PANDEMIC RESPONSE
PANDEMIC-READY
How PEO Soldier has kept IVAS on track as COVID-19 crisis alters plans and procedures.
by Courtney E. Bacon T
he COVID-19 pandemic has presented the military and its industrial partners with unique challenges that have forced top modernization efforts to shift standard oper-
ating procedures and project timelines.
However, the Army’s Project Manager (PM) for the Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS), in the Program Executive Office (PEO) for Soldier, has worked to minimize COVID-19’s negative impact to the project and the warfighter. To do this, the IVAS team leveraged distributed-work solutions already in routine use, modular hardware design, a core Soldier-centered design philosophy and an intentional supply chain risk-management strategy to support force readiness despite the additional challenges presented by the pandemic.
IVAS is a low-profile, ruggedized heads-up display inte- grated into the Soldier’s helmet. Te goggle hardware is supported by a wearable computer pack, conformal battery, integrated sensors and a squad radio. Collectively, the system provides the close combat force a single platform to fight, rehearse and train. Te concerted hardware and a host of services together enable the platform to serve as a combat multiplier.
NOT JUST GOGGLES When most think of IVAS, the goggle and Soldier-borne hardware package are what comes to mind. However, the complete IVAS suite of capabilities multiplies its warfighting potential beyond just the wearable system. For example, the Squad Immersive Virtual Trainer uses tactical mixed reality in a portable synthetic training environment to enable unlimited iterative training in any domain.
IVAS also uses a cloud architecture to host an informa- tion-sharing platform. Tis enables the IVAS project to provide advanced tactical services that streamline secure data exchange between Soldiers and command; informa- tion on adaptive squad architecture to allow for maximum integration and interoperability of system-level kit; and human-performance monitoring tools that enable tacti- cal leaders to make informed, data-driven decisions that optimize the performance of their Soldiers and the lethal- ity of their squads.
Te combination of these capabilities is expected to increase the situational awareness and lethality of Soldiers on the battlefield by:
• Enabling the secure exchange of relevant information to and from command and control.
• Combining equipment to reduce weight while main- taining maximum function.
• Monitoring human performance to ensure squad effec- tiveness.
A PRESSING NEED Army leadership saw a gap in its close-combat force and mobilized a team to find a comprehensive solution that would provide an unquestionable tactical advantage in the future battlespace.
“Senior defense officials recognized the erosion in close- combat capabilities and saw an immediate need to ensure overmatch for our dismounted force,” said Mark Stephens, PM IVAS director of acquisition and operations. “Congress recognized the requirement and reprogrammed funds to start IVAS in FY19. Within six months from the secretary
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