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SUROB: The Marines’ New Technology

Watch this video to see the Marine Corps Surf Observation (SUROB) Tool in action at TCE 24.2. The new tech fuses real-time data from wave and current models with on-the-ground observations; delivers critical, real-time intel on breaking waves, water depths, currents, and more; and empowers Marines to make lightning-fast decisions for safer and more effective amphibious operations.

Topics:
Defense Test & Measurement

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    Transcript

    00:00:01 the naval research laboratory recently participated in an event called tce hosted in Camp Pendleton California tce uh this is 24.2 is the technical concept experiment uh it is a Showcase of a lot of really great technologies that the Marines um can use in the expeditionary Warfare and so our job and our objective of our project here um is the surf observation tool accurate surf

    00:00:28 observations are crucial for marine as they ensure safe and efficient Landings during amphibious operations the traditional way of taking a surf observation is a marine going out to the beach grabbing a pen and paper and sitting there and Counting 100 waves back to back and not only counting the waves we have to kind of estimate how tall they are but today that timec

    00:00:50 consuming process is being assisted by Advanced Technologies the modern surf observation tool developed in a Joint Forces project by the US Naval research laboratory and the US Corp of Engineers combin several Innovative systems to streamline the process and provide real-time precise data for amphibious operations so what we do is we have two different hardware systems um one is the

    00:01:14 loral Imaging system the system was developed out of the Army Corps engineering research and development center this is a a UAV an unmanned aerial vehicle that will basically fly over the surf zone so it can extract not only waves and currents that are occurring in real time but also depth we also have the loral lens and the loral lens is a uh stereo camera system that

    00:01:37 sets out on a tripod you put it right on the beach and it will measure and use uh specialized algorithms to extract out wave heights and currents so that data gets sent back through a specialized messaging system called AI to Ops and that will get sent back to a hub on the beach and then from that Hub is where we will run the models and we will integrate those observations into the

    00:02:02 model forecasts so you get a better estimation of what the surf conditions are and how they may change in the future and so all of that information comes back into one place Marines can then view it on their specialized tablet where they see all of that information and can make informed decisions about operational missions so I like to think of it you

    00:02:24 know an experienced Waterman can walk up to the surf zone a surfer he knows exactly where to paddle out he know knows where the just by looking at the surf he knows exactly where the currents are flowing where the biggest waves are where the large where the smallest waves are what we wanted to do was effectively digitize a surfer's brain so we wanted to provide new tools that allow the

    00:02:45 Marines to do this without having to send a person onto the beach to make those assessments before they bring the vessels ashore so the way that we envision uh the tal lens being used is as a a digital Marine uh to help augment the work that they're currently ly doing so it's extremely satisfying to actually get the product out in the hands of the war Fighters and actually see them

    00:03:07 excited about using this new technology uh we're really excited to see where it's going to go in the future by putting this new surf observation tool to the test during tce 24.2 NRL provided a vital opportunity for real-time feedback allowing the team to make improvements on the spot the event was a critical milestone in the development of this technology ensuring it is ready for

    00:03:30 operational use I've seen it firsthand where we would make a suggestion like hey it would look a little bit better with this on the screen and the next day I we come out to see it to fruition on the screen one of the key things that I always point out to technical performers who are developing Technologies I want them to fail early and maybe even often so that we identify the problems so that

    00:03:57 we can learn from it now instead of the failure happening during the operation uh as opposed to this is an opportunity to improve and uh succeed in the future and it's important for our war fighters to know that this all came about because a marine asked us for it it's as simple as that Tech Solutions exist so that any sailor in the fleet and any Marine in the force can come to

    00:04:27 us with their problems that they're experiencing any problem problems that they have that they think technology might be able to help with or even if they have their own ideas for solutions that they've been thinking about and they just need some S&T some science and technology expertise to help them with they can come to Tech Solutions and we'll take that problem statement and

    00:04:46 we'll try to go out and find a developer that can turn that into a prototype solution in 12 months or less at the core of this Innovation is the collaboration between NRL the Army Corps of Engineers and the Marines driven by real world needs the modern surf observation tool is a testament to nrl's commitment to Turning ideas into practical tools that enhance Mission

    00:05:10 Readiness and Battlefield performance the main motivation that I find is to take an idea and turn it into a functioning tool that will be used by uh other people and that's what we do at NRL