Integrated Development

By+Tang+Yuankai

Artillery shells showered on their targets， exploding in a glaring blaze and with a deafening roar as bullets whistled past. Fortunately， this was not a real battle zone， but scenes experienced by visitors to the pavilion of the Vistandard Digital Technology Co. Ltd.， a Shenzhen-based company specializing in virtual reality （VR）， augmented reality （AR） and other related software and hardware development.

People queued up to try out the companys VR equipment at the China International Defence Electronics Exhibition （CIDEX）， which was held in the China International Exhibition Center from May 11 to 13.

This years exhibition was centered on military and civilian technological integration. The event yielded civilians a rare glimpse into military electronics and offered opportunities to those seeking to transfer technology between military and civilian sectors.

A large number of the military-grade technologies showcased have been applied to civilian sectors and many military products on display were produced by civilian companies.

Hi-tech show

The exhibition， hosted by the China Electronics Technology Group Corp. and the China Electronics Corp.， has been held regularly since 1998. For the last 18 years， tens of thousands of exhibits produced by thousands of enterprises have been on display.

More than 50 hi-tech companies in Shenzhen， south Chinas Guangdong Province， participated in the exhibition， bringing with them cutting-edge electronics such as VR products， military power sources， laser radars， optic fiber lasers and satellite navigation products.

These hi-tech exhibitors were organized and coordinated to participate in the exhibition by the Economy， Trade and Information Commission of Shenzhen and the Shenzhen Council for the Development and Promotion of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises. They are the largest as well as the only governmentorganized group of exhibitors.

Shenzhen has been supporting local hi-tech companies to supply products and services to the military.

“Every year， Shenzhens Municipal Government allocated 300 million yuan （$46.2 million） to encourage local hi-tech companies to expand into the military industry，” said Sun Li， Executive President and Secretary General of the Shenzhen Council for the Development and Promotion of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises.

Currently， the city has more than 5，000 hi-tech companies， of which more than 80 have obtained security clearances to supply their products to the military. The value of their military-grade products have exceeded half of those produced in Guangdong， according to the Hong Kong-based Takungbao.com.

A research report from the Shenwan Hongyuan Group， an investment and securities firm， indicated that some technology， fueled by market demand， has developed faster in the civilian sector than in the military sector. The military is gradually turning to the market for supplies. These Shenzhen hi-tech companies have seized the opportunity to expand their market.

“VR technology can be widely used in the military and brings about breakthroughs in combat drilling， weapons maintenance and camp management，” said Chen Zhaohui， who is in charge of marketing for the China Electronics Corp.

“Many scenes that are difficult to construct in real life can easily be recreated through VR，” said Chen Yun， a staff member with Vistandard Digital Technology. VR technology can simulate the visual， audio and even tactile effect of certain surroundings， so that a person can interact with the environment and feel that he or she is really a part of it， Chen said.

The air force， for example， can use VR technology to deliver flight training. Pilots wearing VR headsets can learn to respond to scenarios while operating simulated aircraft. Navy servicemen could also receive lessons on how to read devices carried on submarines and assess their training results accordingly through the use of virtual systems. Commanders could wear VR helmets to coordinate the air force， navy and the army in simulated warfare， saving the armed forces the cost of large-scale military drills. Military data analysts can also collect big data through VR technology.

At the display arena of the Shenzhen Kedun Technology Co. Ltd.， a simulated laser rifle with an infrared aiming system was made available to visitors. Even in complete darkness， one can clearly see the infrared image of a target through the thermal weapon sight.

According to the companys staff member， Liu Qiang， thermal imaging devices are designed to observe targets at night or in unfavorable weather conditions such as rain， snow， fog and haze， and it is mainly used for search and rescue operations. “This kind of infrared aiming system has five kinds of image modes for users to choose from. Users can switch modes according to different scenarios， and can adjust image brightness and color contrast. It is quite user-friendly. The latest product has a clearer image， is lighter and easier to conceal. Besides， it can also function as a video recorder，”Liu said.

“We have a wide variety of guns. Regardless of whether it is used for training or entertain-ment， the effect is very good，” Liu said. “More importantly， we have an unlimited supply of‘ammunition at very low cost，” he added.

The Shenzhen Hongjiangjun Technology Co. Ltd. showcased a portable target scoring system at the exhibition. The companys Deputy General Manager Sun Junyan said that traditional shooting training not only consumes ammunition， but is also restricted by the availability of shooting ranges. With their product， though， Sun said that users can practice shooting anywhere as long as there is a something to project the images onto.

Unmanned aerial vehicles （UAVs） were also featured. Chen Rongjia， an executive of a Shenzhen-based company producing UAVs， demonstrated how to remotely control a vehicle that was 1，000 km away. Chen said that an operator can see high-fidelity images transmitted from that distance after a time lag of only 250 milliseconds.

UAVs were first used for military reconnaissance， telecommunication， antisubmarine operations， electronic countermeasures and ground attacks. Now， it has been widely applied in civilian sectors for land surveys， resource exploration， weather forecasts， forest fire prevention and cloud seeding.

