Artillery control tablet "Krapiva" (Ukraine)

Ukrainian artillerymen with the Kropiva system

The effectiveness of a modern artillery complex is determined by the fire control system used and its capabilities. In this area, new software and hardware systems are being actively developed and implemented that are capable of processing incoming information and providing data for firing. A curious example of such a tool is the Ukrainian Kropiva system, which has become widespread.

Consistent development

In 2014, having started the war in the Donbass, the Ukrainian army faced a lot of problems and revealed various shortcomings in its preparation. In particular, it turned out that the artillery units did not have the necessary maps of the combat zone of the required quality and in the required quantities. The search for suitable solutions began.

Already in the summer of 2014, the volunteer organization "Army SOS" offered a program for tablet computers "Kropiva" (Ukrainian "Krapiva"). Initially, it was a simple package of Donbass maps without any additional features. This product, incl. along with the hardware, distributed in the artillery units of the punishers.

In the autumn of the same year, an improved version of the program was developed. It added the ability to perform various calculations, as well as a communication component. Now users could exchange data both via the Internet and using various radio stations. This began the development of "Nettle" as a full-fledged means of fire control, and not a simple replacement for maps.

The emergence of new functions contributed to a wider distribution of the system. Later, thousands of gadgets equipped with this program were reported. At the same time, Ukrainian artillerymen did not have time to use the full potential of Kropiva. In September 2014, the first Minsk Agreement was signed, as a result of which the intensity of hostilities dropped sharply. However, Ukrainian calculations continued to fire on the cities of Donbass, but in smaller volumes. Apparently, when organizing such attacks, tablets / smartphones with a control system were also used.

Extremely interesting events took place in August 2018. The volunteer organization-developer completely transferred the Krapiva system to the Ministry of Defense. The military was given all the source codes, documentation, etc. Further development of the software product was already carried out by the relevant organizations of the army. Probably, foreign specialists were also involved in these processes.

Actual experience

By the beginning of 2022, tablets with "Krapiva" remained widespread in Ukrainian artillery and remained the main means of their kind. Such means were equipped with units with different Soviet-made weapons. It was assumed that the possibility of fast calculations and network work would make it possible to more fully use the potential of the guns.

Already in the first months of hostilities, the Kiev regime suffered heavy losses in artillery and related equipment. In this regard, foreign states began to supply guns and other products. For the use of weapons and ammunition of NATO standards, "Krapiva" was updated by adding relevant data to it. In addition, the latest versions of the program can interact with foreign intelligence equipment - UAVs, radars, etc.

The "integration" of foreign designs takes curious forms. So, in June, the Beregini hacker group obtained and published a Ukrainian manual for the French CAESAR self-propelled howitzer. One of the chapters of this document is devoted to the joint use of foreign weapons and the Kropiva system. Apparently, the Ukrainian artillery does not have the ability to fully use the regular control systems of the "Caesar", and it has to make do with available means.

Gadgets with "Kropiva" predictably became the trophies of the Russian troops. Our experts have long studied the extracted software product, determined its features and capabilities, and also drew conclusions. An analysis of the Ukrainian program made it possible to more fully understand the capabilities and potential of Ukrainian artillery. In addition, it became possible to develop or improve means of countering enemy artillery and its controls.

Software Features

Ukrainian "Krapiva" is an application for the Android operating system. It can be installed on any gadgets with current versions of this OS. There are no special requirements for the device, but preference is given to products that have the ability to connect army-style radio stations. This is necessary to use the network capabilities of the program.

The Kropiva system includes an updated electronic map of a given area, available without a network connection. There is also a satellite navigation module. With their help, gunners must determine their location. Meteorological data are collected from available sources in automatic mode, if there is a connection. When a radio station is connected, network operation is possible. In this case, it is possible to receive data from the headquarters, from other devices with the Nettle, from reconnaissance UAVs and counter-battery radars.

Sample user interface in target selection mode

Independently or according to data from outside, the system operator determines and enters the coordinates of the target. The type of weapon and ammunition used is also entered. Then "Krapiva" independently, using all available information, calculates the data for firing, which can be transmitted to the calculations of the guns. Preparation for shooting with the help of such means takes minimal time.

The presence of a counter-battery combat mode is declared. In this case, the operator must, if possible, record the sound of the shot from the enemy and the direction to its source, as well as detect the moment the projectile falls. The distance to the firing position is determined by the interval between two sounds, and the direction to the first source allows calculating its approximate coordinates. Then they can be used to control "their" guns or transferred to another consumer.

