Taqtile awarded SBIR Phase II contract by US Army to expand its AR work instruction platform for vehicle maintenance and repair

In Augmented Reality News 

March 16, 2022 – Taqtile, a provider of enterprise software that leverages augmented reality (AR), cloud computing, and LTE/5G networks for knowledge capture and sharing, has recently announced that it has been awarded a Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract by the US Army and its Army Application Laboratory (AAL).

According to Taqtile, the contract will see the company work to help fulfill the Army’s ‘Augmented Reality Maintainer-Operator Relay System’ (ARMORS) vision by expanding the deployment of Taqtile’s Manifest platform to address the Army’s Maintenance, Repair and Operations (MRO) needs across multiple vehicle platforms.

Taqtile stated that the recently completed Phase 1 program enabled the Army to validate Manifest’s capabilities to support digital transformation of motor pool MRO, with the Manifest platform demonstrating its ability to empower personnel to complete complex tasks more safely, efficiently and accurately than was possible with outdated paper-based processes.

“The nature of service in the Army results in a high amount of turnover in its motor pools as soldiers rotate through their assignments,” said Kelly Malone, Chief Customer Officer, Taqtile. “The expanded use of Manifest with Army personnel will clearly demonstrate that we are uniquely capable of delivering knowledge right to operators and the equipment they’re working on, helping them perform like experts.”

According to the company, Phase 2 of the project will further integrate Manifest with existing Army IT systems, including automatic initiation of resolution processes. Manifest will also deliver enhanced permission-based management of workflows, building upon Manifest’s AR-based guidance functionality.

During the vehicle maintenance process, Army mechanics can access and follow Manifest’s spatially anchored, step-by-step instructions with embedded multimedia content to efficiently complete complex maintenance tasks the first time. Device agnostic and scalable, Manifest also allows for remote assist functionality, giving motor personnel real-time access to AR-enabled, step-by-step guidance from expert Army technicians, anywhere, anytime.

Manifest can also serve as a digital repository for maintenance and repair information, including video and audio “notes,” and related documents such as Army Technical Manuals (TMs). This allows vehicle-specific repair information to be seamlessly transferred between personnel, reducing delays and risk of human error.

“Modernization isn’t only about helicopters and drones and the capital platforms,” said Thomas Mead, Army Application Laboratory Project Manager. “AAL is excited to continue work with Taqtile on a solution that will actually improve soldiers’ experiences in their routine work. Taqtile’s Manifest platform is a state-of-the-art upgrade to the way soldiers perform preventative maintenance on their vehicles that will save time and money while improving readiness.”

For more information on Taqtile and its Manifest platform for augmented reality solutions for maintenance and knowledge transfer, please visit the company’s website.

Image credit: Taqtile

About the author

Sam Sprigg

Sam is the Founder and Managing Editor of Auganix. With a background in research and report writing, he has been covering XR industry news for the past seven years.