Ukraine is fielding machine-gun turrets remotely controlled by the Steam
Deck video game system made for playing Halo
Business Insider

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/ukraine-is-fielding-machine-gun-turrets-remotely-controlled-by-the-steam-deck-video-game-system-made-for-playing-halo/ar-AA1qgIrv?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=6f8d8289dd614154a5cd711960320a3f&ei=91

Ukraine is using Steam Decks to control remote turret guns on the
battlefield.
Steam Deck is a popular platform used for playing video games.
A video shared online shows the device in action.

Ukraine appears to be using a very popular video game system for an
unusual purpose: remotely controlling gun turrets.

The use of the Steam Deck platform to control the unmanned machine-gun
systems highlights the continued influence of modern technologies in the Ukraine war, something also evident in the prevalence of drones.

It also highlights the tendency to employ systems in ways outside of
what they were intended to do, as is the case here.

Ukraine's United24 Media, a government-run platform, shared a video of Ukrainian soldiers using the Steam Deck system to remotely control guns
on social media over the weekend.

The video notes that the remote-controlled gun turrets, the ShaBlya
system which was developed by Ukrainian engineers and approved for use
and mass production earlier this year, are one of the first "robots" on
the front lines, designed to hold, target, and fire machine guns.

The gun turret also has a thermal imager and wide-field cameras for
locating targets, and it can fire out to a distance of just over three
miles, according to United24.

Footage of the turret being used in combat shows it being controlled by portable Steam Deck systems, video game platforms made by Valve that are
used to play popular games such as the classic "Halo" series, "Elden
Ring," and "Stardew Valley." Steam Decks are relatively new handheld
gaming devices, but they have become popular for their portability and
the variety of games that are available on the Steam store.

But there are apparently other features, ones that the Ukrainians have
figured out how to exploit. Reports of the Steam Deck being used in
combat have been circulating since last year.

The use of these systems to control remotely operated gun turrets, as United24's video notes, speaks to the significant use of a variety of
different technologies in this war, especially when it comes to robots
and drones.

Both sides of the war have seen soldiers remotely controlling unmanned
systems on the battlefield. First-person-view drones are constantly
harassing vehicles and troops, naval drones have been sinking warships
in the Black Sea, reconnaissance drones direct strikes, and long-range
drones have been used for deep strikes.

There are a variety of benefits to remotely controlled systems. They can
keep troops away from the fighting, potentially saving lives, and they
offer a mix of tools to locate and target enemies.

The development of this technology is fast moving. Both Russia and
Ukraine, especially in drone warfare, are racing to make advances in a
sort of arms race against one another. One recent example is Russia's
use of wired drones to mitigate the effects of signal jamming on
unmanned systems and drones.

--
I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
dirty old man.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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On 9/10/2024 2:56 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

On Mon, 9 Sep 2024 18:52:24 -0700, Dimensional Traveler
<dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:

Ukraine is fielding machine-gun turrets remotely controlled by the Steam
Deck video game system made for playing Halo
Business Insider

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/ukraine-is-fielding-machine-gun-turrets-remotely-controlled-by-the-steam-deck-video-game-system-made-for-playing-halo/ar-AA1qgIrv?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=6f8d8289dd614154a5cd711960320a3f&ei=91

Ukraine is using Steam Decks to control remote turret guns on the
battlefield.
Steam Deck is a popular platform used for playing video games.
A video shared online shows the device in action.

Ukraine appears to be using a very popular video game system for an
unusual purpose: remotely controlling gun turrets.

It seems a good use of the hardware. The SteamDeck comes with built-in controllers, a good screen, a reasonably powerful processor, and
internet connectivity. You can install Linux on it, it is more
portable (and easier to pull out and start using) than a laptop, and
is fairly robust. Oh, and it's easily available and reasonably
inexpensive, as opposed to something purpose built for the task.

But it's actually not that uncommon for militaries to use gaming
hardware. Gamepads are increasingly used as the interface for their
various bits of kit, from bomb-disposal robots to drone aircraft to submarines. Sometimes they are legitimate off-the-shelf game console controllers! And why not? There's been a lot of research and
development into making the devices comfortable to use in a variety of situations, from racing games to flight sims to shooters. Plus, thanks
to five decades of video-gaming, pretty much everybody of age in the
military knows how to use one.

The surprise isn't that Ukraine is using a SteamDeck. The surprise is
that more militaries aren't. I suspect as handheld gaming PCs become
more common (e.g., the ROG Ally and Lenovo Legion) we'll see them
integrated into all sorts of industries, just because they are such a convenient form factor.

That said, the first thing that came to mind when reading the article
was: didn't they have something similar in the movie "Aliens"? I
recall they controlled the things with some sort of chunky hand-held
device with a screen showing what the robot was shooting at. Or maybe
it was some other sci-fi movie. But the _concept_ isn't really that
unique, even if the hardware itself is only now getting down to
commodity levels.

The usual reason why more military forces don't use off-the-shelf
civilian gear is the military usually want's them to be more durable,
have a wider range of temperatures they can operate at, EMP resistant frequently, waterproof and so on. That's why you get $500 dollar ash
trays, they are designed to break without leaving sharp edges that can
cut and injure personnel as the pieces fly around in a battle.