Network-centric concept

In general, the Ukrainian-developed Kropiva artillery fire control system is of particular interest. It shows how it is possible to assemble an easy-to-use complex from ready-made components of various kinds, which can significantly improve the combat capabilities of any artillery systems. At the same time, the relative simplicity and cheapness of such a product contributed to its wide distribution.

It should be noted that the Ukrainian "Krapiva" is not a unique development. There are a number of programs of this kind with similar capabilities, developed by different countries and organizations. Despite all the differences, all of them are able to effectively solve the main tasks of preparing for firing - to determine their coordinates and the location of the target, calculate the aiming of guns, etc. Modern "manual" electronics are capable of performing complex calculations with high accuracy, incl. redundant for artillery.

With all this, the Ukrainian system is interesting in its approach to the integration of various means. It is compatible with common means and communication systems, through which it can interact with different sources of target designation and other tablets. In fact, we are talking about the formation of a network-centric system for data exchange and artillery control.

Integration of the "Krapiva" tablet into the general control loops

However, "Nettle" has noticeable drawbacks. So, for full-fledged use in the field, a ruggedized tablet computer is required. Such equipment in itself is characterized by an increased cost, and corruption characteristic of Ukrainian structures additionally increases costs and / or reduces the volume of purchases. In addition, not in all conditions and systems it makes sense to use a tablet.

Communication over existing Internet channels or via portable radios actually compromises network-centricity and other functions. The channels used can be suppressed or even disabled, which will exclude the receipt of any information from the outside - and worsen the results of calculations and fire. In addition, interception of information is possible with understandable consequences.

Idea and its implementation

The idea of ​​transferring specialized military programs to consumer electronics, smartphones and tablets, in general, is not new. In particular, ballistic calculators and more complex software products of various types have long existed and are actively used in various conflicts. A similar idea was implemented in Ukraine in the middle of the last decade, and the resulting control system was widely adopted.

However, the use and development of promising ideas had only a limited impact on the capabilities of Ukrainian artillery. As the current hostilities show, it is not only the controls that matter, but also the number of guns and the volume of ammunition. In addition, artillery must operate in conjunction with other branches of the military.

Artillery units of limited size, without sufficient supply and support from the outside, are at great risk and suffer predictable losses. No tablets with Nettle can affect this situation. Especially if on the other side of the front there is a modern army with developed and effective communication and control circuits and high firepower.

Comments

[Bolt cutter]

fix the sound of a shot from the enemy and the direction to its source, as well as detect the moment the projectile falls.

Don't projectiles travel faster than sound?

[Svetlana]

The speed at which the projectile flies does not play a role in the methods for calculating the location of the battery. The speed of sound in air matters.
..
During the Second World War, in the USSR, the location of German batteries was calculated from the sounds of shots using hefty sound pickups, slide rules, a compass and topographic maps.
One of the famous officers involved in this is Solzhenitsyn. For accurate detection, he received awards from the government of the USSR.

The math remains the same, only the tools have changed.

[single-n]

Not all. Mortar mines have a lower speed.

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

First, the time of the projectile burst is recorded, then the sound from the shot comes. But still, to determine the coordinates, at least three points with sound fixation are needed. Otherwise, only the distance to the enemy artillery position will be known, but not its coordinates.
And with mines, it can really be the other way around, first the sound of a shot, then a gap. Especially if the flight path is steep.

[single-n]

Back in the beginning, CBO showed how our fighters themselves wrote software for triangulation using ordinary phones. I don't know how effective the thing came out. And why are there no such regular stray.

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

Do you really believe what you wrote? Soldiers being on the line of clashes can write such software? If this was what the fighters did, then the fighters of the invisible front. To write such software, knowledge of mathematics alone is not enough, detailed specifications are needed, both for the operating system, and up to descriptions of the contents of the registers of certain microcircuits.
It will be difficult to get and read all this in the trenches.

[single-n]

Very different people called/went as volunteers. For example, I know one owner of a very good business. He went to the front as a volunteer. Do not confuse 18-year-old conscripts, who are afraid to entrust a shovel, and 35-year-old men. Many of which have universities and a dozen years of work experience. + they are not fighting on Mars. They all keep in touch with friends/colleagues. They also have an Internet. It depended more on the commanders. Will give the opportunity to develop and implement or not.

[single-n]

No need. There are different ways to determine coordinates. For example, on the basis and 2nd corners to the source. It has its limitations, but the method is working. Our vision works on a similar principle :) Although, of course, the more anchor points, the more accurate.

[Alexey RA]

Quote: Bolt Cutter

Don't projectiles travel faster than sound?

