Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Hd R&D Field Evaluation: Light Soil Sifter, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development

Global CWD Repository

The light/sandy soil sifting project is evaluating the feasibility and operational suitability of using commercial beach-cleaning technologies to remove mines and clutter from sandy and mechanically prepared soils. Demining applications envisioned for these systems are removal of mines from sandy and other light soils, raking surface soil to collect clutter, and assisting with inspection and quality assurance behind mechanical clearance equipment. Distribution Statement A: Approved for public release.

Hd R&D Field Evaluation: Traxx, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development

Global CWD Repository

Traxx is an extremely compact, remote controlled vehicle capable of working in and around slopes of up to 60 degrees. It is equipped with a variety of commercial vegetation cutting implements and custom designed mine clearing tools. At less than 1.3 tons Traxx is easily transported to remote sites and capable of climbing and working on the most challenging hillsides. The factory equipped remote control has a working range of more than 300 meters and the 1.3 meter brush cutting attachments has demonstrated excellent capability for cutting saplings and heavy brush with little residual debris. Distribution Statement A: Approved for …

Mechanical Improvised Explosive Device Removal In The Urban Environment, David Parry

Global CWD Repository

The safe removal and disposal of conventional weapons from civilian populated areas in a post conflict scenario is fraught with dangerous, complex and wide-ranging challenges. The worldwide proliferation of improvised explosive devices has added to the existing burden of landmine clearance already being undertaken by various organizations. Part of the solution to these challenges is to remove improvised explosive devices using mechanical methods to reduce the likelihood and consequence of the risks that personnel face when carrying out this extremely hazardous task.

The mechanical removal of improvised explosive devices is an emerging methodology that is based on an established model …

Performance Evaluation Test Of The Nemesis M3, Institute For Defense Analysis, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development, Office Of The Assistant Secretary Of Defense Special Operations And Low-Intensity Conflict

Global CWD Repository

In its continuing program to provide a complete size-range of area-preparation systems to the world’s humanitarian demining community, the United States Humanitarian Demining Research and Development Program, located at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia, developed a lightweight area-preparation system around the ASV Inc. SR-80 rubber-tracked crawler with a family of attachments. The system, assembled by Applied Research Associates, Inc., and named the Nemesis, is intended to cut and mulch up to Category 3 (difficult, up to 10 cm diameter trees) vegetation and to remove cutting debris. Attachments used during this evaluation test were the Bradco, Inc., Mini-Mag Mulcher Model XL 165-6; the …

Performance Evaluation Test Of The Orbit Screen Model 68a And The Komplet Model 48-25 Rock Crusher, Ida, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development, Office Of The Assistant Secretary Of Defense Special Operations And Low-Intensity Conflict

Global CWD Repository

At the request of the Demining Center of Ecuador, the U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research and Development Program at Ft. Belvoir, VA., undertook a performance evaluation of the Orbit Screen Model 68A and the Model 48-25 Rock Crusher, two pieces of equipment that could be used to remove antipersonnel land mines from riverbank minefields along the border of Ecuador and Peru. Although these devices could conceivably be used in tandem as a system, this evaluation focused on the performance potential of each unit to operate as a stand-alone system. A test was also conducted to see how long it would take …

Performance Evaluation Test Of The Peco Tracked Brush Blazer, Ida, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development, Office Of The Assistant Secretary Of Defense Special Operations And Low-Intensity Conflict

Global CWD Repository

Area preparation for demining remains one of the dangerous yet necessary tasks for organizations undertaking humanitarian demining missions. To date, the U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research and Development Program has provided a number of area preparation systems. The emphasis, however, has been on light (1–2 ton) to heavy (5–15 ton) platforms with a wide range of working attachments. There was a need for a robust, lightweight cutter to complement the heavier assets available from the U.S. Humanitarian Demining Program. One such system that appeared to be a good addition to the area preparation tools available under the U.S. program was the …

Report On The Mine Clearing Rake Test, Ida, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development, Office Of The Assistant Secretary Of Defense Special Operations And Low-Intensity Conflict

Global CWD Repository

The purpose of the operational evaluation test was to assess the ability of the mine clearing rake (MCR) to enhance the effectiveness of a humanitarian demining mission. To this end, the HD PM purchased an MCR and initiated the testing process.

Operational Demining Tasks Considered for the MCR: Based on the claims made regarding the MCR's performance, three distinct HD phases were considered for assessing the MCR's capabilities. These were the area preparation, demining, and quality assurance phases. Of the three, the area preparation and demining phases were considered poor choices for the MCR since it required driving the primary …

Operational Evaluation Test Of Mine Neutralization Systems, Ida, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development, Office Of The Assistant Secretary Of Defense Special Operations And Low-Intensity Conflict

Global CWD Repository

During the Fiscal Year 2003 Humanitarian Demining Research and Development Program Requirements Refinement Workshop, expert deminers expressed a need for a costbenefit and performance analysis for currently available deflagration (burning) and high-order (non-explosive binary mixture) mine neutralization systems, which carry fewer shipping restrictions compared with tradition explosives commonly used for mine neutralization. In response to this request, the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM) Acquisition Center-Washington, D.C., published a Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) (formerly Commerce Business Daily) announcement (solicitation number W909MY-04-T0003) on 21 January 2004 on behalf of the Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Command (CERDEC), Night Vision and Electronic Sensors …

Hd R&D Field Evaluation: Rotary Mine Comb, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development, Christopher Wanner

Global CWD Repository

This report documents the field testing of two vehicle-based, mine clearing systems both of which are based on the use of the Rotary Mine Combing Tool (RMCT). The test was designed to expand upon the body of knowledge developed by the maker of the RMCT as well as incorporate performance data related to the implementation of the tool in the two vehicles chosen to host the systems and elements of an operational concept for employment of the systems.

