L3Harris pitches new autonomous ground vehicle for reconnaissance and security ops

L3Harris is pitching a new autonomous reconnaissance and security ground vehicle called the Diamondback, displaying for the first time the futuristic looking combat vehicle -- with a sleek, angular design and large, rugged off-road tires suggesting its tough terrain capability -- at the Association of the U.S. Army exhibit hall.

The vehicle -- which includes a small turret-like component, presumably for sensors -- is not targeted at a validated Army requirement for a new system, a company official said, which means L3Harris is hoping to capture the imagination of service leaders attending the three-day show.

“We are expanding our platform and mission system autonomy capabilities, from air and sea, to support robotic vehicles making first contact with threats in land environments,” Ed Zoiss, L3Harris’ space and airborne systems president, said in a statement. “The Diamondback prototype is easily reconfigurable, highly mobile and rapidly scalable due to its modular and open systems architecture as well as its focus on commercial components and mobility.”

L3Harris is partnered with Overland AI, a company focused on autonomous ground mobility technology, to integrate its off-road and cross-country vehicle navigation systems into Diamondback’s mission capabilities, according to the company announcement.

Diamondback is built “to complement existing robotic vehicle classes” while also performing roles traditionally filled by manned vehicles at a more affordable cost, according to L3Harris.