DSDTCoP – Flare Investigation Task – Asset Tracking

Background

The field of Digital Twins as a whole holds incredible possibilities within the entire defence landscape.

In the case of air countermeasures – specifically flares – the ability for them to provide a decoy is a well-established concept and has been in service in the RAF since the 1960s with the Vulcan bomber. Not only is it relevant for today as a countermeasure, it will also be relevant for the foreseeable future.

Digital simulations and representations of flares systems have the potential to provide the MOD with an improved design, test, evaluation and through life support capability for its countermeasure assets. MOD have selected five topics for the Digital Twin Community of Practice to help them understand new approaches.

 Asset Tracking

What are we looking for? – An overall improvement to the current inventory and storage management systems, assessing the ability to digitalise some of the currently manual processes for asset management (recording usage of the items e.g. hours flown, what platform etc.) and to provide, if possible, a “cradle to grave” management system.

Technical description – A countermeasures “life” ends when whichever lifing category is reached first.  Each CM has agreed figures for each of the lifing categories which are signed off by the design authority (Chemring CM) and there may be different limits for the same CM on different aircraft and different limits for the same CM in different locations on the aircraft. The lifing categories are established through design/testing and often additional testing activity following a period of service. Each CM’s limitations are recorded on the Certificate of Design issued by the design authority and are reflected in safety and operational documents.