IT IS CRITICAL TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO DESIGN ARCHITECTURES
THAT COULD ALLOW US
TO
IDENTIFY AND DEVELOP TECHNOLOGIES ABLE TO ADVANCE A MORE MODULAR APPROACH TO THE APPLICATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF OPERATIONAL ENERGY.
of operations through the Rapid Equip- ping Force.
Consisting of solar panels, chargers, and adaptors, the REPPS kit draws upon a fast-evolving technology known as flex- ible photovoltaics (PV), solar panels that convert light energy into electricity. The REPPS kit provides Soldiers with mobile, deployable power, removing the need to haul large generators around the battlefield or theater.
While smaller, more powerful batteries are a focus of ongoing research, Army sci- entists are increasingly concentrating on Soldier power management techniques. CERDEC has demonstrated a Soldier Power Manager that allows a variety of equipment to be connected to a power source (such as the conformal battery) by managing the power draws and condi- tioning the power. These types of efforts are the first foray into a longer-term look into Soldier architectures that takes into account modularity principles.
BASING POWER Contingency bases in theater have energy needs that are currently supplied in an ad hoc manner that is not necessar- ily energy efficient. A large community
across the Army is working to figure out how to reduce the energy requirements of forward operating bases (FOBs) by using tools across the DOTMLPF spec- trum (Doctrine, Organization, Training, Materiel, Leadership and Education, Per- sonnel, and Facilities).
Innovative concepts in basing technologies have made the Army a leader in flexible photovoltaics. Photovoltaics harness light energy from the sun and convert it into electricity. Flexible PV products have been developed for use in solar-powered, por- table tents and shelters of various sizes and configurations,
such as the Power Shade, TEMPER Fly, and QUADrant.
The TEMPER Fly is a roughly 16-by- 20-foot tent structure able to generate 800 watts of electricity. A QUADrant is a smaller variant of
the TEMPER
Fly, able to generate 200 watts of power. The Power Shades range in size and are capable of generating up to 3 kilowatts of exportable electrical power. The PV integrated military shelter items use a lamination process to combine the PV materials into the textile substrate.
Additionally, energy-efficient solutions such as LED (light-emitting diode)
lighting, more efficient field feeding
equipment, and higher R-value tent lin- ers can reduce the power needs on FOBs.
As with Soldier Power, these power source innovations and power demand reductions are only part of
the story.
Power management on FOBs can pro- vide significant fuel savings. Micro-grids, electric grids that smartly allocate, man- age, and distribute power in a FOB, are an active area of investigation.
Army S&T is also advancing key tech- nologies to increase power efficiency and output on FOBs through a program called HI Power, which looks at the pros and cons of various micro-grid architec- tures in order to allow Project Manager Mobile Electric Power to set standards for the types of grids that the Army might want to invest in. (See related article on Page 8.)
GROUND AND AIR VEHICLE POWER Much
like the research
efforts
cur-
rently exploring individual Soldier and installation technologies, the S&T emphasis on ground and air vehicle exploration is
geared level understanding, meaning that the
ASC.ARMY.MIL 59
toward system-
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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