--
I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
dirty old man.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)

Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
say:

On Mon, 9 Sep 2024 18:52:24 -0700, Dimensional Traveler
<dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:

Ukraine is fielding machine-gun turrets remotely controlled by the Steam >>Deck video game system made for playing Halo
Business Insider

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/ukraine-is-fielding-machine-gun-turrets-remotely-controlled-by-the-steam-deck-video-game-system-made-for-playing-halo/ar-AA1qgIrv?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=6f8d8289dd614154a5cd711960320a3f&ei=91

Ukraine is using Steam Decks to control remote turret guns on the >>battlefield.
Steam Deck is a popular platform used for playing video games.
A video shared online shows the device in action.

Ukraine appears to be using a very popular video game system for an
unusual purpose: remotely controlling gun turrets.

It seems a good use of the hardware. The SteamDeck comes with built-in >controllers, a good screen, a reasonably powerful processor, and
internet connectivity. You can install Linux on it, it is more
portable (and easier to pull out and start using) than a laptop, and
is fairly robust. Oh, and it's easily available and reasonably
inexpensive, as opposed to something purpose built for the task.

But it's actually not that uncommon for militaries to use gaming
hardware. Gamepads are increasingly used as the interface for their
various bits of kit, from bomb-disposal robots to drone aircraft to >submarines. Sometimes they are legitimate off-the-shelf game console >controllers! And why not? There's been a lot of research and
development into making the devices comfortable to use in a variety of >situations, from racing games to flight sims to shooters. Plus, thanks
to five decades of video-gaming, pretty much everybody of age in the
military knows how to use one.

The surprise isn't that Ukraine is using a SteamDeck. The surprise is
that more militaries aren't. I suspect as handheld gaming PCs become
more common (e.g., the ROG Ally and Lenovo Legion) we'll see them
integrated into all sorts of industries, just because they are such a >convenient form factor.

That said, the first thing that came to mind when reading the article
was: didn't they have something similar in the movie "Aliens"? I
recall they controlled the things with some sort of chunky hand-held
device with a screen showing what the robot was shooting at. Or maybe
it was some other sci-fi movie. But the _concept_ isn't really that
unique, even if the hardware itself is only now getting down to
commodity levels.

They didn't have robots in Aliens.

They did have auto-firing guns that fired at movement, but as I recall
all they had was a remote camera from them and a counter for ammo
remaining, no actual control whatsoever remotely.
It was a fire and forget type gun to guard an approach after all.
They fired on motion, any motion.

Xocyll

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)

On 13/09/2024 01:46, Dimensional Traveler wrote:

The usual reason why more military forces don't use off-the-shelf
civilian gear is the military usually want's them to be more durable,
have a wider range of temperatures they can operate at, EMP resistant frequently, waterproof and so on.  That's why you get $500 dollar ash
trays, they are designed to break without leaving sharp edges that can
cut and injure personnel as the pieces fly around in a battle.

Basically yes, your average bit of military kit is designed to operate
in far harsher environments than your average commercial kit would
stand. They also have obsolescence rules that are just hard to met
without custom built equipment where you can bake a long term plan into
them. That doesn't mean commercial kit doesn't have its place but
instead it's just rather context sensitive.

Oh and of course there is the habit of this is built robustly so it
doesn't matter how you look after it. So a story one of ours guys told
us when when he was supporting an army exercise. He saw a solider who
thought I can't be bothered to find a hammer so I'll use one of the
nice, and expensive, radios to hammer the tent pegs in instead.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)

On Thu, 12 Sep 2024 17:46:48 -0700, Dimensional Traveler
<dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:

The usual reason why more military forces don't use off-the-shelf
civilian gear is the military usually want's them to be more durable,
have a wider range of temperatures they can operate at, EMP resistant >frequently, waterproof and so on. That's why you get $500 dollar ash
trays, they are designed to break without leaving sharp edges that can
cut and injure personnel as the pieces fly around in a battle.

The image of soldiers having a smoke and caring that the ashes land in
an ashtray with one hand and shooting with the other is entertaining
in itself.

Besides, it would make me uneasy to know my freedoms were purportedly
being protected by any military too stupid to realize that a $4
ashtray made of fiberglass or many other flameproof/shatterproof
materials would work just as well there.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)

On 9/15/2024 8:39 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

On Sun, 15 Sep 2024 09:32:56 +0100, JAB <noway@nochance.com> wrote:

Oh and of course there is the habit of this is built robustly so it
doesn't matter how you look after it. So a story one of ours guys told
us when when he was supporting an army exercise. He saw a solider who
thought I can't be bothered to find a hammer so I'll use one of the
nice, and expensive, radios to hammer the tent pegs in instead.

I mean, if they want indestructible then Ukraine ought to be looking
at Gameboy's as their controllers...

That would fail the "has to actually do something useful" criteria. :P

--
I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
dirty old man.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)

Rin Stowleigh <rstowleigh@x-nospam-x.com> looked up from reading the
entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
say:

On Thu, 12 Sep 2024 17:46:48 -0700, Dimensional Traveler
<dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:

The usual reason why more military forces don't use off-the-shelf
civilian gear is the military usually want's them to be more durable,
have a wider range of temperatures they can operate at, EMP resistant >>frequently, waterproof and so on. That's why you get $500 dollar ash >>trays, they are designed to break without leaving sharp edges that can
cut and injure personnel as the pieces fly around in a battle.

The image of soldiers having a smoke and caring that the ashes land in
an ashtray with one hand and shooting with the other is entertaining
in itself.

Besides, it would make me uneasy to know my freedoms were purportedly
being protected by any military too stupid to realize that a $4
ashtray made of fiberglass or many other flameproof/shatterproof
materials would work just as well there.

This is the military procurement known for $640 toilet seats after all.

They never, ever, ever spend less when they can spend more then ask for
a bigger budget next year.

Xocyll

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)