight of a .50-caliber bullet/weapon system and survivability of bullet components

Persistent Close Air Support (PCAS)

Enhance dismounted ground agent effectiveness with equipment enabling precise coordination and command of airborne weapons

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Maritime Systems current programs

Tactically Exploited Reconnaissance Node (TERN)

Develop Medium-Altitude, Long-Endurance Unmanned Vehicle (MALE UAV) performance operable from smaller ships Artist’s concept

Leverage mature and emerging component technologies to cost-effectively develop a new undersea launch platform with modular payloads, including air vehicle and undersea vehicle payloads

Hydra

ASW Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV)

Demonstrate unmanned vehicle’s capability to track and monitor a diesel submarine to offload tasks from manned platforms

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Air Systems current programs

Develop and demonstrate technologies that enable long-range, high-performance

maneuvering hypersonic flight; explore vehicle concepts for tactical-range hypersonic

cruise missiles and hypersonic boost glide vehicles

ISR

Hypersonic Technologies

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Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) X-Plane

Artist’s Concepts

Transformational vertical flight capabilitiesapplicable to light-medium

class aircraft

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Space Systems current programs

Demonstrate a cost-effective way to increase the amount and quality of Space Situational Awareness (SSA) information critical to warfighters: purchase data rather than build and operate sensors

OrbitOutlook

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Develop technology to image a GEO satellite from the ground by utilizing fixed mobile telescopes, each with adaptive optics and a guide star, to create multiple baselines that can be used to reconstruct the image through an inverse Fourier transformArtist’s Concept

Galileo

Space Surveillance Telescope (SST)

Government ground based sensors

Commercial RFtracking

University optical tracking

Joint Space Operations Center

Data gathering and analysis

Internationalpartner data

Government space based sensors

Space object

Commercialoptical tracking

Artist Concept

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Space Systems current programs (cont.)

ISR

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Airborne Launch Assist Space Access (ALASA)

Deploy small satellites to orbit from an airborne platform, allowing performance improvement, reducing range costs, and flying more frequently, which drives cost per pound down

Experimental Spaceplane (XS-1)

Enable routine-access space/hypersonic vehicles by integrating, testing, and maturing technologies and lean operations

Artist’s concepts

Artist’s concepts

Phoenix

Tele-presence control of on-orbit Robotic

Servicer/Tender at GEO.

Modular satellites that can be aggregated for

scalability, reconfigured, and easily replaced.

Artist’s concepts

Artist conceptArtist concept