TerraMax is the trademark for

autonomous In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy is the capacity to make an informed, uncoerced decision. Autonomous organizations or institutions are independent or self-governing. Autonomy can also be defi ...

unmanned ground vehicle An unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) also known colloquially as armored robot (ARB) is a vehicle that operates while in contact with the ground without an onboard human presence. UGVs can be used for many applications where it is inconvenient, dan ...

technology developed by

Oshkosh Defense Oshkosh Corporation, formerly Oshkosh Truck, is an American industrial company that designs and builds specialty trucks, military vehicles, truck bodies, airport fire apparatus, and access equipment. The corporation also owns Pierce Manufact ...

. Primary military uses for the technology are seen as

reconnaissance In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...

missions and freight transport in high-risk areas without the need of human operators, protecting the soldiers from possible attacks,

ambushes An ambush is a surprise attack carried out by people lying in wait in a concealed position. The concealed position itself or the concealed person(s) may also be called an "". Ambushes as a basic fighting tactic of soldiers or of crimin ...

or the threat of mines and

IEDs An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mechan ...

. The technology could also be used in civilian settings, such as autonomous snow clearing at airports. The original TerraMax vehicle was based on Oshkosh’s 6x6

Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement The Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR) is a family of medium to heavy six-wheel drive cargo and tactical trucks, used by the United States Marine Corps. The first MTVRs were delivered in late 1999. The MTVR is the equivalent of the ...

(MTVR) and this was entered in the 2004 and 2005

DARPA The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military. Originally known as the Adva ...

Grand Challenges. A 4x4 variant was subsequently developed for, and entered in, the 2007

Urban Challenge. Since then, Oshkosh has continued developing the technology and in addition to four MTVRs has fitted the technology to its

Palletized Load System The Palletized Load System (PLS) is a truck-based logistics system that entered service in the United States Army in 1993. It performs long and short distance freight transport, unit resupply, and other missions in the tactical environment to s ...

(PLS), Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV). and MRAP All Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV).

Development and history

Oshkosh actively commenced development of the TerraMax in mid-2003. In the 2004 DARPA Grand Challenge (March 13–14, 2004) Team TerraMax was one of only seven teams to successfully navigate the qualifying course, going on to manage 1.2 miles on the race course before being ‘confronted’ by an impassable bush. The 2004 Team TerraMax consisted of Oshkosh Truck (now Oshkosh Defense),

University of Parma The University of Parma () is a public university located in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Organized into nine departments, it is one of the oldest universities in the world. As of 2016, it had approximately 26,000 students. History During the ...

's Artificial Vision and Intelligent Systems Laboratory (

VisLab VisLab is an Italian company working on computer vision and environmental perception for vehicular applications. It was founded in the early 90s as a research laboratory at University of Parma. It started its activities in 1990, with its invol ...

), Teledyne Scientific Company,

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

, IBEO and

Caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder ...

. At the time, Don Verhoff, Oshkosh's executive vice president of technology explained that: "although design development may continue for years, the idea of a driverless convoy of defense vehicles to deliver supplies to the front line, never jeopardizing the welfare of a single driver, is closer than one might imagine." In October 2005 a second-generation TerraMax was one of five vehicles to complete the

2005 DARPA Grand Challenge The DARPA Grand Challenge is a prize competition for American autonomous vehicles, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the most prominent research organization of the United States Department of Defense. Congress has authorize ...

132-mile desert course. Unofficial run time was 12 hours and 51 minutes, this outside of the 10-hour limit to qualify for the $2 million prize money. The 2005 Team TerraMax consisted of Oshkosh Truck,

Rockwell Collins Rockwell Collins, Inc. was a multinational corporation headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, providing avionics and information technology systems and services to government agencies and aircraft manufacturers. It was formed when the Collins Radi ...

, University of Parma's Artificial Vision and Intelligent Systems Laboratory (

) and several financial sponsors. Continuing development of TerraMax technologies, in January 2006 Oshkosh unveiled an unmanned version of its

(PLS) truck at the U.S. Army Tactical Wheeled Vehicle Component Technology Demonstrations in Yuma, Arizona. East. In 2007 Team TerraMax competed in the

DARPA Urban Challenge The third driverless car competition of the DARPA Grand Challenge was commonly known as the DARPA Urban Challenge. It took place on November 3, 2007 at the site of the now-closed George Air Force Base (currently used as Southern California Log ...

with a 4x4 MTVR. In June 2010, Oshkosh Defense was awarded the U.S. Marine Corps Cargo UGV (CUGV) initiative contract. The contract was awarded by

US Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expedi ...

Warfighting Laboratory ( MCWL) and the Joint Ground Robotics Enterprise Robotics Technology Consortium. The first evaluation for the cargo UGV was completed in May 2011 at

Fort Pickett Fort Pickett, formerly Fort Barfoot, is a Virginia Army National Guard installation, located near the town of Blackstone, Virginia. Home of the Army National Guard Maneuver Training Center, Fort Pickett was originally named for the United ...

