DSEI 2021: Elbit details ARCAS future soldier system

The Elbit ARCAS system mounted to an M4 carbine (Elbit Systems)

Elbit Systems UK unveiled its Assault Rifle Combat Application System (ARCAS) at the DSEI exhibition, which was held in London from 14-17 September.

ARCAS is designed to provide dismounted soldiers with relevant information from a force’s battle management system, an Elbit spokesperson told Janes . It builds on experience gained through similar systems that have been used by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the spiral development of the Elbit Dominator soldier system presented in 2007, the spokesperson added.

The system is mounted under the rifle’s barrel using standard accessory rails. It acts as a handgrip and includes the various buttons of the man-machine interface and an electro-optical sensor. Elbit currently offers either an uncooled 640 × 480 17 µ far infrared (FIR) or 640 × 480 12 µ long-wave infrared (LWIR) thermal imager. This provide a 27° field of view and is capable of detecting a human target at 580 m, recognising one at 250 m, and identifying a human target at 120 m, according to Elbit.

In the ARCAS 1 version, the computer unit sends information to a dedicated sight that displays it using an augmented-reality graphical user interface (GUI). The ARCAS 2 version can be integrated with any sight or a helmet-mounted display that enables soldiers to accurately engage non-line-of-sight targets without exposing themselves.

The computer unit allows for a variety of artificial intelligence assisted functions. These include video processing that can rapidly extrapolate the distance to a target by calculating the size of its silhouette in the thermal imager’s field of view. The system uses this range estimate and pre-programmed ballistic tables to calculate a point of aim for the operator.