The Rotary Mine Comb is an innovative tool capable of gently extricating buried objects from the soil and pushing them to the …

Operational Evaluation Test Of Mine Clearing Cultivator And Mine Clearing Sifter, Institute For Defense Analysis, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development, Office Of The Assistant Secretary Of Defense Special Operations And Low-Intensity Conflict

Global CWD Repository

As the result of field experience gained in Egypt and Angola, the Humanitarian Demining Program Management Office (HDPMO) of the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM), Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center (CERDEC), Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD) undertook the design and fabrication of a heavy-soil cultivator to lift buried antitank (AT) and antipersonnel (AP) mines to the surface and move them off to the side in windrows. This unit was designated the Mine Clearing Cultivator (MCC). In addition, in 2002, the HDPMO also tested the ability of a modified agricultural sifter to remove mines from …

A Study Of Mechanical Application In Demining, Gichd

Global CWD Repository

The GICHD Study of Mechanical Application in Demining is published after two years of research. The study puts the spotlight onto the use of machines as part of worldwide efforts to clear land mines. It looks at how machines work, the physical interaction between the machine tool, the ground struck, and the effects on the mines and UXO. The main roles for machines - potential for clearance, area reduction, and ground preparation - are explained, giving a description of each methodology, and illustrating these with actual case studies from the field.

The study also deals with how machines can be …

A Study Of Mechanical Application In Demining, Gichd

Global CWD Repository

The GICHD Study of Mechanical Application in Demining is published after two years of research. The study puts the spotlight onto the use of machines as part of worldwide efforts to clear land mines. It looks at how machines work, the physical interaction between the machine tool, the ground struck, and the effects on the mines and UXO. The main roles for machines - potential for clearance, area reduction, and ground preparation - are explained, giving a description of each methodology, and illustrating these with actual case studies from the field.

The study also deals with how machines can be …

Development And Test Of The Humanitarian Demining Sifting Excavator, Christopher Wanner

Global CWD Repository

The Humanitarian Demining Sifting Excavator has been developed to address the problem of finding and clearing deeply buried, mixed minefields. The motivation for the development came from a 2002 site assessment by the team of an existing mine problem in Honduras. Areas were identified containing both antipersonnel and antitank landmines buried up to 0.5 meters in mineralized soils. Conventional mine clearing techniques employed in the areas of interest had uncovered widespread evidence of these deeply buried mines, however, these techniques were unreliable for consistently finding mines buried at these depths. The Sifting Excavator was proposed and chosen as the best …

Rhino Earth Tiller Test Report: Area Reduction In Mixed Minefields, Christopher Wanner

Global CWD Repository

The Rhino is a tracked tilling vehicle custom designed and built from the ground up. The working tiller consists of two horizontal drums, stacked one overtop of the other. The drums are studded with commercially available, asphalt shredding chisels. The lower drum counter rotates against the direction of vehicle travel, excavating soil and objects from burial depths of 25 – 35 centimeters. The excavated soil and constituent objects are carried up the face of the lower, digging drum and into the 1 to 5 centimeter gap between the lower and upper drums. The chisels on the two drums mesh with …

The Severe Duty Vegetation Shredder Technical Testing Of Capability, Christopher Wanner

Global CWD Repository

The Severe Duty Vegetation Shredder (SDVS) is designed to safely remove this obstacle to demining by opening up the general accessibility of a mined area, reducing the impediments to sweeping with hand held mine detectors, improving the deminer’s visibility of the threat, reducing the risk to the deminer by eliminating the hazardous process of going into the minefield on foot to clear brush, and by reducing the need for hauling away residual cut vegetation. The SDVS was designed and built by Israel Aircraft Industries Ramta Division. The prototype unit was delivered in December 2001 and a variety of tests were …

Tractor Accessorized Zerriest Series Ii, U.S. Humanitarian Demining Research And Development

Global CWD Repository

The TAZ II is a large tracked Caterpillar Graphic 1 – TAZ II Corporation vehicle (325B L Excavator) with a specialized vegetation cutting attachment developed by Timberline Environmental Services. See graphic 1. Timberline Environmental Services has been involved in vegetation clearance for nearly 23 years, supporting both civilian and military organizations. Military support missions have dealt primarily with unexploded ordnance (UXO). By utilizing the Caterpillar base carrier, the TAZ II System has the worldwide product support of the Caterpillar Corporation. The system is capable of masticating all vegetation ranging from light grasses to large trees, as well as excavating the …

Improved Anti-Personnel Mine Neutralization Device Test Report, Christopher Wanner

Global CWD Repository

This report describes the results and analysis of the field test of the Improved Anti Personnel Mine Neutralization Device (APMINUD). This is the second test of this equipment and follows a six month design and engineering effort on the equipment to correct and improve upon deficiencies identified in the initial version of the APMINUD.

The APMINUD is a mechanical tool designed to safely detonate antipersonnel landmines as part of a peace time clearance operation. The APMINUD consists of a mobile blast and fragment containment shell, with a mechanical striker inside. It can be used in conjunction with a shielded, all …

Humanitarian Demining Technology Program Antipersonnel Mine Neutralization Device Test Report, Christopher Wanner

Global CWD Repository

The Antipersonnel Mine Neutralization Device (APMINUD) is a mechanical system for safely detonating Antipersonnel mines as part of a peace time mine clearance operation. It is intended to be used in conjunction with a shielded, all terrain vehicle with hydraulic crane. The system would be used to neutralize previously marked AP mines by detonating them one at a time.

The plunger inside the APMINUD is designed to strike the ground when released by the operator. An expendable foot on the plunger applies approximately two tons of impact force over a 10" diameter area when released. The impact force pushes the …