Challenges

Soldiers and other members of the US Armed Forces face many challenges in performing their diverse missions. The ISN was established to address many of these challenges through the targeted application of cutting-edge research and engineering, and through the efficient transitioning of promising results of that work.

 

Military threats include blast and ballistic impacts, chemical and biological weapons, radiological and other hazardous materials, directed energy weapons, nuclear devices, and electronic and cyber warfare.

Beyond these threats, warfighters must function in varied climates and weather conditions, and in environments ranging from remote wilderness to densely populated cities. These conditions and venues present risks of personal injury and illness, significantly exacerbating already complex military challenges.

Clothing, equipage, and platforms must provide high functionality while minimizing their size, weight, power demand, and cost (SWAP-C).

The breadth and depth of these challenges is documented in the following Army Modernization Priorities, each now one of the Cross-Functional Teams that help make up the US Army Futures Command:

  • Long-Range Precision Fires
  • Next Generation of Combat Vehicles
  • Future Vertical Lift Platforms
  • Army Network
    • Network Command, Control, Communications and Intelligence
    • Assured Position Navigation and Timing
  • Air and Missile Defense Capabilities
  • Soldier Lethality
    • Soldier Lethality
    • Synthetic Training Environment

ISN research seeks to address each of these challenges with the exception of Synthetic Training Environment.