Multifunction sensor system delivered to AFRL and DARPA
NewsSeptember 01, 2021
FALLS CHIRCH, Va. Northrop Grumman announced it has delivered the Arrays at Commercial Timescales Integration and Validation (ACT-IV) system to the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
According to the company, the system is based on an advanced digital active electronically scanned array (AESA) that completed multiple demonstrations and acceptance testings at Northrop Grumman test facilities.
ACT-IV is one of the first multifunction systems based on a digital AESA using the semiconductor devices developed on the DARPA Arrays at Commercial Timescales (ACT) program. By applying the flexibility of the digital AESA, the ACT-IV system can perform radar, electronic warfare, and communication functions simultaneously by controlling a large number of independent digital transmit/receive channels.
Officials claim the ACT-IV system will be a foundational research asset for the Department of Defense’s multi-service research initiative for digital radars and multifunction systems. This initiative will aim to support a community of researchers that are developing new algorithms and software to explore the possibilities of next generation digital AESAs for national security missions.
