Defence CRC - Trusted Autonomous Systems - Sydney

Tuesday, 5 September 2017 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm (AEST)

Harricks Auditorium, 8 Thomas Street, Chatswood, NSW 2067, Australia

Organised by Next Generation Technologies Fund

More here

Background

The Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP, announced the launch of the Defence Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) in Trusted Autonomous Systems on 6 July 2017. This represents a $50 million investment from the Next Generation Technologies Fund (NGTF), a new government initiative which formed part of the 2016 Defence Industry Policy Statement. This is the first Defence CRC to be established under the Fund.

The Trusted Autonomous Systems Defence CRC is chaired by Mr Jim McDowell, who has had an extensive career in the defence industry, and most recently at the University of South Australia. The CRC will receive an annual funding of up to $8 million with a maximum of $50 million over a seven year period.

The Defence CRC in Trusted Autonomous Systems will be a collaborative program that brings together industry (particularly small to medium enterprises), academia and publicly funded research agencies to create an interlocking research and innovation capability. It will focus on developing a Defence capability in the form of unmanned platforms that ensure reliable and effective cooperation between people and machines during dynamic military operations.

Further information on the Defence CRC program can be found in the  Defence CRC program fact sheet (PDF; 126.35 KB).

Proposed Centre Research Objectives

Defence has identified a number of research objectives and desired outcomes for this new research centre.

Research Objectives

• Develop and deliver world-leading autonomous and robotic war fighting technology and capabilities to Australian Defence Forces;
• Focus research objectives on the “brains” behind autonomous systems in three areas:
  • Machine Cognition – machine learning, artificial intelligence and decision making;
  • Human-Autonomy Integration – shared decision making, trust, communication;
  • Persistent Autonomy –persistent, resilient and trusted autonomous operation.
• Focus technology objectives on trusted component technologies:
  • Sensing – intelligent sensing, robust perception, scene & situation understanding;
  • Platforms – adaptable and intelligent multi-scale platforms and effectors;
  • Intelligent systems – multi-platform autonomy, human-machine integration;
  • Demonstrate research and technology objectives in challenging and relevant defence environments - wide-area ocean surveillance, counter insurgency operations, cyber-electronic warfare, urban and littoral operations, and humanitarian relief operations.

Program Outcomes

• Transform the capacity and ability of Defence to acquire, deploy and sustain leading-edge autonomous and robotic technology to deliver future winning war fighting capability and systems to the Australian Defence Force.
• Create the skills, culture and environment in which:
  • Australian Defence becomes a well-informed customer and best-practice user of autonomous systems across all strategic capabilities;
  • Australian industry become world-leaders in developing and delivering advanced components for autonomy as part of the global defence equipment supply chain;
  • Defence Science & Technology and Australian academia become engaged and focussed leaders in fundamental research for autonomous systems applied to Defence.
• Build, implement and evolve the frameworks in which:
  • Defence, multi-national industry, local defence SMEs, and academia collaborate effectively to deliver future ‘third-offset’ defence technologies;
  • Australia captures and exploits sovereign intellectual property, leveraging large global technology roles with our allies, for both Defence and industry;
  • Australia takes a lead role in shaping and informing the operational, ethical and legal application of autonomous systems in Defence.
• Working together, making Australian Defence, industry and academia critical and valued collaboration partners with our allies in international research and development programs for autonomous systems and robotics.