So, sound reconnaissance, like the entire AIR (except perhaps the RTR), already deals with the consequences - an enemy gun arrived at the OP and fired a projectile.
Hence the eternal race of gunners over time - to have time to detect, transmit coordinates, give out data for firing and shoot at the opened OP before the fired gun curls up and leaves it.

[Sergei Medvedev A]

On this principle, the counter-battery system worked in the Second World War. This is a passive system that cannot be detected. In contrast to the radar, although it has many advantages, but also a minus - the radiation of the station (hello cover)

[Wer best do]

I summarize:
A great thing that increases the accuracy of artillery at times, which we have been observing for a year and a half. But since Russian microelectronics is not able to produce something even remotely similar to a tablet, we will not have anything like that. Well, if it doesn’t, then we do the standard output - but we don’t need it!

The author's comments are excellent:

Artillery units of limited size, without sufficient supply and support from outside, are at great risk and suffer predictable losses.

Artillery suffers losses from counter-battery fire. You can ask General Popov how things are with us.
And the enemy has no problems with supplies - this summer they regularly post photos of our trenches dotted with craters.

No tablets with Nettle can affect this situation.

Here the author, like many of our propagandists, is desperately worried about the losses of the enemy, although it is our losses that increase from the increase in the accuracy of enemy artillery.

Especially if on the other side of the front there is a modern army with developed and effective communication and control circuits and high firepower.

I'm wildly sorry, but which side of the front is the modern army with the network-centric fire control system described in this article, and which side is the army of the 70s, transmitting orders by radio with the Uighur cipher and waiting for half an hour for permission from ten commanders to open fire on the enemy?

Yes, here you have to shout with a cry that we needed such a system yesterday!
But no - we have another article explaining that we do not have and will not have modern means of communication. We do not need these bourgeois pihnologii. We're kind of old fashioned. Mosinka and D-20 are our everything. So more reliable. It's going according to plan and ahead of schedule.

[cold wind]

Quote from Wer best do

since Russian microelectronics is not able to produce something even remotely similar to a tablet, we will not have anything like that

In general, the carrier does not play a role. Take any tablet and use. They cost pennies. Software is written in a year, another half a year for fine-tuning. It's a question of an elementary desire to work and understanding what to do.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine also use a similar system for air defense. The coordinates of the target are given on the tablet, the calculation of MANPADS, ZU / ZSU, air defense systems, etc., already shoot down the target themselves.

[Alexey RA]

Quote from cold wind

The Armed Forces of Ukraine also use a similar system for air defense. The coordinates of the target are given on the tablet, the calculation of MANPADS, ZU / ZSU, air defense systems, etc., already shoot down the target themselves.

Air defense tablets have been known since the Cold War.

The portable electronic tablet 1L15-1 provides timely notification of the anti-aircraft gunner about the location and direction of movement of air targets (from 1 to 4), indication of the movement trajectory and target ownership within a radius of 12,5 km. The PEP receives information about targets in the form of a codegram on the built-in radio receiver from the battery command post (BKP) or the command post (KP) of the anti-aircraft division.

An air defense system without centralized control, data output and target designation cannot work normally.

[SNK_92]

The question is why ours do not do this until now? Although again a rhetorical question in the air

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

If you have a tablet or smartphone with a disabled SIM card slot, then you can use it as a CAS (secret communication) box to connect to old analog radios and as a modem to connect to a wired line. You may need adapter cords with built-in amplifiers and lightning protection. Coding can be done programmatically, on the tablet or smartphone itself, only the digital "key" will be secret.
There would be a desire, but the implementation will not linger.
There are at least three ways to communicate on a tablet. There is built-in WiFi with Bluetooth, a USB connector and a headphone output, which can be used to connect to a radio station in the headset jack and to a wired phone via adapter cords with or without amplifiers.
There was an article recently where it was described that sailors use narrowband radio modems with a bandwidth of 1,2 to 19,2 kbps. The same can be done on land.

[Non-fighter]

But since Russian microelectronics is not able to produce something even remotely similar to a tablet, we will not have anything like that.

"Military tablet" is desirable but OPTIONAL. The program for Android is installed on any device that meets the technical requirements.

[Alexey RA]

Quote from Wer best do

A great thing that increases the accuracy of artillery at times, which we have been observing for a year and a half. But since Russian microelectronics is not able to produce something even remotely similar to a tablet, we will not have anything like that.

