Made in India military weapons and support systems

[Water Car Engineer]

http://www.bsxindia.com/AirCmde(Retd).pdf

LnT and ISRO partnership

 

[SRP]

Products | Tonbo Imaging

Old news of November 2015


Night-vision startup Tonbo bags multimillion dollar contracts

Defence is a tough business to crack, unless you are one of the biggest defence contractors. Tonbo Imaging, a startup backed by Artiman Ventures of the U.S., has done just that. The Bengaluru-based maker of advanced night vision systems has won multimillion dollars contracts by building cutting edge technology products. Tonbo now has a pipeline of orders worth more than $50 million (Rs.331 crore) from Indian and international customers including DARPA, an advanced-technology branch of the U.S. Department of Defense. Its products are being used on observation platforms, reconnaissance drones, and artillery and naval weapon systems. “The fact that our technology was embraced by all these agencies has given us the thrust to leapfrog foreign competitors,” said Tonbo founder Arvind Lakshmikumar, whose startup won these contracts after competing alongside large defence firms such as Thales, Elbit and Tata Group. “Our investment in indigenous research and development and engineering is starting to pay off,” he said.


According to Mr. Lakshmikumar, the firm has reached an ‘inflection point’ this year. He said the company was valued at $200 million (Rs.1,324 crore).


It expects to cross revenue of about $26 million (Rs.172 crore) this year.


“This makes us one of the largest privately held electro-optics companies in the world and the largest in India,” said Mr. Lakshmikumar, an alumnus of BITS Pilani and Carnegie Mellon University.


Tonbo, which is the only indigenous manufacturer and exporter of thermal imaging-based devices, is currently on every electro-optics and night vision programme of significance in India, both in the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Defence.


Rajiv Chib, Director for Aerospace and Defence Practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers, said it has been an ‘uphill task for startups’ to make a mark in the Indian defence market. Most of them usually work with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and defence public sector units as sub vendors, he said.


Tonbo had moved up the value chain by directly providing its products to the Ministry of Defence, Mr. Chib said, adding that it had been able to make inroads in the Indian defence market as it also serves international customers.


“Tonbo’s model should be emulated by other Indian startups as well,” he said.


Iron Man

Tonbo's technology has gained traction from various defence ministries and forces in countries such as Singapore, France and Turkey. “I am quite fascinated with the folks at Tonbo. Arvind (Lakshmikumar) is like Tony Stark from the Iron Man. He and his team churn out pretty cool new technologies,” said General (retd.) Lucas Arnold, who has been a customer of Tonbo, while serving as a commander with NATO. General Arnold is now again a customer of Tonbo’s surveillance systems through the U.S.-based security firm Chevronstar, where he serves as Chairman. “High end night vision is a serious business and I have not seen technology like this emerge from places outside of a few classified labs in the U.S.,” said General Arnold.


Mr. Lakshmikumar, 39, previously worked at firms like Intelligent Automation, Honeywell and Sarnoff in the U.S. There, he built various imaging innovations for large defence contractors such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin. He was also a part of government-funded programmes such as Future Combat Systems intended to prepare the U.S. Army for modern warfare.


He then returned home and in 2008 started Tonbo, which means dragonfly in Japanese. It is now the only Indian company whose night vision systems will be featured for the Indian Navy’s 12.7 mm remote controlled gun platforms.


The Navy will deploy the platform on ships to fight against pirates and terrorists. Mr. Lakshmikumar said Tonbo had also become the electro-optics supplier of choice to bidders on the Indian Army’s Futuristic Infantry Combat Vehicle programme. The almost $10 billion (Rs.66,210 crore) project is slated to be the largest indigenous defence programme.


Backed by marquee investor Artiman Ventures, Tonbo has offices in Bengaluru, Palo Alto and Singapore. With the help of about 85 employees, it builds and deploys advanced imaging and sensor systems such as smart cameras that sense, understand and control complex environments. To put that in perspective, these systems allow soldiers to see during day and night, through fog and foliage, and do real-time interpretation of battlefield environment. General Arnold of Chevronstar said that since night vision technology was a highly restricted item, any company that builds them was under scrutiny from technology watchers and policy makers.


“Their name does the rounds in these circles frequently.”


Europe’s largest defence contractor BAE Systems, auto-parts maker Visteon Corp and Autoliv are also Tonbo’s customers.


“Their product design is far from the traditional low-cost Indian products,” said Bien Thng, an executive at defence contractor and customer Pretech.

Night-vision startup Tonbo bags multimillion dollar contracts - The Hindu

 

[Water Car Engineer]

Various DARE-DRDO Systems

Upcoming EW Suite for MKI

 

[Water Car Engineer]

http://www.drdo.gov.in/drdo/pub/techfocus/2016/TF_April_2016_WEB.pdf

Military grade tires for IAF's birds. MKIs to IL76s.

