US Navy EOD Group 3 in action (via US Navy)
US Navy EOD (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) teams have proven indispensable on the battlefield and rightfully so as the military has seen an increased use of IEDs since the war on terror began. In order to combat the unseen threat of IEDs, land mines and other explosives (both water and land based) these teams employ the latest in high-tech gear. Among their arsenal of gear include portable/foldable mine detectors (from CEIA) that are capable of discriminating metal casings even in metal-laden soil, an Ahura/Polychromix (now known as FirstDefender RM) spectroanalyzer that uses a laser to identify the chemical makeup of explosive materials and a Humvee-mounted ZEUS-HLONS (Laser Ordinance Neutralization System) solid-state laser capable of destroying surface mines and IEDs from a considerable distance are among the most notable used in-theater at this time.
Of course, robots also play an important role in the EOD teams as well with the QinetiQ TALON and the iRobot X700 as the more notable of the ROVs used today. These robots are typically used to unearth explosive devices and then disarm or detonate them, which keep the soldiers out of harm’s way. Mobile devices such as toughened laptops, smartphones and tablets are also utilized but the mission-specific detailed data collected by EOD groups are not exactly compatible with other government entities who analyze the specific data. However that could soon change as the Naval Surface Warfare Center Indian Head Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technology Division has recently sent out a request to both government and private companies to develop mobile apps that can be used in the field on low-powered mobile platforms and transmit data in almost real-time to analysts overseas. The analyzed data helps in identifying and potentially locating the explosives manufacturer, which is of incredible importance as that person/s, can be either arrested or neutralized thereby reducing the number of IEDs in-country (that’s the idea anyway). Some of the more notable companies the Navy has contacted include the Federal Informatics Corporation, Indigo Intelligence and Leviathan Technologies, all of which include specializing in secure government software. The general public will probably never know if and when EOD units will be outfitted with the new apps (due to OPSEC) but one thing is for certain, it will allow those units to perform their jobs more efficiently.
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