| The FN Herstal Black Box is an electronic system for efficient weapons operations and maintenance logistics. Taking advantage of innovative technologies, FN Herstal has designed and built an easy to use Black Box that acts as a weapon manager for efficient protection in day-to-day operations. The FN Black Box detects, discriminates, counts shots, measures burst rates and burst lengths, records firing sequences and detects stoppages due to failures to cycle. Storing such information allows preventive maintenance and facilitates corrective maintenance, which greatly increases weapon reliability and availability. The FN Black Box can also communicate useful information to the chain of command during a mission. It contains the identification number of the weapon and, thus, can indirectly identify the soldier. When coupled to a GPS, it can transmit its identification and localization data to the upper level of the command through the communication equipment of the soldier. The FN Black Box is a molded module that fits in any weapon type. It features a non-replaceable battery that has a service life of 10 years and a recording capacity of 100,000 rounds. The FN Black Box - just like the Fire Control Unit - is part of an expanded global solution under development by FN Herstal. Known as Armatronics™, it is a fully integrated system of electronic solutions mounted on or inside a weapon. Additional enhancements for increased functionality to the system are on the horizon as new technologies are explored. |