The Vetronics Research Centre (VRC) is the only Academic Centre of Excellence in the UK conducting research and training in the subject area of Vetronics (Vehicle Electronics), sponsored by the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) and supported by Defence Science Technology Laboratory (DSTL) and Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S).

Started in 2004, the VRC has acquired funding primarily to conduct innovative research in the field of Vetronics for Land Systems on behalf of the UK (MOD). Its purpose is to research future technologies and methodologies and disseminate the information to the government, academic, and defence industry in the UK.

The VRC has also conducted research in the field of Avionics and Commercial Automotive, and has helped defence industry companies to develop demonstrators and testbeds for future military vehicle designs, offering expertise in the latest vetronics technologies.

Research

We focus on specialised and targeted research to investigate new technologies and methodologies that can be applied in the immediate and near future. Almost all of our research programmes include a functional demonstrator deliverable that can give a practical hands-on experience of the output. These systems are designed in a modular fashion to make them re-usable for an extension of the programme or even in other related applications, allowing us to keep re-development costs down and have access to an ever increasing set of testing environments.

Training

The VRC conducts training courses on current and upcoming Vetronics technologies and architectures to disseminate our knowledge and experience within the Vetronics field. As a research centre we are closely working with, and participating in, a number of committees and working groups that design and define the systems and methodologies for future military vehicles and other platforms. Some of these technologies and specifications are MilCAN, TTP/C, TTEthernet, DDS, VSI Standards & Guidelines, Generic Vehicle Architecture (GVA), Digital Video Distribution (DEFSTAN 00-82).

Along with the current training courses, we can also provide to government bodies, industry companies, and individuals, bespoke training courses on theory and concepts combined with hands-on demonstration and practice with actual hardware and software platforms.