A national strategy

Most of these Shenzhen-based military suppliers are private companies which focus on innovation and are promoting the integration of military and civilian spheres.

The phrase “military and civilian integration” means to apply military technology to the civilian sector and to engage private companies in producing for the military. The military and civilian integration process was elevated to become part of the national strategy last March by President Xi Jinping at a panel meeting of delegates from the Peoples Liberation Army（PLA） at the Third Session of the 12th National Peoples Congress.

Xi urged the PLA to actively boost local economic and social development， and contribute to peoples well-being through their actions. Meanwhile， local governments should offer greater support for national defense and the PLAs capacity-building measures.

According to the Beijing-based Economy and Nation Weekly， since 2013， Xi has publicly emphasized military and civilian integration at least five times.

A research report from the Beijing-based Guotai Junan Securities pointed out that， through military and civilian integration， social resources can be channeled into national security， promoting defense innovation and the upgrading of weapons， as well as improving the efficiency and structure of the military industry.

In recent years， the government has issued a number of documents to facilitate the integration of the two sectors. In April 2014， the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released guiding opinions for military and civilian integration， which stated that by 2020， relevant systems and policies will be in place， the percentage of military technology converted for civilian use will improve significantly， and more social capital will flow into the military arena.

In November 2014， the PLA announced 108 military training projects， inviting private sectors to invest in them and jointly carry out product research and development.

One month later， the State Council unveiled another document on accelerating the development of the emergency response industry. The government encouraged the military to use its technological strength to develop the emergency response industry and push forward military and civilian integration.

In April 2015， the State Administration of Science， Technology and Industry for National Defense issued its action plan for military and civilian integration in 2015， listing 27 key tasks for the year. In July of the same year， it released intellectual property information involving 118 projects and more than 600 patents to facilitate the transfer of technology between the two sectors.

Last year， the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology included the integration into its 13th Five-Year Plan （2016-20）.

Local governments are also improving their relevant policies and regulations. Data from the PLA National Defense University showed that as of the end of 2014， nearly 30 provincial level administrative units had released related documents.

With government support， more and more military technology and products have found their way into ordinary peoples life.

In the past 20 plus years as Chinas manned space project unfolds， more than 2，000 aerospace technology achievements and more than 1，100 new materials have been applied to the civilian sector.

On April 24， several products made with aerospace technology were showcased at an event marking the successful launch of Chinas first manmade satellite.

“Pour boiling water into a cup， and then shake it. In 30 seconds， the water temperature will drop from 100 degrees to about 45 degrees Celsius， the optimal drinking water temperature for the human body，” said Li Xiaoyan from the No.3 Research Institute under the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp. （CASIC）.

“Likewise， when cold water is filled into a cup that has absorbed enough energy， the cup can quickly heat the cold water to more than 35 degrees Celsius，” she said.

The thermal control cup， developed by researchers at the Aerospace Research Institute of Materials and Processing Technology， looks no different from an ordinary vacuum cup and is priced at comparative level.

The cup is made with phase-change materials with high thermal conductivity levels. Although the materials are rarely seen in daily life， they are often used in rockets and missiles to protect delicate equipment， especially control systems near heat sources， said Lu Xiaoge， the director of CASICs media center.

In recent years， the materials performance has been constantly improved and their costs slashed， so that they can be successfully used in civilian sectors， Lu said. Currently， the materials are used to produce daily products such as beer cups， coffee mugs， and other table wares， as well as cellphones， batteries and waste heat recovery systems.

Meanwhile， more and more companies in the civilian sector are entering the military industry. Official statistics show that as of the middle of last year， more than 1，000 private enterprises had obtained licenses to produce weaponry and armament， including about 100 publicly listed companies.

The defense industry is characterized by high technology standards and is classified. “For the long term， due to very high technology and qualification barriers， private companies have ridden a bumpy road to reach the military industry，” said Lin Weiping， a reporter with Weekly on Stocks， a platform designated by the China Securities Regulatory Commission to disclose information about publicly listed companies. Lin observed that with the implementation of relevant government policies， the qualification barrier has gradually been lowered， and companies mainly compete on technical strengths.

The crux of military and civilian integration is for private companies to get to the core of the military industry， said Li Jia， an industry analyst with HuaChuang Securities， a company based in Guizhou Province. Those private companies have a unique advantage in certain segmented markets， and those entering the military industry earlier can take the initiative， and hence have more opportunities to make high profits.

At this years CIDEX， the China Electronics Corp. exhibited its JL3D-91B metric-wave anti-stealth radar， drawing attention from visitors from home and abroad. According to materials available at the exhibition， this radar was designed to detect the location， distance and altitude and other information of fourth-generation fighter planes and conventional aerial targets. It also has the ability to detect stealth aircraft and anti-radiation missiles.

Modern stealth planes have virtually rendered mainstream radars useless for some time. Matrix-wave radars are long wave radars that can detect stealth planes. Nonetheless， such radars suffer drawbacks such as low precision， large low-angle blind areas and low position adaptability. In recent years， Chinese researchers have carried out in-depth analysis in this aspect， and have continuously improved the performance of this type of radar. Now， matrix-wave radars produced in China are world-class.