Be.
But it will either be official, long and expensive so much that it is easier to bury this tablet deeper in the KShM - so as not to be responsible for its damage or loss, which will inevitably arise after the device falls into the hands of personnel. Moreover, the MGH of this device will fully comply with the precepts of Boris Razor.
Or it will be fast, cheap and unofficial - because it is almost impossible to certify according to the norms of the Moscow Region an art notebook currently used at the front based on a cropped civilian smartphone or tablet. And without certification and adoption, it will be like in NM, where, before the NMD, according to the results of the exercises, the command demanded that the closed digital communication system of one of the units be dismantled - because it was not supposed to be out of order.

[CTABEP]

Artblock has long been written and installed on commercial tablets/smartphones. Yes, we do not have state support, but the functionality is also sufficient, better than a notepad and a calculator.

[Eug]

"... artillery must act jointly with other branches of the military."
As far as I know, "KropYva" (it sounds exactly like this in Ukrainian) allows this, the main thing is the provision of these military branches with tablets connected to the system. It has long been considered not an artillery fire control system (it is,
but as a part), but a situational awareness system. And the absence of a specialized "protected" tablet has its own advantages - no one bothers its owner with unnecessary financial responsibility. The system is especially effective when making a decision at the battery level - if the decision is made higher, it (the system) loses a lot of its effectiveness. They wrote that each gun has a positioning sensor, which also adds efficiency.

[1 z1]

The style of the article is anecdotal. To belittle everything that the enemy has and without giving any analysis, just draw a conclusion

the use and development of promising ideas had only a limited impact on the capabilities of Ukrainian artillery

This "limited influence" cost us hundreds of our guys' lives.

The idea of ​​transferring specialized military programs to consumer electronics, smartphones and tablets, in general, is not new.

what is of key importance

Further development of the software product was already carried out by the relevant organizations of the army

и

By the beginning of 2022, tablets with Nettle remained widespread

А

a modern army with developed and efficient communication and command and control circuits

meanwhile banned the use of her smartphones with ballistic calculators.

[Reluctant volunteer]

I love couch experts. Only he forgot to mention that the Ukrainians have just enough protected tablets, but with our corruption we definitely won’t see them, as well as some kind of normal application, so we will work in AlpineQuest and a flawed PUO ...

[Frettaskyrandi]

Artillery control tablet "Krapiva"

It is clear that it is very unpleasant to realize that the enemy has some kind of advantage, but the author’s tendency in this regard is somehow completely unhealthy, with a clear denial of reality.
In technical terms, "Krapiva" is not an artillery control tablet, but a tactical level control system designed to solve control tasks at the level - battalion - company - platoon - a separate combat unit.
Allows you to combine the means of observation, reconnaissance, fire destruction into a single information space and provide operational information on the battlefield online.
Since 2000 JSC "Concern Sozvezdie" has been developing a similar ACS TK system.
The system is constantly demonstrated at various exhibitions, and since 2018 it seems to have been supplied to the troops and, according to some rumors, is even used during the NWO.

[single-n]

We have developed a lot. But there is a problem with implementation. Because all this is not necessary for MO managers. Master the funds in production / development, and then either not let them into the series at all, or let them go but put them in the warehouse. So that the crooked-armed soldiers do not scratch the expensive weight. The main thing is that the funds have been spent in full and the report will contain clever words "network-centric", "real time", "single information space". Prizes have been received, medals have been hung up, and the result has not rested on anyone in a vegetable.
The main thing in the fire control system is the decision-making system, the methodology of interaction, AND THE DESIRE TO ACHIEVE RESULTS, and the element base is already a secondary matter. It was possible to buy Deshman tablets. In the history of wars, there are a lot of examples when good weapons were developed just off the knees from guano and sticks. And in our country, the very idea that it is possible to open fire at the direction of the sergeant caused a fit of hysteria in the former. Colonel of the General Staff. There is such a political instructor-expert. Trukhan. He was already shaking when he shouted: "Are we supposed to shoot from guns at the request of some sergeant !!". And it was already in the General Staff! What kind of network-centric war can we talk about with such personnel. I remember how he, in all seriousness, argued that there is no FRONT on the border of the Belgorod region, because it does not fall under the DEFINITION from the charter. There are not enough forces involved. Now, if 100500 million, then this is the front. And after a couple of months, the fighting began there. Apparently the APU did not know this.

[Svetlana]

Already in the summer of 2014, the volunteer organization "Army SOS" offered a program for tablet computers "Kropiva" (Ukrainian "Krapiva").
...
I don’t know how in Ukrainian, but in Russian it is Nettle

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

Maybe one of the reasons for the effectiveness of the Ukrainian counter-battery fight is the use of tablets as a means of sound intelligence? Perhaps they use them as widely as the means of radio intelligence (radar).

