Roke's Dismounted Close Combat Simulator Shortens Time from Invention to Deployment

ROMSEY, England, January 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

Roke Manor Research Ltd (Roke), a Chemring Group company, has developed a portable Dismounted Close Combat (DCC) simulator which delivers the ability to evaluate future technology concepts without the need to develop costly and time consuming prototypes.

To bring new capability to the battlefield currently requires the evaluation of new technologies through expensive prototype development and time consuming live trials. The DCC simulator allows new technologies to be rapidly tested without the problems experienced in real situations, such as finding suitable safe locations or the availability of people to participate. Test results can be used to rapidly gauge the likely impact on military capability and determine if a further investment is justified.

Roke has adapted games-based technology to create rich, realistic and configurable test and evaluation environments, providing more accurate evaluation results as it can be configured for multiple scenarios, allowing real-time changes to be made, including target and weapon updates.

Jon Farrington, Consultant Engineer at Roke said: "Roke's new Dismounted Close Combat simulator will save significant costs as performing an exercise in a synthetic environment such as this is a typically tenth of the cost of a live exercise. This new approach to product assessment also offers a much safer testing environment and makes assessment of equipment in dirty or difficult situations faster and simpler in a controlled yet realistic environment."

The use of Computer Generated Forces (CGF) to fulfil key roles in the simulation exercise also reduces the need for man-power intensive exercises. The system can be used by a single user or small teams that can be engaged with the simulation from multiple viewpoints to maximise realism.

The system uses Commercial Off-The-Shelf components and open standards which allow it to be flexible in meeting future requirements. It is also easily transportable and can be deployed and operational within 60 minutes.

About Roke http://www.roke.co.uk

Roke, based in Romsey, Hampshire, is the principal electronics research and development centre of Chemring Group Plc. Founded in 1956, Roke is one of the UK's leading suppliers of innovative solutions and contract R&D, pioneering developments in electronic sensors, networks and communications technology. It employs 450 staff and has over 430 patents to its name.

About Chemring http://www.chemring.co.uk

• Chemring is a manufacturing business with facilities in eight countries selling high technology electronics and energetic products to over eighty countries.
• The Company has a diverse portfolio of products protecting military people and platforms against a constantly changing threat.
• Operating in high margin, niche markets with short product development timescales, Chemring has the agility to rapidly react to urgent customer needs.
• Chemring adopts a balanced strategy of organic growth and small bolt-on acquisitions, and maintains balanced geographic and market profiles, with a growing presence in non-NATO countries.
• Strong R&D investment for new products and improvements in technology continually allow Chemring to expand its addressable markets.