Tom has Starlink problems and Colin is wondering if it was wise to install AI to control his garage door. Lots of exciting episodes planned, not least from our sponsor, Improbable.

This week the Warfighter Podcast is joined by Al Roan who is Managing Director of Cervus - a company which delivers data insights for Defence and Security. Al, an ex-Army officer turned data entrepreneur, started on this journey after a poignant event when he was tasked to look into information related to the death of a comrade.

From his experience harnessing data to provide deep insights for the military, Al provides us with an overview of how data analytics is used and breaks down some of the myths and misconceptions. Al covers:

• Types of Analytics (Descriptive, Predictive and Diagnostic)
• Data mining and the importance of business/military knowledge
• Decision and Precision
• Descriptive - Counter IED Training example.
• Cultural - Getting people to trust the data
• Technological - Challenges in analysing in real time
• Dashboards - making the complex readily understood.
• Predictive and Diagnostic
• Structured and unstructured data
• User driven analytics vs Data driven analytics
• Machine Learning
• XCALIBR User case

As ever we are joined by our intrepid journalist Andy Fawkes. As things have been a bit quiet over the Christmas break, Andy gives us a look-ahead on the technologies and themes which he thinks will be important in 2023:

• AI - what do current developments such as ChatGPT mean for S&T?
• Data - ability to capture and analyse training data getting better but taking place in pockets rather than broader enterprise
• XR/Metaverse - whatever the hype, developments are swift.
• Cloud technologies - so much potential but will defence S&T embrace it?
• Gaming - will keep on giving?

Improbable Defence is a mission focused technology company working to transform the national security of our nations and their allies in the face of increasing global competition and evolving threats.

Today, national security is defined by technological superiority. We believe that software more than any other capability will redefine how war is fought and who will be on the winning side. Those entrusted with the preservation of our freedom, prosperity and safety deserve the best software-defined capabilities available.

Since the end of the Cold War, the UK, US and their allies have been unchallenged in military technological dominance. Today, we are facing a different reality: our adversaries are seizing the technological edge.

Improbable Defence chooses to stand up and not stand by. We are building cutting-edge software products to help our nations retake the technological advantage. We believe in defending our democratic values against those who seek to undermine them. Supporting those tasked with this mission is at the heart of all we do. We seek to radically transform the mission outcomes of those whose responsibility it is to keep us safe.

• Tom Constable: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-constable/
• Colin Hillier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinhillier/

• Al Roan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanroan/

Watch the panel online for free on Thursday 26 January 09:45-16:30 pm (GMT).

• Tom's MISO AI panel: https://lnkd.in/eAcr7HBB
• ChatGPT: https://chat.openai.com/
• Website: https://www.warfighterpodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warfighter-digital/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgiH-cwmyc2I2Iyc8MLYtg
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarfighterPod

This episode, continuing our Education series, Tom and Colin are joined by Ian Ferguson who is a QGI working at the Royal School of Artillery, teaching and advising on simulation and training matters for the British Army. Ian has spent the last 3 years working in the Simulation Wing of the RSA, trialling and experimenting with a range of XR technologies. (We would like to note that the views expressed on this podcast are from Ian’s personal experience, and do not necessarily reflect the position of the UK Ministry of Defence).

Ian provides a helpful overview and clarification, covering:

• XR, VR, MR and AR terms
• Considerations for selecting VR systems
• Common issues with XR systems (nausea, compute power, cloud access)
• Likely development direction for key technologies

As ever, this topic is deeper than it initially appears. Ian guides us through a discussion around some of the strengths and weaknesses of the various technologies that are involved in XR systems, with some strategies and approaches for dealing with introducing systems into the training pipeline.

Tom provides a bit more detail on the challenge he’s set within the Synthetic Internet that Colin will face in a forthcoming episode. How’s that for a cliffhanger?

Conducttr is a hybrid warfare/crisis simulation platform that supports a wide range of realistic command post and field exercises. Its synthetic Internet delivers a realistic virtual information environment ideal for exercising in information operations, media operations, social media, OSINT, cyber, CIMIC, and foreign affairs as well homeland security, counter-terrorism and humanitarian disaster relief.

Conducttr can be used solo or with operational systems (as a “digital wrap”) during live exercises that can last from an hour to several weeks. Available on cloud, on premises with VMware and deployable on laptop as needed.

