Request for materials for university paper about military tank simulators

rbakerj · 02-06-11, 06:00 PM

Hi Everyone,
I am new to this group. I am attending Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, Michigan for their Manufacturing Systems for the Defense Industry graduate certificate. Five classes, we are in the first two: Defense Logistics and Contracting (5503) and a simulation class (5603). In 5503 our teacher gave a lecture about "Army 101" and we had a retired one-star general come and give a lecture at our last class. In the first class for 5603 we talked about the history of wargaming. As an Army vet I had to pinch myself I wasn't dreaming about all of this.

We have to do a paper in 5603 about any topic in military simulation (pinch). I would like to do mine about the evolution of the military tank simulator.. that is, not the PC-based games that are popular, but the sit-in simulators that tankers actually train on. I would also like to compare the state-of-the-art in various other countries (European, Chinese, Indian, Russian, etc.) to the US. I would really appreciate any articles and such that you can suggest to me that I can reference. I was even able to glean some facts from this show:
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/mili...ator-video.htm

ZeeWolf · 02-06-11, 06:14 PM

Welcome aboard rbakerj

ZeeWolf

Lieste · 02-06-11, 09:21 PM

There is some overlap - many cost concious militaries augment their limited availability of formal 'Rayethon style' containerised simulators, and on-vehicle simulators with classroom simulators such as SteelBeasts Pro.

Some European Nations use SB Pro in a 'proper' sit-in cabinet for their tank crew trainer. (I'll try to find links to the relevant paper/article describing this use if no one else has posted first).

One advantage is that company or battalion wide scenarios can be performed with reasonable fidelity, for less than the cost of a single 'formal' simulator - particularly with the desktop implementation. The lower initial cost, and shorter lead time also allows the computers used to be 'normal' mid level PCs, running standard operating systems, and to have much better levels of visual accuracy and detail in the tactical presentation than the (I presume) ageing fleet of 'million dollar' boxes.

A design choice was made to limit the use of sensitive data within SB - so it will not exactly reproduce what the Rheinmetal or Rayethon simulators will do for their single vehicle simulator, but the results are plausible, well within the 'accuracy' levels of NTC/Miles or other abstracted rules for real-world training (eg the gunnery tables exposure times rules, hits required per kill etc). It does allow a 'personal edition' to be made available (with certain restrictions on connection limits, and simplification of some functions), which can be used by vehicle crews for 'at-home' or 'out of the classroom' study, and as a commercial 'entertainment' product - using classified data would make this impracticable or impossible.

Only my opinions, and observations - they could be based on out-of-date information, or flawed reasoning... but there is a perception that big $ == better result, and this may not be realised in practice.
Certainly some people see the benefit of the low-cost trainer as an additional tool.

Skybird · 02-07-11, 02:54 PM

Check this interview I did with the technical director of eSim in Spring 2006, there he says some things on the professional side of business.

http://www.tanksim.com/topic15_sbp_interview.htm

And these:

http://www.armedforces-int.com/categ...simulation.asp
http://www.armedforces-int.com/categ...-simulator.asp

And this was eSim's official video for the ITEC exhibition 2010, where they advertised for the military and professional customers:

02-06-11, 06:00 PM	#1
rbakerj Nub Join Date: Feb 2011 Posts: 2 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Request for materials for university paper about military tank simulators Hi Everyone, I am new to this group. I am attending Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, Michigan for their Manufacturing Systems for the Defense Industry graduate certificate. Five classes, we are in the first two: Defense Logistics and Contracting (5503) and a simulation class (5603). In 5503 our teacher gave a lecture about "Army 101" and we had a retired one-star general come and give a lecture at our last class. In the first class for 5603 we talked about the history of wargaming. As an Army vet I had to pinch myself I wasn't dreaming about all of this. We have to do a paper in 5603 about any topic in military simulation (pinch). I would like to do mine about the evolution of the military tank simulator.. that is, not the PC-based games that are popular, but the sit-in simulators that tankers actually train on. I would also like to compare the state-of-the-art in various other countries (European, Chinese, Indian, Russian, etc.) to the US. I would really appreciate any articles and such that you can suggest to me that I can reference. I was even able to glean some facts from this show: http://videos.howstuffworks.com/mili...ator-video.htm

02-07-11, 02:54 PM	#4
Skybird Soaring Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: the mental asylum named Germany Posts: 40,486 Downloads: 9 Uploads: 0	Check this interview I did with the technical director of eSim in Spring 2006, there he says some things on the professional side of business. http://www.tanksim.com/topic15_sbp_interview.htm And these: http://www.armedforces-int.com/categ...simulation.asp http://www.armedforces-int.com/categ...-simulator.asp And this was eSim's official video for the ITEC exhibition 2010, where they advertised for the military and professional customers: __________________ If you feel nuts, consult an expert.

02-06-11, 06:14 PM	#2
ZeeWolf Sea Lord Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: The Great NorthWest Posts: 1,724 Downloads: 58 Uploads: 1	Welcome aboard rbakerj ZeeWolf

02-06-11, 09:21 PM	#3
Lieste Soundman Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 142 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	There is some overlap - many cost concious militaries augment their limited availability of formal 'Rayethon style' containerised simulators, and on-vehicle simulators with classroom simulators such as SteelBeasts Pro. Some European Nations use SB Pro in a 'proper' sit-in cabinet for their tank crew trainer. (I'll try to find links to the relevant paper/article describing this use if no one else has posted first). One advantage is that company or battalion wide scenarios can be performed with reasonable fidelity, for less than the cost of a single 'formal' simulator - particularly with the desktop implementation. The lower initial cost, and shorter lead time also allows the computers used to be 'normal' mid level PCs, running standard operating systems, and to have much better levels of visual accuracy and detail in the tactical presentation than the (I presume) ageing fleet of 'million dollar' boxes. A design choice was made to limit the use of sensitive data within SB - so it will not exactly reproduce what the Rheinmetal or Rayethon simulators will do for their single vehicle simulator, but the results are plausible, well within the 'accuracy' levels of NTC/Miles or other abstracted rules for real-world training (eg the gunnery tables exposure times rules, hits required per kill etc). It does allow a 'personal edition' to be made available (with certain restrictions on connection limits, and simplification of some functions), which can be used by vehicle crews for 'at-home' or 'out of the classroom' study, and as a commercial 'entertainment' product - using classified data would make this impracticable or impossible. Only my opinions, and observations - they could be based on out-of-date information, or flawed reasoning... but there is a perception that big $ == better result, and this may not be realised in practice. Certainly some people see the benefit of the low-cost trainer as an additional tool.