Konrad Gibson
Paul Rogers oversees the development of autonomous truck and other advanced technology for the U.S. Army. (Photo: U.S. Army) As director of the Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center, Paul Rogers oversees more than 1,700 engineers, scientists and researchers developing autonomous truck and other advanced technology at the U.S. Army’s R&D center in Warren, Mich.
Rogers’ team looks for developments at truck makers and suppliers in robotics, safety systems and alternative fuels to learn what might work to modernize U.S. military transport, support equipment and mobile weapons.
That includes autonomous vehicles, cybersecurity protection and electric systems that replace machines. His annual budget exceeds $600 million, which he stretches through collaboration. Paul Rogers Rogers sat down with Trucks.com to discuss how the transfer of civilian robotic and safety technology sharpens military readiness. Here is an edited version of that conversation.
If we can reduce the number of soldiers moving resupplies, then we can do more with the same number of soldiers. We want to have the same number of soldiers based on our combat demands. It’s also going to help the Army understand what the future looks like and how to best use these vehicles. Soldiers can develop new tactics, new techniques and new doctrine that will help the Army be more effective.
Where do electric vehicles make sense for the Army?
Electrification makes a great deal of sense across our entire ground vehicle fleet. And it makes a significant benefit to ground combat systems. But because of their (lack of) energy density, batteries don’t make a lot of sense. Our vehicles are very large. That’s why we’re interested in fuel cells and fuel cell powertrains. But there are a lot of second-order benefits of electrification, especially if we go to high […]
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