• Tom Constable: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-constable/
• Colin Hillier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinhillier/

• Ian Ferguson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-ferguson-12a492130/

• Sword of Damocles: https://vrsource.com/meet-the-sword-of-damocles-the-first-vr-headset-in-the-world-17233/
• Website: https://www.warfighterpodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warfighter-digital/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgiH-cwmyc2I2Iyc8MLYtg
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarfighterPod

Tom is recovering from the usual bout of seasonal flu, but still finds time to reflect on what a fascinating time it is for the M&S world. As this is the penultimate episode for the year it was a chance to look back on what’s gone on as well as think about what might be in store for 2023.

Our guest for this episode is none other than Robert Seigfried who has spent a large part of his career supporting the NATO Modelling and Simulation Group (NMSG). Robert provides us with an overview of what NATO is trying to achieve in terms of pooling and sharing of resources, and then dives into the specific areas of research for the NMSG.

Multi-Domain Operations is an increasingly important concept for modern warfare and therefore it is important that partner nations are able to train for this. Robert goes on to describe the increasing need for synthetic environments to support this training, as well as the ongoing work by NMSG to define standards for UCATT ( live instrumented training) and Distributed Synthetic Training. Robert goes on to discuss the key challenges for MDO and the importance of open standards in supporting this work.

Andy Fawkes gives us a slightly different take on the news, by looking back at the top three themes for 2022. The discussion takes us down a few rabbit holes, but they’re nice rabbit holes that we might visit next year. No doubt many of the themes from this year will develop in 2023 as we see some of these technologies evolve.

Please do get involved, either through our Warfighter Podcast website or LinkedIn pages. We love to hear comments, ideas and suggestions.

Improbable Defence is a mission focused technology company working to transform the national security of our nations and their allies in the face of increasing global competition and evolving threats.

Today, national security is defined by technological superiority. We believe that software more than any other capability will redefine how war is fought and who will be on the winning side. Those entrusted with the preservation of our freedom, prosperity and safety deserve the best software-defined capabilities available.

Since the end of the Cold War, the UK, US and their allies have been unchallenged in military technological dominance. Today, we are facing a different reality: our adversaries are seizing the technological edge.

Improbable Defence chooses to stand up and not stand by. We are building cutting-edge software products to help our nations retake the technological advantage. We believe in defending our democratic values against those who seek to undermine them. Supporting those tasked with this mission is at the heart of all we do. We seek to radically transform the mission outcomes of those whose responsibility it is to keep us safe.

• Tom Constable: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-constable/
• Colin Hillier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinhillier/

• Robert Seigfried: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-siegfried-aditerna/

• Website: https://www.warfighterpodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warfighter-digital/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgiH-cwmyc2I2Iyc8MLYtg
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarfighterPod

• https://militaryembedded.com/radar-ew/sensors/army-goes-deep-into-vrar-for-training-and-combat
• https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/market-specific/training-simulation/news/thales-power-its-next-generation-simulators-using-unreal
• https://medium.muz.li/2022-the-year-of-the-metaverse-9979ee1ab403

Tom & Colin provide an update on their preview of the Improbable Defence Skyral platform, at their HQ in London. Colin has returned from I/ITSEC in Orlando and was able to see the Improbable Defence demo and provides a summary of the main discussion themes from the show. We discuss how there is a greater demand for realism and scale across simulation and training, which is being supported across a number of UK, US and Nato projects in the coming years.

Our guest on this show is Chris Covert, who is an Executive Producer for Microsoft, working on Gaming, Exercising, Modeling, and Simulation projects across a wide range of customers. Chris brings a wealth of experience and subject matter knowledge from his career in developing simulation applications to solve some of our most challenging engineering problems.

We ask Chris to break down AI concepts and explain them to people of below average intelligence (like your hosts). In this engaging discussion, Chris breaks down some of the misconceptions and assumptions around AI, and provides a quick reference overview for the different technologies and techniques that come under the banner of AI. We cover aspects of AI such as Machine Learning, Decision Trees, Deep Learning, Computer Vision and Natural Language Processing. At the end Chris provides our listeners with some great tips on how to address projects that might be seeking to leverage AI technologies.

As ever, we are joined by Andy Fawkes who provides a digest of the recent modelling & simulation news, with some discussion around the more interesting topics. We’re looking for our audience to get involved and send us stories of interest from the Simulation & Training world that we might not be aware of.

