The Army is working to develop training and simulation software that can see inside buildings, which the service has dubbed "Google Earth on steroids."
According to National Defense magazine, the effort is part of a broader plan to create a Synthetic Training Environment for soldiers.
Jason Knowles, the director of geospatial science and technology at the University of Southern California's Institute for Creative Technology, is working in concert with the Army. According to National Defense, he introduced the project at the ITEC conference in Stockholm, Sweden, earlier this month.
Knowles said the data set being developed is affectionately known as "Google Earth on steroids."
He explained how the team was able to create a digital image of a compound within an hour using commercially available software and a drone.
"We were able to throw that UAS up, capture that in an hour, put it on the laptop, process it, and push it out," he said. "The ability to have an individual or a squad go out, collect their own organic 3D model for ingesting into their modeling and simulation is huge for us."
He added, "The interior of buildings are now being fused and snapped inside of that 3D model. … That's obviously very useful for operators."
The military is constantly working on the next generation of equipment for soldiers, sailors, and airmen of the future, including exoskeletons, drones the size of bugs, and materials for aircraft that are invisible to radar.
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