This AI-Enabled Tech Allows Troops to See Through Walls
The Xaver 1000 is a portable scanner that allows soldiers to “see” through walls.
The device can differentiate between different sized humans, animals, and even identify body parts.
The system uses artificial intelligence to track movement patterns, giving users a leg up on enemies.
Soldiers on tomorrow’s battlefield will someday know exactly what lies behind a closed door or wall. An Israeli company has developed a device it says gives soldiers and rescuers the ability to detect people—and pets—through any wall or barrier in front of them. The device can even, thanks to AI, track a person’s movement patterns, providing crucial intel to soldiers on the other side.
One of the most ominous projections of future warfare is urban combat in “megacities,” or cities with 10 million or more inhabitants. Warfare in these areas can easily separate combat units, degrade communications, and snarl military vehicles in traffic. Armies will have to find a way to efficiently clear landmarks, buildings, sewers, and other urban terrain features, each filled with an unpredictable mix of unhappy civilians and enemy fighters.
The Xaver 1000, developed by Israel’s Camero Tech, is the latest in the company’s line of “through wall imaging systems.” The Xaver line uses millimeter wave (MMW) radar, or radar in the range of 30 - 300 gigahertz. MMW is unique in radars in being able to “see” through a variety of objects. The military uses it to see through fog, rain, smoke, and other obscurants to detect tanks and other vehicles. MMW is also used by self-driving cars to detect objects in poor weather, and by active protection systems mounted on armored vehicles to detect incoming rockets and missiles.
The Xaver 1000 uses MMW to provide a fairly high level of detail. According to Camero Tech, the device, “has the ability to distinguish whether the object is an adult, a child or an animal,” and offers “unprecedented resolution of body parts and position: sitting, standing, lying down, and the height of the live objects.” The device can also count the number of people in the room and their height and orientation.
This amount of detail can provide a lot of context to soldiers or first responders. For example, a prone person might be injured, prompting firefighters to call for a paramedic. Enemy soldiers standing by a doorway might be anticipating unfriendly visitors, while enemy troops sitting down might be unaware they are being spied on, giving those with the Xaver 1000 the element of surprise.
Here’s a company promotional video for an older version, the Xaver 100:
Camero Tech also says the portable radar can give soldiers a room’s “general layout, including dimensions and major infrastructure elements.” This can be important for planning purposes, as soldiers in an unfamiliar environment won’t have to rush into the unknown. Breachers would know where the doorways leading in and out of a room are, where possible cover might be, and what parts of a room defenders would logically concentrate in.
The infantry is typically last in receiving high tech equipment, lagging far behind items like fighter jets and tanks. Still, a system like the Xaver 1000 will eventually become standard issue for the rich armies of the West. The ability to see through walls will reduce friendly casualties and give soldiers in the already nerve-wracking world of urban combat increased confidence.
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