• Chris Covert: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-covert/

Improbable Defence is a mission focused technology company working to transform the national security of our nations and their allies in the face of increasing global competition and evolving threats.

Today, national security is defined by technological superiority. We believe that software more than any other capability will redefine how war is fought and who will be on the winning side. Those entrusted with the preservation of our freedom, prosperity and safety deserve the best software-defined capabilities available.

Since the end of the Cold War, the UK, US and their allies have been unchallenged in military technological dominance. Today, we are facing a different reality: our adversaries are seizing the technological edge.

Improbable Defence chooses to stand up and not stand by. We are building cutting-edge software products to help our nations retake the technological advantage. We believe in defending our democratic values against those who seek to undermine them. Supporting those tasked with this mission is at the heart of all we do. We seek to radically transform the mission outcomes of those whose responsibility it is to keep us safe.

• Tom Constable: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-constable/
• Colin Hillier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinhillier/

• Website: https://www.warfighterpodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warfighter-digital/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgiH-cwmyc2I2Iyc8MLYtg
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarfighterPod

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20492-i-itsec-on-track-to-break-records
• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20499-2022-ms-and-t-awards-reader-decide
• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20498-the-antoinette-barrel-a-training-device-upon-request

Tom & Colin introduce the first episode of Season 1's education episodes.

This episode is designed to be referred to when you (the listener!) have a need to 'gen up' on 3D modeling. Specifically related to the defence industry.

A careful process that can take several discussions with a new client. Setting expectations; defining deliverables. Most projects succeed or fail in the planning phase, and it happens all the time (e.g., recent M4A1 model).

a. Technical Specifications

1. Target engine
2. File format requirements
3. Shader inputs
4. PBR (metal/rough)
5. Spec/gloss
6. Special textures
7. a. Thermal

b. Fresnel

1. Animation requirements
2. Special functionality requirements
3. Geo LOD
4. Shadow stencil LOD
5. Dimensional precision requirements
6. Polycount
7. Texel density
8. Naming conventions
9. Stylistic requirements (photorealism, stylized, brand new or grungy?)

b. Reference Gathering

1. Photo references
2. Technical drawings/blueprints
3. 3D scans
4. Measurement data

The beginning of the “real work”. There are many different pipelines.

a. Highpoly

b. Low Poly

1. UV Map

• Overlapping vs non-overlapping UVs, number of UVs.
• UDIMs -an automatic UV offset system that assigns an image onto a specific UV tile

1. Texture baking

• AO
• Normal (world space, global space) , Y-/+ (OpenGL vs DirectX), Mikk-T vs not
• Curvature

1. Texture authoring

• 3D authoring has become standard
• Gloss/Rough the most important for overall “feel” of materials

1. LODs

• Auto-LODs (there are some limitations)
• Do one or two by hand, the rest automatically

• Tom Constable: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-constable/
• Colin Hillier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinhillier/

• Chris Torchia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cjtorchia/
• Website: https://vigilante.us/

Conducttr is a hybrid warfare/crisis simulation platform that supports a wide range of realistic command post and field exercises. Its synthetic Internet delivers a realistic virtual information environment ideal for exercising in information operations, media operations, social media, OSINT, cyber, CIMIC, and foreign affairs as well homeland security, counter-terrorism and humanitarian disaster relief.

Conducttr can be used solo or with operational systems (as a “digital wrap”) during live exercises that can last from an hour to several weeks. Available on cloud, on premises with VMware and deployable on laptop as needed.

• Website: https://www.warfighterpodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warfighter-digital/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgiH-cwmyc2I2Iyc8MLYtg
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarfighterPod

Tom & Colin discuss the forthcoming demo of the new Improbable platform that is scheduled for an early demonstration this week. Also some comments about the international breadth of listeners and guests scheduled for later episodes - please keep the suggestions coming.

Our guest on this show is Steen Bisgaard who heads up an Australian startup developing robotic targets for training, as well as decoys and robots for use in offensive actions in the real battlefield. Steen discusses the latest developments in this field and where he thinks robots will be used in the future, either as part of the training workup or as part of a hybrid fighting force. 

This area is one to watch and we will no doubt come back to this subject in the future.

As ever, we are joined by Andy Fawkes who provides a digest of the recent modelling & simulation news, with some discussion around the more interesting topics.

