The Army on Sept. 29 chose nine teams to participate in ground tests of sensors and sensor suites designed to help helicopter pilots see through degraded visual environments (DVE), a leading contributor to rotorcraft accidents and reduced operational effectiveness, the Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (AMRDEC) said.

Testing is planned during January and February 2015 at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz.

AMRDEC defines DVE as reduced visibility of potentially varying degree, where situational awareness and aircraft control cannot be maintained as comprehensively as in normal visual meteorological conditions and can potentially be lost.

DVE can be categorized as smoke, fog, rain, darkness and the “brownout,” or obscuring dust cloud caused by the downwash of a helicopter’s rotor system.

AMRDEC, part of the Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (REDCOM), will oversee ground-based testing of two systems being developed under the DVE Mitigation Program-one from the Sierra Nevada Corp. (SNC) and a second from CERDEC’s Night Vision Electronic Sensor Directorate and Arete.

Testing was also opened up to DoD, industry and academic partners interested in participating at their own expense to permit the Army to see other potential solutions for DVE mitigation as well as allow as many as possible to gain relevant data for their system or systems.

Seven teams were selected to participate including Honeywell [HON], Near Earth Autonomy, General Electric [GE], Telephonics, Rockwell Collins [COL] and two teams from Lockheed Martin [LMT].

The tests will demonstrate various technologies, including LIDAR, Long-Wavelength Infrared, Millimeter Wave Radar, and Millimeter Wave Infrared.

For the tests, each system will be mounted on an elevated platform, observing multiple obstacle fields at several distances with various obstacles strategically positioned throughout each field to provide the maximum variety of perspectives for the sensors to witness, AMRDEC said. A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter will fly over the test site, creating a dust cloud to create the brownout situation, which the sensors will have to look through.

The DVE Mitigation Program aims to explore and test a variety of technological solutions to find out what works the best and to inform acquisition officials. In addition to sensors, the Army is looking to flight control systems and cueing systems as part of a three-pronged approach.