---
title: "US Army Experimenting With “Cartridges” That Upgrade Tank Capabilities"
description: "The US Army is developing a system that would allow it to upgrade and enhance its tanks just by plugging in a new cartridge."
date: "2021-05-12"
modified: "2021-05-12"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/army-cartridges-upgrade-tank"
categories:
  - "Robots and Machines"
tags:
  - "military technology"
  - "tanks"
  - "the digest"
---

# US Army Experimenting With “Cartridges” That Upgrade Tank Capabilities

![The US Army is developing a system that would allow it to upgrade and enhance its tanks just by plugging in a new cartridge.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/army-cartridges-upgrade-tank.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: \<a href="https://pixabay.com/photos/tank-abrams-m1-us-tank-abrams-tank-1530098/" target="\_blank"\>Image via Pixabay/Futurism\</a\>\</em\>*

## Plug and Play

The United States Army is developing a new system that would allow it to upgrade tanks and keep them relevant to evolving battlefields without needing to tear them down and replace complex, interwoven components.

The new approach, [which *C4ISRNET* described](<https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/2021/05/11/the-army-is-making-tank-upgrades-as-simple-as-switching-video-game-cartridges/>) as plug-and-play "cartridges," would make enhancing a tank's capabilities about as simple as installing a new graphics card on your computer or even swapping out the game cartridges in a Nintendo 64. Military technology is [developing at a blinding pace](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/russia-first-military-unit-killer-robot-tanks>), so being able to swap out new upgrades means the Army would no longer need to rely on the same tech for decades at a time and risk falling behind.

## Trimming the Fat

It doesn't take much imagination to understand why a modular, standardized technology platform would make things easier on the military. The CMOSS system that's under development by the Army C5ISR Center would make use of the many redundancies already built into a tank — there are already plenty of GPS receivers, processors, and other tools in its existing components — instead of introducing more.

“In the past, systems were integrated in a stovepipe manner," Jason Dirner from C5ISR told *C4ISRNET*. "And so as a result, you had a lot of unnecessary, redundant equipment on the platform: antennas, processors, displays. And as a result, you essentially had consumed all of the size, weight, and power \[SWaP\] that was available."

Cutting down on those excesses and being able to upgrade tanks on the fly would make a huge difference, *C4ISRNET* reports, as the Army currently needs to plan years or even decades in advance as it develops and acquires new tanks — the plug-and-play enhancements would permit it to be much more flexible and adaptable down the road.

**READ MORE:** [The Army is making tank upgrades as simple as switching video game cartridges](<https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/2021/05/11/the-army-is-making-tank-upgrades-as-simple-as-switching-video-game-cartridges/>) \[*C4ISRNET*\]

**More on tanks:** *[Soldiers Named a US Army Tank "Crippling Depression"](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/soldiers-named-us-army-tank-crippling-depression>)*

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)