WASHINGTON -- Textron Systems is working on a next-generation control station that will be able to link any and all unmanned, manned or optionally piloted systems on the battlefield.

Synturian is a family of scalable ground control technologies that use a common interface to bring multiple different unmanned platforms together across multiple domains so operators can better collaborate and disseminate information.

The mission of unmanned aircraft systems, Bill Irby, Textron's unmanned systems senior vice president and general manager, said, "is completed by carrying payloads whether it be visible, infrared, different kinds of communications payloads or weapons, for example, that is the cool part of the UAS, but at the end of the day, it's all about getting the data to the ground and proving the control of the systems to the user."

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Textron already has robust experience in designing ground control systems, particularly for the US Army that uses its Universal Ground Control Station for UAS and its One-System Remote Video Terminal, which allows for manned-unmanned teaming between Gray Eagle and Shadow and manned platforms. The UGCS was formally fielded to the first Army unit in July 2015.

The Synturian family of systems has a ground control system as well as a remote control offering and has an open architecture, Wayne Prender, Textron's unmanned systems vice president of control and surface systems, said.

"What it brings forward really is a service-oriented architecture that allows you to more rapidly integrate capabilities, more advanced platforms we are using," Prender said, "and we are designing this with future capabilities in mind such that you can literally plug-and-play new capabilities with hardware modules that literally plug into your ground control station to decrease your integration costs and times."

The system has a processing power greater than the current ground control station the Army has with a 20 percent smaller footprint and is 10 percent lighter. Synturian uses 35 percent less power which means less heat generated and has 25 percent more space for resources to plug into the processing system for future growth, Prender said.

The screen also has a "map-centric" user interface. Current control for UAS may require multiple windows and graphics, but Synturian operates from one screen, Prender noted.

"We've really streamlined our visual approach for presenting information to a user that not only makes it easier and more intuitive for one operator to operate one air vehicle, but we also now enable one operator to manage multiple air vehicles and not just air vehicles, you can manage multiple vehicles whether it be air or ground or surface," he said.

Synturian comes at a time when the Army is conceptualizing an "ecosystem" framework tying all future UAS together on the battlefield and the service has also issued a request for information this year asking for a "scalable control interface" for UAS. The interface would simplify the coordination of UAS on the battlefield and is easy to use.

Jen Judson is an award-winning journalist covering land warfare for Defense News. She has also worked for Politico and Inside Defense. She holds a Master of Science degree in journalism from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kenyon College.

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