Integrated Technology Takes Night Vision To A New Level
The L3Harris ENVG-B Night Vision Goggles, arms soldiers with superior abilities to target, engage and neutralize threats, enhancing mission success and operator safety. The ENVG-B is a helmet-mounted, dual-waveband goggle with industry-leading, fused white phosphor and thermal technologies.
(Photo Credit : Courtney Bacon)
A Soldier from the 2-506, 101st Airborne Division don the Enhanced Night Vision Goggle (ENVG-B), Nett Warrior, and Family of Weapons Sight – Individual (FWS-I) during a live fire test event at a Soldier Touchpoint at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD
(Film Credits : Sgt. Jerod Hathaway)
2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry DivisionFootage showing Soldiers assigned to 2nd Battalion, 17th Field Artillery firing M198 Howitzers during night time on May 5th, 2021 and footage demonstrating different modes and settings for the ENVG-B on May 6th, 2021 at Yakima Training Center, Wa.
“The ENVG-B is leaps and bounds beyond what we have now, it's really impressive technology”
Added range, even from cover and concealment
The FWS-I optic feeds the view of the weapon sight into the ENVG-B goggle display, allowing Soldiers to accurately identify and engage targets at increased ranges without physically being face to face and without the need for a laser.
“The FWS-I is mounted in front of the Soldier’s day optic on their M4, which allows you to passively engage targets in a multitude of ranges out to the max effective range of the weapon,” said Kelso. “You can actually detect targets beyond 600 meters, so past where you could effectively engage with an M4.”
The increased range of the optic will allow targets to be identified at farther distances than ever before.
“It's pretty cool to be able to put my head down and engage targets without actually compromising cover,” said Williams. “I could stay completely behind cover, my eyes and head not even looking in the direction of the target, and utilize my FWS-I pumped into the ENVG-B and effectively engage my targets that way.”
The night vision devices were developed by L3Harris to deliver imagery and data from the battlefield directly to the soldier’s eye. The system includes a new, high-resolution display and an embedded soldier wireless personal area network, rapid target acquisition and augmented reality algorithms to interface with the Army’s Nett Warrior.
The complete system will interface with the Army’s family of weapon sights, while enhancing interoperability and data sharing. • The ENVG-B displays a higher-resolution image than previous night vision devices. • The goggles also include augmented reality capabilities and allow soldiers to see wirelessly through weapon sights.
“The white phosphor fused with the thermal overlay helps a lot as well,” said SGT William Williams, 3BCT, 2-506, 101st Airborne. “The good thing about it is the mode that may work best for me, may not work for one of my Soldiers.
So in situations where you're not getting a lot of ambient light you can crank the thermal up and really see anything that picks up heat or puts off a heat signal.”
The Big Picture
Together the integrated kit delivers the increased situational awareness, communication, and lethality to save lives and ensure undeniable near peer overmatch.
“It has definitely grown on me,” said Williams. “At first I didn't like it at all. I was like, just give me the NODS and let's go on, but it has grown on me and in certain situations I think it can help save lives and win the fight.”
Nearly 5,000 ENVG-Bs have been fielded thus far per an Army Directed Requirement. In parallel, the ENVG-B Program of Record has entered Low Rate Production and continues to prepare for its next major test event involving Soldiers in May at Fort Polk, LA. Nett Warrior will be tested with 2nd Cavalry Regiment in April followed by its fielding to 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team 25th Infantry Division in July 2021.