 

[Abingdonboy]

INSAS 1B1:

 

[Armani]

Mayurakshi Equipments Pvt. Ltd. makes Luneberg's Lenses for Indian defence applications;

LUNEBERG LENS LUNEBERG RADAR REFLECTOR LENS DEFENCE NAVY ARMY AIR FORCE & CIVIL RADAR, www.mayurakshi.net

Ranging from RCS values of 0.25sqm to 10sqm.

Luneberg Lens Radar Reflector Luneberg Lens Mayurakshi

 

[Abingdonboy]

Parliamentry standing committee on defence visit to LRDE in Bengaluru:

CABS AWACS:

MCIWS (Multi Calibre Infantry Weapon System, entering service 2018/19):

Arjun Mk.1 traversing a mobile foldable bridge:

Mk.1 and Mk.2 lined up (with some new TATA trucks in the background):

Uttam AESA radar (for LCA):

http://www.drdo.gov.in/drdo/////////English/index.jsp?pg=photogallary_events_pscLRDE.jsp
Thanks very much to @Water Car Engineer for the link



@anant_s @PARIKRAMA @Levina @nair @SpArK @AUSTERLITZ @mkb95 @axisofevil @Stephen Cohen @acetophenol @MilSpec @scorpionx @waz @IndoCarib @janon @Koovie @Echo_419 @ayesha.a @ni8mare @danish_vij @Dandpatta @IndoUS @ranjeet @Star Wars @Roybot @kbd-raaf @The_Sidewinder @The_Showstopper @Unknowncommando @Armani @randomradio @Penguin @SR-91

 

[Robinhood Pandey]

Parliamentry standing committee on defence visit to LRDE in Bengaluru:

MCIWS (Multi Calibre Infantry Weapon System, entering service 2018/19):

http://www.drdo.gov.in/drdo/////////English/index.jsp?pg=photogallary_events_pscLRDE.jsp
Thanks very much to @Water Car Engineer for the link



@anant_s @PARIKRAMA @Levina @nair @SpArK @AUSTERLITZ @mkb95 @axisofevil @Stephen Cohen @acetophenol @MilSpec @scorpionx @waz @IndoCarib @janon @Koovie @Echo_419 @ayesha.a @ni8mare @danish_vij @Dandpatta @IndoUS @ranjeet @Star Wars @Roybot @kbd-raaf @The_Sidewinder @The_Showstopper @Unknowncommando @Armani @randomradio @Penguin

Is that an Indian Version of corner shot in the background ??

 

[PARIKRAMA]

@Abingdonboy For the Uttam radar i have some older pictures
especially of the last one operational mode for Aesa FCR as i was using this to find out radiated power for a 650 mm nose cone of LCA. Unfortunately i could not get the Gain figure so stopped my calculations ...

Here are those pics from my project folder where i used the components to get exact specs parameters

If i can get the antenna gain figures its possible that with assumed heat dissipation and loss of signal quality, we can deduce whats the real approximate range of LCA with AESA 2052 for 2m2 target RCS. Uttam detection range it seems is 94 km for such 2m2 target RCS.

 

[Abingdonboy]

Is that an Indian Version of corner shot in the background ??

Yes, made by ARDE:

(credits to @Water Car Engineer )

 

[Levina]

Indian Version of corner shot i

Hm?
I thought only our neighbour made those. Lol
Must be an Israeli make.

Yes, made by ARDE

Whoa!

 

[PARIKRAMA]

Is that an Indian Version of corner shot in the background ??

This picture.. i zoomed it a bit not clean but looks like Indian version only

@Abingdonboy

 

[randomradio]

MCIWS (Multi Calibre Infantry Weapon System, entering service 2018/19):

If true, that's good news. We will actually have an indigenous world class rifle for the armed forces, finally.

 

[PARIKRAMA]

Yes, made by ARDE:

(credits to @Water Car Engineer )

nice you posted it..

 

[Abingdonboy]

@Abingdonboy For the Uttam radar i have some older pictures
especially of the last one operational mode for Aesa FCR as i was using this to find out radiated power for a 650 mm nose cone of LCA. Unfortunately i could not get the Gain figure so stopped my calculations ...

Here are those pics from my project folder where i used the components to get exact specs parameters

View attachment 296552

View attachment 296551

View attachment 296553

View attachment 296549
View attachment 296550


If i can get the antenna gain figures its possible that with assumed heat dissipation and loss of signal quality, we can deduce whats the real approximate range of LCA with AESA 2052 for 2m2 target RCS. Uttam detection range it seems is 94 km for such 2m2 target RCS.

Any ideas how many T/R modules the Uttam has bro?