USMC Putting Prognostics in its Vehicles

EPLS(click to view full) Good car owners take their vehicle in for maintenance after a certain number of months, or a certain number of miles, whichever comes first. Depending on the vehicle’s age and mileage, the dealer’s mechanic will have a list of standard systems to check and/or replace. It’s the same for the military, with the added pressure that vehicle breakdowns in a combat zone are not acceptable. So the inspections and rebuilds take place regularly, and it’s considered better to replace a working part with a new one than risk problems later. Unless, of course, land vehicles included the same sort of proactive diagnostics (“prognostics”) that are making their way into aircraft and helicopters. Maintenance could then take place only when necessary, keeping a higher percentage of vehicles in service, saving some money, and creating faster turnaround time for real problems. That’s the aim of the US Marine Corps’ Embedded Platform Logistics System… AAV7P1 Amtracs(click to view full) In September 2007, Lockheed Martin announced a $144.8 million firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract to develop it for the Marines’ aging AAV7 Amtracs amphibious assault vehicles, its LAV wheeled APCs, and MTVR medium trucks. The system is being designed to be […]