OREANDA-NEWS. United Instrument Manufacturing Corporation (UIMC)[1] has introduced a new range of communication training facilities (CTF) for military signalers of all levels, from regular troops to commanders.

The system provides a full cycle of training through three-dimensional simulators that facilitate conditions as close to combat as possible. During the training, three-dimensional simulators are used for crews of command staff vehicles, software simulators of communication and switching devices.

This system helps to train crews of command staff, command, and line combat vehicles, as well as officers and unit commanders. Tactical simulators of infantry units are also used in training. The current simulation layout allows for testing command-staff vehicles and organizing communication in different modes and in situations involving changing frequencies, consistent with a program of combat training.

“Thanks to CTF, future signalers can explore the means of communication in both theory and in practice, as well as the management of subordinate units in the chain of command,” said Alexander Kalinin, department director of UIMC. “This system allows several dozen experts to undergo training simultaneously. With its help primary work skills are developed with equipment, thus avoiding the many possibilities of damaging technology due to improper operation at the initial stage.”

The new system enables the possibility of generating radio directions and radio networks on different types of radio equipment

Sergei Seredenko, Director of the Scientific and Technical Center of the Ryazan Radio Plant

In terms of functionality, appearance, and displays, the simulators are identical to the actual devices. Trainees work out the tactical interaction of mechanized infantry and other units in the role of a commander of a section, platoon, or company to learn how to manage units during combat. They receive practical skills in developing the practical skills of communicating tactical and firing commands.

The communication training facilities developed by specialists of the Ryazan Radio Plant (a subsidiary of UIMC) can be used in educational institutions, including the most prestigious, as well as in training centers, military commissariats, and the Volunteer Society for Cooperation with the Army, Aviation, and Fleet (DOSAAF) in preparing specialists during the pre-draft period, as well as in various units of the Russian armed forces, to prepare communication experts and other specialists. “The new system enables the possibility of generating radio directions and radio networks on different types of radio equipment,” said Sergei Seredenko, Director of the Scientific and Technical Center of the Ryazan Radio Plant. “With the help of this system, training takes place on a three-dimensional terrain model. Thus, our design allows you to create a space for training based on Google or Yandex maps and simulate the tactical background and conditions for the use of combat weapons and units, including motorized infantry companies. Thus, trainees are not limited to a single testing ground and can practice to become familiar with an area in which they will conduct real combat missions. CTF presents possibilities of losing a signal on the ground due to topography or other obstacles. Depending on these situations, the connection could be stable, or using conventions. Currently a CTF prototype is under development that would utilize real communications technology, to work on interacting with units during training.

In addition to the various simulators, the CTF includes a system of evaluating and tallying the results of individual, group, and practical exercises.

“The idea of the technology is simple, to equip the army with modern weaponry, but also to teach each soldier how to use the equipment,” said Sergei Seredenko. “This system draws from all of the experience of the Ryazan Radio Plant, which has been designing educational systems since 2006. The CTF reduces both the time needed for training and the cost of training facilities. After all, training personnel through the communication training system such as this is much cheaper than conducting actual combat training with real technology.

The traditional approach to training specialists required an audience, radio station, and actual command and staff vehicles. Expenses included the cost of fuel, equipment wear and tear, and the destruction of equipment (which inevitably happened with inexperienced users). According to developers, the CTF was designed to avoid all of this.

The training system from UIMC is to be delivered to departments of the Ministry of Interior (MOI), airborne forces, and other troops of the Ministry of Defense. In particular, for a MOI communications training center in Kaluga a single system for classes in theoretical and practical models of communications equipment and for training of crews and units to perform tasks on assignment, has been developed and introduced. The Military-Technical University (Balashikha, Moscow region) uses the system for training in management, interaction, and communication, which includes the classroom as well as a set of software and hardware systems for armored vehicles and both real and virtual radio systems.