. In October 2010 at the

Association of the United States Army The Association of the United States Army (AUSA) is a private, non-profit organization that serves as the professional association of the United States Army. Founded in 1950, it has 121 chapters worldwide. Membership is open to everyone, not ju ...

(AUSA) Annual Meeting and Exposition at the

Washington Convention Center The Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. was a convention center located at 909 H Street NW, occupying the city block bounded by New York Avenue (Washington, D.C.), New York Avenue, 9th Street, H Street, and 11th Street.FMTV Load Handling System (LHS) variant fitted with TerraMax technology. In May 2014 Oshkosh announced that to demonstrate capabilities for route-clearance missions it had integrated its TerraMax

(UGV) technology onto an Oshkosh MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV). The vehicle was demonstrated in June 2014 at the

Eurosatory Eurosatory is the largest international exhibition for the land and air-land defence and security industry. It is held every two years in the Paris-Nord Villepinte Exhibition Centre, Paris, France. In 2022, it gathered over 1,700 exhibitors and ...

defence exhibition in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

where it was equipped with a

mine roller A mine roller or mine trawl is a demining device mounted on a tank or armoured personnel carrier, designed to detonate anti-tank mines. It allows combat engineers to clear a lane through a minefield which is protected by enemy fire. The device ...

and autonomously navigated a course that simulated military

route clearance Route clearance is a routine part of counter-IED efforts performed by military forces around the world. The purpose of route clearance is to secure an important route and render it for safe transport. This mission relies on the use of Sapper and ...

missions. The company was awarded a contract to evaluate the CUGV as a route clearing UGV, an effort that saw three vehicles working together. The trials took place at

Fort A.P. Hill Fort Anderson-Pinn-Hill, commonly known as Fort A.P. Hill (formerly Fort Walker)MDW USARM(25 August 2023) Fort Walker Redesignation Ceremony59:22, Ceremony sponsored by MG Trevor Bredencamp, commander of Military District of Washington; addition ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, in April 2015. Also in 2015, the US Army worked on requirements documentation for the introduction of leader-follower technology for the Oshkosh 10×10 PLS logistics and support vehicles, which would be used initially as a driver safety mechanism for functions such as braking. In 2016, TerraMax-equipped vehicles took part in the Autonomous Ground Resupply Programme. Under the programme, the vehicles were expected to demonstrate the carrying of cargo from the point of embarkation to a forward-operating base (FOB) and then to a patrol base.

Other autonomous projects

Oshkosh is also involved in a number of other autonomous vehicle projects in conjunction with partners that include TARDEC,

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

, Robotic Research, and DCS. In 2016, Oshkosh PLS vehicles took part in the Autonomous Ground Resupply Programme. Under the programme, the vehicles were expected to demonstrate the carrying of cargo from the point of embarkation to a forward-operating base (FOB) and then to a patrol base. On 27 June 2018, as part of the Expedient Leader Follower (ExLF) programme, Oshkosh received USD49 million to integrate its autonomous technology onto PLS vehicles. The TARDEC-led programme was awarded through an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) contract and is intended to facilitate the transition to an official

Program of Record In the United States, the processes of government procurement enable federal, state and local government bodies in the country to acquire goods, services (including construction), and interests in real property. Contracting with the federal gove ...

. The programme is expected to last until the end of its contract term in March 2021. In early 2019, a fleet of ten vehicles was outfitted with autonomous technology and subjected to government qualification and safety evaluations. This initial phase was succeeded by the integration of autonomous technology into an additional sixty vehicles, which were then slated for participation in an Operational Technical Demonstration (OTD) in early 2020. Oshkosh began integrating an initial 10 autonomy kits upon the award for the engineering test, verification, validation, and ATEC Safety Release, and will integrate another 60 kits for fiscal year 2019 for OTDs. The OTDs will occur in the second quarter of fiscal year 2020. The contract holds an option to procure up to 150 autonomy kits.