[Alexey RA]

Gadgets with "Kropiva" predictably became the trophies of the Russian troops. Our experts have long studied the extracted software product, determined its features and capabilities, and also drew conclusions.

EMNIP, Murz wrote that "Kropiva" was known in NM long before the start of the NWO. They knew about it, they used it, they chased it for it (reasonably assuming that the data on the coordinates of their batteries, entered into the licensed and activated enemy software, would flow to the other side), they reported about it "to the mainland". NM volunteers made their own analogues of Kropiva.
But until the fried rooster pecked, on the mainland they didn’t see art notebooks from cropped tablets with software for Android at point-blank range, preferring unmatched in the world equipment. Often lying in warehouses - because the thing is expensive, the prices are considerable, and if something is not paid off. And why does an artilleryman, who has been shooting from the same positions at the same firing range for years, need the operational development of data for firing - he already remembers everything by heart.

[avdkrd]

At the expense of requirements for secure tablets: why? In my opinion, this is the trick. Ukrainians groped for a very correct topic. They don’t produce their own protected 404 tablets and we don’t, but in war conditions, commercial tablets can saturate the troops, for a penny.
In the same China, you can buy tablets, phones of the previous generation very cheaply, while their technical parameters will be head and shoulders above those of the "protected" ones, but the difference in price will be twentyfold. Remove the native communication node from them and install your own, or provide switching with a secure connection. Boxing of physical protection, in the same China, costs a pittance. If you approach it systematically, you can get a truly massive command and control system, and without decades of development, as in our military-industrial complex. We need a regulation on "reverse conversion" and this could solve a bunch of problems. In artillery and infantry. Even without a constant, regular grid, you can solve a bunch of applied problems.

[cpls22]

Such systems, with all their unconditional advantages, have one weak spot. This is the input of the coordinates of firing positions according to the data of the satellite navigation system. If this data is jammed or distorted, then most of the benefits of such devices remain unavailable.
If this "Kropiva" is volunteer, and uses a civilian GPS, then all these arrivals in peaceful, white light, like a pretty penny, become clear. Apparently, numerous accurate arrivals at our positions are due precisely to long-range artillery, standing on positions with well-calibrated coordinates, due to the distance from the emitters of a distorting signal, or approved by satellite images with known coordinates in advance. It would be nice to calculate these points in advance, because they are not chosen spontaneously, according to the situation.

[Cympak]

There is no satellite navigation signal - determine your location on the map, the compass will help you.

[cpls22]

efficiency and accuracy will suffer, while the device itself is greatly depreciated.

[Beaver]

Perhaps ngsh does not use a tablet at home, so he thinks that this is all pampering

[Alexander Golotov]

For such a prompt introduction of an element of network-centric warfare after 30 years of total collapse and demoralization of the army of our enemy, one can only praise. Nettle in conjunction with aerial reconnaissance using simple drones is the basis for the effectiveness of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Simple, cheap, massive and easily accessible, but extremely effective means of warfare. If we were at war with the Armed Forces of Ukraine of the 2014 model, they would have ceased to exist. So their entire system built since 2014 has fully proven its effectiveness.

[JD1979]

Especially if on the other side of the front there is a modern army with developed and effective communication and control circuits and high firepower.

yes yes yes yes))) of course))) Who is the effective communication circuit there? Representative of the indigenous people of Siberia)))? Or a Chinese radeka?

The idea of ​​transferring specialized military programs to consumer electronics, smartphones and tablets, in general, is not new. In particular, ballistic calculators and more complex software products of various types have long existed and are actively used in various conflicts.

Yeah, it’s not new, and these same people are engaged in Russia ... enthusiasts, like in / on, because the MO sits on the priest exactly - they already have “everything is fine, a wonderful marquise”))) But the OMS and calculator it's still a little different thing.

It should be noted that the Ukrainian "Krapiva" is not a unique development. There are a number of programs of this kind with similar capabilities, developed by different countries and organizations.

But again, not in Russia.

[acetophenone]

No tablets with Nettle can affect this situation. Especially if on the other side of the front is a modern army with developed and efficient communication and command and control circuits and high firepower.

Oops! And what, the outskirts still had time to eat with someone and now - on 2 fronts?

[Jonny_Su]

Yes, in fact, Ukrainians were able to engage in a network-centric war before Russia due to defeats in the mid-2010s. The generals were not arrogant (several chiefs of the General Staff were changed at that time), society and the state understood that the army needed changes and new tools.