The Defense Department has created a road map meant to help military services align unmanned technology projects and goals and with DoD’s strategic vision.
The document obtained by USNI News cites interoperability, autonomy, network security and human-machine collaboration as four themes that can serve as the foundational areas of interest for accelerating the use of unmanned systems.
DoD said interoperability will provide the basis for future advances in warfighting as it has already contributed to the deployment of autonomous technologies.
The road map also noted that advances in autonomy will help boost the productivity of manned and unmanned systems.
The department additionally stressed the need to encourage human-machine teaming in combat operations, as well as address vulnerabilities to prevent attacks on networked connections.
Lastly, DoD said supporting policy, requirements and acquisition environments should match advancements in technology.
“To ensure our military advantage, emphasis should be placed on the evolution, availability and employment of unmanned technology,†the agency said in the road map.