• Tom Constable: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-constable/
• Colin Hillier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinhillier/

• Steen Bisgaard: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steen-bisgaard-3597b110b/

Improbable Defence is a mission focused technology company working to transform the national security of our nations and their allies in the face of increasing global competition and evolving threats.

Today, national security is defined by technological superiority. We believe that software more than any other capability will redefine how war is fought and who will be on the winning side. Those entrusted with the preservation of our freedom, prosperity and safety deserve the best software-defined capabilities available.

Since the end of the Cold War, the UK, US and their allies have been unchallenged in military technological dominance. Today, we are facing a different reality: our adversaries are seizing the technological edge.

Improbable Defence chooses to stand up and not stand by. We are building cutting-edge software products to help our nations retake the technological advantage. We believe in defending our democratic values against those who seek to undermine them. Supporting those tasked with this mission is at the heart of all we do. We seek to radically transform the mission outcomes of those whose responsibility it is to keep us safe.

• Website: https://www.warfighterpodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warfighter-digital/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgiH-cwmyc2I2Iyc8MLYtg
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarfighterPod

Andy Fawkes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfawkes/

eVTOL:

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20414-mst-building-the-evtol-training-nexus
• https://www.afrl.af.mil/News/Article/2850369/afwerx-agility-prime-a-new-era-of-aerospace/

National XR Month:

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20405-mst-us-congress-is-helping-expand-the-xr-envelope
• https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-resolution/1399/text?r=3&s=2

Operation Interflex:

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20417-australia-to-provide-critical-training-to-ukrainian-military
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Interflex

For our first episode, the Warfighter Podcast was honoured to host a real live, all-American Warfighter - Col Arnel David, US Army.

Arnel speaks about what it means to be a Warfighter, and the importance of exercising the decision making process for leaders and how this can be enabled through wargaming techniques.

Through the Fight Club initiative that Arnel is heavily involved in, he aims to increase understanding of Wargaming amongst commanders and how these techniques can be integrated within existing training structures and pipelines.

Our hosts also welcome Andy Fawkes for the first time, who provides a digest of the recent modelling & simulation news, with some discussion around the more interesting trends.

• Tom Constable: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-constable/
• Colin Hillier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinhillier/

Col Arnel David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arnel-david/

Improbable Defence is a mission focused technology company working to transform the national security of our nations and their allies in the face of increasing global competition and evolving threats.

Today, national security is defined by technological superiority. We believe that software more than any other capability will redefine how war is fought and who will be on the winning side. Those entrusted with the preservation of our freedom, prosperity and safety deserve the best software-defined capabilities available.

Since the end of the Cold War, the UK, US and their allies have been unchallenged in military technological dominance. Today, we are facing a different reality: our adversaries are seizing the technological edge.

Improbable Defence chooses to stand up and not stand by. We are building cutting-edge software products to help our nations retake the technological advantage. We believe in defending our democratic values against those who seek to undermine them. Supporting those tasked with this mission is at the heart of all we do. We seek to radically transform the mission outcomes of those whose responsibility it is to keep us safe.

• Website: https://www.warfighterpodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warfighter-digital/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgiH-cwmyc2I2Iyc8MLYtg
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarfighterPod

Andy Fawkes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfawkes/

VirTra volumetric video capture studio:

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20389-mst-virtra-introduces-realistic-3d-humans-for-training

Ex-RAF pilots and then the latest news last week from the BBC:

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20362-mst-china-headhunting-former-british-military-pilots-report
• https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-63392511

Cybersickness in XR:

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/18322-mst-limiting-cybersickness-in-extended-reality

RAF Cranwell story by Dim Jones:

• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20189-superna-petimus-we-seek-higher-things
• https://www.halldale.com/articles/20389-mst-virtra-introduces-realistic-3d-humans-for-training

Tom and Colin introduce their new Simulation & Training Podcast, discuss the motivation behind it and provide a glimpse of the subjects and people that will be covered.

The Warfighter Podcast is partnering with Military Simulation & Training (a respected industry publication) and will feature a regular slot with their Special Correspondent Andy Fawkes.

A monthly education feature will be a cornerstone of the show, which aims to demystify common concepts and terms across defence modelling and simulation, with bite-size, simple explanations.

An exciting schedule has been planned for the next few months, with no shortage of subjects in what looks to be an exciting time for the adoption of emerging technologies across the Simulation & Training space.

• Tom Constable
• Colin Hillier

• Website
• LinkedIn
• YouTube
• Twitter