(July 31, 2023) More than 100 Soldiers field-tested and experimented with military technology at the most recent Driving Innovation in Realistic Training (DIRT) Days 23-02 event at the Civil-Military Innovation Institute’s (CMI2) Adaptive Experimentation Facility in Fola, WV, July 21 and 22, 2023.
The event was the third DIRT Days iteration in the past 12 months, presented in partnership with the US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Army Research Laboratory and the West Virginia Army National Guard. DD 23-02 was the second time a DIRT Days event engaged Soldiers from the West Virginia Army National Guard (WVARNG).
The training event included the following organizations:
- 863rd Military Police Company
- 82nd Airborne Division (Gainey Company)
- Picatinny Arsenal (an internationally acknowledged hub for advancing armament technologies and engineering innovation)
The 863rd Military Police Company completed its 2023 Annual Training while participating in the DIRT Days event. They collaborated with the CMI2 team to create a realistic and challenging training event focused on Mobility Support and Site Security operations.
“The CMI2 staff has been very accommodating,” said Captain Sebastian Clark, 863rd Company Commander. “This site has provided very good training to the young and even older Soldiers who have never been in a true field environment. CMI2 provides a facility where Soldiers can be more flexible.”
VIDEO
Video created by SGT Davis Rohrer, 153rd Public Affairs Det., West Virginia National Guard.
A critical component of the DIRT Days initiative is the testing and experimentation of Soldier driving innovations. Specifically, a prototype tested in Fola during DIRT Days 23-002 included the Firing Robotic Dog developed through Gainey Company and Picatinny Arsenal, who initially came to work on another project.
The event allowed academic research partners to observe additional experimentation, including:
- Malicious Device Detection – Pathfinder Pilot Project – The malicious device detection is a tool developed by researchers from Marshall University and the University of Alabama Huntsville to detect if an electronic device has been tampered with by leveraging machine learning technology and various sensors. With current technology, this task is widely considered possible only if there’s 100% trust in all aspects of the supply chain.
- C-Wire Placement Tool – ATIC/DIRT Lab Collaboration with Vanderbilt University – The c-wire placement tool is a hand device developed by Vanderbilt faculty to assist Soldiers in placing concertina wire without directly handling the wire.
- THRILLs Millimeter-Wave (mmWave) – DEVCOM Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Center (C5ISR) – THRILLs mmWave is an advanced communication radio designed for a connected battlefield that utilizes advanced radio transmitters to provide high bandwidth communications to Soldiers and machines on the battlefield for Multi Domain Operations.
About the Photos:
Members of the West Virginia National Guard participate in DIRT Days hosted by the Civil-Military Innovation Institute held at the CMI2 Adaptive Experimentation Facility in Fola, West Virginia, July 21, 2023. DIRT Days is a multi-day training event that engages ground-level Guard personnel in the hands-on field testing of innovative and emerging technologies from universities and commercial vendors as a part of the U.S. Army’s Catalyst Pathfinder program. Through real-world force-on-force scenario exercise, DIRT Days provides technology developers with feedback and design modification suggestions from the ultimate end-users, which is critical in rapidly developing technologies for a modern-day battlefield. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Edwin L. Wriston)
