Compact Multifunctional Ordnance for Urban Combat

The modern warfighter is constantly asked to wage war against an enemy who takes shelter near people, places, or infrastructure we dont want to harm.  In an urban environment an explosive may need to be sufficient to take out a commercial scale structure or a single residence, in either case without damaging other structures nearby.  What is needed is a single weapon capable of producing scalable effects.  Such a weapon could be set for large or small effects.  Such a weapon would allow the same weapon to be used for both tasks, but in both cases, destroying the target whilst minimizing the collateral damage.        RHAMM Technologies, LLC and Battelle Memorial Institute are proposing an approach for developing and demonstrating a novel technology to achieve scalable warhead effects.  The RHAMM team will use high fidelity simulation validated by testing to design a final prototype warhead that uses multiple initiation mechanisms to scale or control lethal effects from blast/fragmenting warheads using detonable fill materials.  The RHAMM team is confident that the technology can readily be developed and demonstrated into a weapon system of interest to the Air Force and the other services.    BENEFITS: The Air Force Research Laboratory, Research Weapons Directorate, Ordnance Division (AFRL) has requested concepts for control of scalable effects relating to Compact Multifunctional Ordnance for Urban Combat. RHAMM Technologies, LLC and Battelle Memorial Institute are responding to this Request for Proposal (RFP) to specifically address scalable effects and to propose an approach for developing and demonstrating multipoint initiation technology to achieve scalable warhead effects.  The RHAMM team will use high fidelity simulation validated by testing to design a prototype warhead that uses multiple initiation to scale or control lethal effects from blast/fragmenting warheads using detonable fill materials.  The RHAMM team is confident that the technology can readily be developed and demonstrated into a weapon system of interest to the Air Force and the other services.        At the completion of Phase II the project team (RHAMM Technologies, LLC and Battelle) will have developed and demonstrated a prototype multipoint detonation warhead that will emphasize the scalability provided by using multipoint detonation technology.  The test and simulation data leading to this design will be compiled into a well documented database that will enable the development of fast-running empirical models.  These, fast running, empirical models are critical to the design of weapons systems for specific uses allowing faster trade studies and comparisons to other proposed or current weapon systems.  The intellectual capital that will be amassed through the completion of this work will also be used by RHAMM to obtain and complete additional contracts of a related nature in support of Battelles development of a multipoint initiation warhead or support Battelle with the use of multipoint initiation in another program.