Military systems controlled by game-style unit

Product

May 01, 2013

Engineers at Ultra Measurement Systems, Inc., in Wallingford, CT, have designed a rugged controller with a game-style form factor familiar to today’s warfighters. The patented handheld Freedom of Movement Control Unit (FMCU) has been used by the Army and Marine Corps, Ground Based Op...

Engineers at Ultra Measurement Systems, Inc., in Wallingford, CT, have designed a rugged controller with a game-style form factor familiar to today’s warfighters. The patented handheld Freedom of Movement Control Unit (FMCU) has been used by the Army and Marine Corps, Ground Based Operational Surveillance System (GBOSS), and in the Fire Scout unmanned helicopter system. Because of the controller’s intuitive nature, warfighters can easily figure out what each switch or joystick does and be off and running. It was the first fully ruggedized game-style controller for military applications.

The controller – available in desert sand and black colors – now comes with a ruggedized, sunlight-readable Light Emitting Diode (LED) backlit Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) that is a modular design with a standard 5" screen with options for 6.4" and touch-screen displays. Non-line-of-sight operation also is supported. The device has sealed, ruggedized, mappable controls, two Hall effect mini joysticks, two single-detent triggers, a four-way switch, 10 momentary push buttons; two optional dead man switches are available. Custom switch modules may also be developed for mission-specific applications. It has a mounting bracket for fixed-position operation. The switch configuration may also be completely customized.