One-Shot Sniper System

April 1, 2013

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded Cubic Defense Applications, the defense systems business of Cubic Corporation, a $6 million contract to develop the next generation (XG) of the One Shot crosswind and range measurement system. The technology will provide ballistic aim point offsets in the shooter’s riflescope sight. The fielddeployable system is compact enough to have the option of mounting on the rifle or the spotter-scope, enabling military snipers to rapidly hit their targets at maximum effective ranges and under crosswind conditions.

A US Army (USA) soldier assigned to A/Company, 2-504th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 82nd Airborne Division, sights through the scope attached to his 7.62mm M21 sniper rifle during a search and destroy mission in the mountains of Adi Ghar, Afghanistan, during Operation Mongoose.

Cubic, the prime contractor for the DARPA One Shot XG program, has partnered with Trex Enterprises, also of San Diego, to develop and test a prototype system that, if successful, could deliver ten additional systems within fifteen months. Trex will develop the crosswind measurement algorithm, which is the fundamental key to the success of the program.

“If military snipers could neutralize enemy targets with a single round, they could potentially save many lives,” said Steve Sampson, vice president of Advanced Programs for Cubic Defense Applications. “One Shot XG seeks to allow our snipers to immediately obtain downrange crosswind, direction, and range-to-target to provide ballistic corrections.

“The No. 1 error among our snipers is not being able to accurately measure downrange cross wind profile between the shooter and the target. The technology that Cubic is helping to develop under this program aims to do that within seconds.”

Cubic has many years of experience in developing and manufacturing size, weight, and power (SWAP)-friendly electrooptical systems for U.S. and allied forces. Every soldier in the U.S. Army learns to shoot and maneuver using Cubic’s MILES systems during force-on-force training exercises. U.S. Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps personnel have also trained with Cubic engagement systems.

Cubic previously received DARPA funding to develop a two-way optical communication system called Dynamical Optical Tags (DOTs), which led to the delivery of retro reflection tags and laser interrogators. Cubic is currently a subcontractor for the EXACTO guided .50 caliber bullet, another DARPA program.

Using IR&D funds, Cubic also developed DCID-TALON (Dismounted Combat Identification with Target and Location Navigation), a multifunction system featuring two-way optical communication. DCID-TALON improves situational awareness within a combat scope. The technology instantly identifies friendly forces and determines target grid coordinates, which are displayed within the sight of the scope. The all-optical system can also be configured for information-sharing in network- centric combat environments. The experience developed in DOTs, EXACTO, DCID-TALON, and MILES led Cubic to the award of the next-generation DARPA sniper program.