An Cosantóir

| 25 at corps shoots and, where feasible, weapon courses have been open to PDF and RDF students alike. For example, when the School decided to upgrade its survey equipment, it turned to Capt Liam Crawford who was able to use his experience as a civil engineer to procure and commission a modern suite of total stations and differential GPS systems. Also, Sgt Denis Daly's aviation experience proved invaluable in the School's development of procedures and systems to allow the new mortars to be quickly and safely airlifted by helicopter. It was against this backdrop that I suggested to the Artillery School that we could, and should, produce our own fire-control system. I had initially expected the idea to be treated with some scepticism but the backing and belief shown by the School Commandant and staff of the School was very heartening. The project was well suited to my skill-set as it required a combination of military and civilian skill-sets across three areas: artillery, engineering, and software development. The artillery aspect of the project needed a deep understanding of the specifications required to fulfil the task and I had this through years of experience in the use of other such fire-control systems, both as an operator and as the officer in charge of calculating the gun data. The differential equations needed to model the ballistics of a projectile can be quite complex, and an engineering background was required to understand the mathematical transformations required to produce computational algorithms from these models. The final stage would be to turn these algorithms into a reliable and userfriendly software system. This required a background in coding embedded software, a skill set that I possess thanks to my career as a software specialist with Enterprise Ireland. The development work began in earnest in mid-2009, with the first version running on a 'Husky' handheld computer, similar to that already in use for the 'MorFire' system. The system was tested at each stage of development by Artillery School instructors to ensure that the data produced was correct and to guide the development of the feature set. The first prototype was only capable of grid-type shoots but after successful testing in the Glen of Imaal it was decided to procure 36 'TopCon FC-2000', Windows-based, handheld computer systems. A number of these handhelds had previously been purchased by the Artillery School for survey work and they had proved to be reliable, soldier-proof and user-friendly, while also being waterproof, dustproof and shockproof. In 2010, the program was ported to run on the .NET framework. This allows it to run on the 'FC-2000' as well as on a normal Windows laptop, tablet or PC for classroom instruction. Since 2010, extra features have been gradually added and tested to bring the system to the stage where it is now fully functional and deployed to all artillery units. The system can now handle grid shoots, polar shoots, recorded targets, quick actions, single-gun actions, registration, MET, alternate positions, and simultaneous missions. Many aspects of the program have been tailored individually to the requirements of the Defence Forces. As well as calculating data for the Ruag 120mm, the system is also capable of being used with the Brandt 81mm mortar as well as the L118 and L119 105mm howitzers. It can also be used for calculating survey functions and incorporates a suite of safety functions such as 'safe-fire' templates, 'no-fire' areas and safety distances around OP and 'own troop' locations. The system can also be expanded as necessary to accommodate new functions or new ammunition and weapon types. The reaction to the GunDog system from the soldiers who use it had been extremely positive. They have found it easy to learn and to operate, there is no waiting around while trajectories are computed, and the data is presented in a clear and easy to read format. The lightweight, good battery life, and general ergonomics of the device have all contributed to make the system well liked by those who use it. Gundog is not in use overseas at present. The whole project has been an excellent example of what can be achieved by a dedicated team of full-time and part-time soldiers working together. www.military.ie the defence forces magazine

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