Presently, the world's most lethal battle tank, the M1A1 Abrams, must be rearmed with main gun ammunition one piece at a time through the tank's hatch. Under the best conditions, this procedure is a tiresome task; under battlefield conditions, it is also a dangerous task because the crew and equipment are exposed to deadly weapon fire and nuclear, biological, and chemical agents. Ammunition reloading for heavy armored systems has been a proven logistical problem with the Army's armored systems. The US Army's Project Manager for Ammunition Logistics (PM-AMMOLOG) assembled a national team to develop critical technology for automated reloading of armored vehicles to improve the safety and efficiency of this essential element of armored warfare. This technology was demonstrated with the Future Armor Rearm System (FARS). FARS consists of a tracked, armored chassis, a 5-degree-of-freedom teleoperated ammunition transfer arm, and a specialized mission module. This mission module houses the systems that store ammunition and transfer it into the tank. The automated systems allow the soldier to remain safe under sealed and armored protection while remotely loading ammunition from the FARS into the tank storage system. Automated reloading not only eases the manual burden on the soldier but also provides a safer, faster, and more efficient means of reloading heavy armored systems. This activity was sponsored by PM-AMMOLOG and the US Army's Project Manager for Tank Main Armament Systems. Team members included Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Human Engineering Laboratory (HEL), Tooele Army Depot, and Benet Weapons Laboratory. HEL and Tooele Army Depot performed modifications on the FARS chassis. These included modifications to the power distribution systems and the addition of hydraulics to the vehicle. Tooele also fabricated the floor module and a portion of the ammunition transfer hardware.
Technology Demonstration for automated ammunition reloading of heavy armored systems. Ammunition Logistics Program
1993
83 pages
Report
No indication
English
Combat Vehicles , Ammunition, Explosives, & Pyrotechnics , Logistics Military Facilities & Supplies , Loading , Armor , Computerized Control Systems , Human Factors Engineering , Materials Handling Equipment , Safety Analysis , Storage , Technology Assessment , Logistics support , Tanks(Combat vehicles) , EDB/450000
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