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January 4, 2022
Military Applications of Extended Reality
Although commercial and consumer industries have been
A number of advanced enabling capabilities, such as 5G
investing in extended reality (XR) for decades, recent
and edge computing—a type of computing that is done “at
advances have expanded the number of potential
or near the source of data”—are likely to expand XR
applications for the U.S. military. As the Department of
applications in the future. These capabilities could improve
Defense (DOD) increases spending on these applications,
data rates, increase user capacity, and reduce latency (i.e.,
Congress may consider the implications for defense
time delay), all of which could support large-scale,
authorizations and appropriations, military force structure,
networked applications. DOD is currently testing 5G-
and cybersecurity.
enabled applications of XR at Joint Base Lewis–McChord
Overview
(WA) and Joint Base San Antonio (TX).
XR encompasses three main categories of physical and
Military Applications of Extended Reality
digital environments (Figure 1):
The U.S. military is exploring a range of applications for
Virtual reality (VR), a fully immersive digital
XR, with research and development programs in each of the
environment (e.g., video games that place the user
services. These applications include tactical, flight,
within the virtual world of the game).
maintenance, medical, and other training, as well as
Augmented reality (AR), an overlay of digital
warfighting.
objects on physical environments (e.g., Instagram
filters that overlay preset digital effects on a user’s
Training
videos or photographs).
According to Under Secretary of Defense for Research and
Engineering Heidi Shyu, DOD intends to leverage “AR/VR
Mixed reality (MR), a hybrid of physical and
and live training ... [that is being matured] by the gaming
digital environments in which physical and digital
industry” as a basis for developing its own tailored XR
objects can interact. Unlike AR, MR could enable
programs. Doing so could enable the military to conduct
a user to manipulate physical or digital objects and
training exercises that are too costly or dangerous to
share their view of those objects with other users
conduct in physical environments, as well as enable service
within the same mixed reality environment (e.g.,
members in distant locations to train together.
collaboratively marking adversary troop locations
on a projected digital map).
For example, the Army’s Synthetic Training Environment
Figure 1. Main Categories of Extended Reality
(STE)—an XR training environment intended to
complement or integrate with live training—seeks to enable
soldiers “to train where they will fight, with the partners
they will fight with, and in complex operational
environments to include dense urban, woodland, jungle,
desert, and sub-terrain, before the first fight begins.” STE is
to be designed to enable soldiers to more efficiently
“increase proficiency through repetition.” These factors
could, in turn, increase both readiness and lethality.
The Air Force uses XR for flight training—with the intent
of reducing cost, training time, and wear on aircraft. It is
also exploring XR for maintenance training and is in the
process of building virtual training hangars “to enable
training anywhere and anytime” on a variety of airframes.
Similarly, the Navy seeks to use XR to connect engineers
and maintainers, who could work together to address
maintenance issues across the globe in real-time.
DOD is also examining applications of XR for medical
training. According to the Air Force, XR could “[increase]
Source: Tutorials Link, “Difference Between AR, VR, MR,” at
the availability of training, without a need to increase
https://tutorialslink.com/Articles/Difference-Between-AR-VR-MR/973.
manpower availability for training setup.” This application
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Military Applications of Extended Reality
could allow for distributed learning and create greater
savings. This analysis may determine whether there are less
efficiencies for understaffed medical training courses.
costly, alternative means of achieving any identified
benefits. Congress may also seek to obtain information
Warfighting
about the projected lifecycle costs—including maintenance
The military is continuing to explore applications of XR for
requirements—for XR systems.
warfighting (Figure 2). It has long incorporated XR into the
heads-up and helmet-mounted displays (HUD and HMD,
Technological Maturity
respectively) used by pilots and aircrew. These displays can
While some applications of XR are relatively mature—
provide dynamic flight and sensor information intended to
particularly those incorporating standalone AR—others are
increase the users’ situational awareness and improve
at a more nascent stage of development, require greater
weapons’ targeting. In the case of the F-35 fighter aircraft’s
levels of technology integration, or have otherwise
HMD, inputs from the F-35’s external cameras provide
experienced delays in fielding or testing. Congress may
pilots with a 360-degree view of their surroundings; it also
continue to seek information about the technological
displays night vision and thermal imagery—all of which
maturity of XR systems and subsequently determine
can be overlaid with the technical details (e.g., altitude,
whether those systems warrant the requested funding levels.
speed) of any detected objects.
Congress may also assess the technological maturity of any
necessary enabling capabilities to determine whether they
Likewise, the Army is developing the Integrated Visual
are sufficiently mature and funded.
Augmentation System (IVAS), a ruggedized (i.e.,
strengthened) MR headset based on Microsoft’s
Personnel
commercially available HoloLens. Army documents state
XR applications may have a number of implications for
that IVAS “integrates next generation 24/7 situational
military personnel and force structure. If the U.S. military is
awareness tools and high resolution digital sensors to
able to achieve efficiencies in training or warfighting, for
deliver a single platform that improves soldier sensing,
example, it may be able to shift personnel away from
decision making, target acquisition, and target
training units or reduce overall manpower requirements—
engagement.” Army documents indicate that the system is
with a smaller number of troops retained at higher levels of
to be eventually incorporated into both ground and air
readiness. Conversely, XR applications may produce
vehicle platforms.
greater demand for maintainers or IT and cybersecurity
personnel. This demand could offset reductions occurring
Figure 2. Illustrative Battlefield Use of XR
elsewhere in the force or even increase overall manpower
requirements.
Cybersecurity
Some analysts have raised concerns about the potential
cybersecurity vulnerabilities of XR systems, particularly
those that rely upon high-value-target databases for
weapons maintenance, image classification, or other
functions. If such systems are infiltrated, they could provide
an adversary with critical information about U.S. weapons
systems, as well as information about how the U.S. military
trains, and thus how it intends to fight in the event of a
conflict. XR systems used for warfighting could
additionally enable an adversary to distort the common
operational picture used to coordinate military actions or
cause the system to misidentify people and platforms—
Source: https://jasoren.com/augmented-reality-military/.
potentially resulting in fratricide or unintended civilian
Potential Issues for Congress
casualties. Congress may request briefings on the findings
Congress may consider a number of issues as it continues to
of DOD cybersecurity tests of XR systems or withhold
evaluate DOD investments in current and emerging military
funds from systems found to have significant
applications of XR.
vulnerabilities.
Affordability
Related CRS Products
Military applications of XR vary considerably in terms of
CRS In Focus IF11251, National Security Implications of Fifth
up-front development costs, with one of the U.S. military’s
Generation (5G) Mobile Technologies, by John R. Hoehn and
largest XR programs, IVAS, costing up to $22 billion to
Kelley M. Sayler.
field over 10 years. Once fielded, however, XR systems
CRS In Focus IF10159, Cybersecurity, by Eric A. Fischer and
may reduce training costs by removing the need to
Catherine A. Theohary.
centralize personnel, use live ammunition, or operate
platforms. To assess these issues, Congress could direct an
independent analysis of the potential benefits and
drawbacks (e.g., cognitive overload) of XR training and
Kelley M. Sayler, Analyst in Advanced Technology and
warfighting applications against both their costs and their
Global Security
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Military Applications of Extended Reality
IF12010
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