Technology

TerraMax Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) technology is

modular Module, modular and modularity may refer to the concept of modularity. They may also refer to: Computer science and engineering * Modular design, the engineering discipline of designing complex devices using separately designed sub-components ...

and designed to be integrated into any tactical wheeled vehicle. The components of TerraMax are located so as not to impede the combat requirements of soldiers, while maintaining the utility of the vehicle. The technology is fully incorporated into the brakes, steering, engine and transmission. Fitted vehicles retain the ability to be driver-operated. Fitted vehicles can be operated fully autonomously in any position in a

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

, or semi-autonomously to follow the path of the lead vehicle. The TerraMax UGV package consists of Oshkosh’s Command Zone electronics, a sensor suite and an advanced operator control unit (OCU). Command Zone is an integrated control and

diagnostics Diagnosis (: diagnoses) is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in a lot of different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine " cause and effect". ...

system that is computer-controlled, electronics technology that operates and diagnoses all major vehicle networks. The backbone of the Command Zone system is advanced

multiplexing In telecommunications and computer networking, multiplexing (sometimes contracted to muxing) is a method by which multiple analog or digital signals are combined into one signal over a shared medium. The aim is to share a scarce resource� ...

technology. The multimodal

sensor A sensor is often defined as a device that receives and responds to a signal or stimulus. The stimulus is the quantity, property, or condition that is sensed and converted into electrical signal. In the broadest definition, a sensor is a devi ...

suite consists of a high definition

LIDAR Lidar (, also LIDAR, an acronym of "light detection and ranging" or "laser imaging, detection, and ranging") is a method for determining ranging, ranges by targeting an object or a surface with a laser and measuring the time for the reflected li ...

(light detection and ranging) system, a wide dynamic range camera, a short wave

infrared Infrared (IR; sometimes called infrared light) is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than that of visible light but shorter than microwaves. The infrared spectral band begins with the waves that are just longer than those ...

camera, four situational awareness cameras, 12 short range

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

systems (providing 360° close-view) and three long range radar systems. The military grade global navigation satellite system (GNSS) along with map registration software technology ensures the operation of the system without a satellite signal where a

global positioning system The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide ge ...

(GPS) navigation system is blocked or denied. The vehicle mounted with TerraMax UGV technology is autonomously controlled by an operator control unit (OCU). It enables the operators to manipulate route information and look out or manage internal operations and status of autonomous systems over tactical data links. The tele-operated OCU shows the necessary information according to the priority and facilitates the fast input of commands to maintain the pace in convoy operations. The screen of OCU displays overhead imagery, automated routes and driving parameters. It gives feedback if it identifies an obstacle to continue, or changes track accordingly. The OCU allows a single operator to control one or more UGVs. The operator can control an UGV with infrequent monitoring of the unit. From an earlier statement that it desired one third of its fleet to be autonomous by 2015, the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

now believes that the technology for autonomous vehicles may be ready for the field by 2025. At an AUVSI symposium in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

in October 2015, Dr Paul Rogers, director of the army's Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC), said "Autonomous convoy technology for the US army remains about 10 years away, depending on how the acquisition process moves, due to requirements, testing, and

budget A budget is a calculation plan, usually but not always financial plan, financial, for a defined accounting period, period, often one year or a month. A budget may include anticipated sales volumes and revenues, resource quantities including tim ...

ing processes."

Television

The TerraMax was featured in Series 19 of

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Television series ''

Top Gear Top Gear may refer to: * "Top gear", the highest gear available in a vehicle's manual transmission Television * ''Top Gear'' (1977 TV series), a British motoring magazine programme * ''Top Gear'' (2002 TV series), a relaunched version of the ori ...

''. It was featured against presenter

James May James Daniel May (born 16 January 1963) is an English television presenter and journalist. He is best known as a co-presenter, alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond, of the motoring programme ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'' fr ...

in the

Range Rover The Land Rover Range Rover, generally shortened to Range Rover, is a Sport utility vehicle, 4x4 Luxury car, luxury SUV produced by Land Rover, a marque and sub-brand of Jaguar Land Rover, owned by Tata Motors. The Range Rover line was launched ...

in an off-road challenge in the Nevada Automotive Test Center, Nevada, USA. (Partially available through YouTube at
"TOP GEAR's Driverless Truck: March 4 BBC AMERICA"
an
"'Terminator' Vs Range Rover , Top Gear , Series 19"

Gallery

File:DARPA-2005.jpg, MTVR 6x6 participating in the DARPA 2005 Grand Challenge File:Terramax-DARPAChallenge04.jpg, TerraMax at the 2004 DARPA Grand Challenge File:MTVR with TerraMax.jpg, MTVR with TerraMax File:TerraMax Op control unit.jpg, Operator Control Unit and Interface for TerraMax File:M-ATV with TerraMax.jpg, M-ATV (with mine roller attachment) with TerraMax File:M-ATV with TerraMax callouts desert.jpg, In convoy, an M-ATV with mine roller attachment) and two MTVRs with TerraMax. The third MTVR is manned.

References

External links

TerraMax page (Oshkosh Defense)Interview on Oshkosh autonomous programs (IHS Jane's)Oshkosh TerraMax™ Autonomous Vehicle System (Armyreco)TerraMax Top Gear (factual & interesting)Team TerraMax home page

VisLab home pageTerraMax UGV Video on Vimeo
{{Oshkosh Corporation Unmanned ground vehicles University of Parma Oshkosh vehicles DARPA Grand Challenge Experimental self-driving cars