The Challenge:

CBRN reconnaissance still relies heavily on fragmented, isolated sensors and manual reporting chains. The German Armed Forces have already fielded a wide range of proven radiological and chemical sensors across the force, but many of these sensors are not connected to digital reporting structures.

As a result, measurements must be read from the device by hand, manually converted into reports, and transmitted by voice or on paper. This process can take hours. During that time, soldiers may remain exposed to hazardous substances or an active combat environment, while the risk of transcription errors and conversion mistakes increases. At the same time, situational awareness is delayed across echelons — from the individual soldier and squad leader to higher-level commands.

The capability already exists in the field — but it remains analog, fragmented, and disconnected.

The Approach:

Project Q creates a continuous digital sensor-to-decider chain without replacing fielded sensors. Legacy sensors are electrically connected through Sensor Connectivity Devices, which act as gateways between the sensors and Hydris.

Hydris integrates and processes the sensor data, provides real-time situational awareness at soldier and squad leader level, transforms mission-relevant detections into NATO-standardized CBRN messages, and orchestrates their exchange into existing CBRN analysis and battle management systems.

The Setup:

Sensor Connectivity Device: Integrates fielded sensors electrically and provides the gateway to man-worn smartphones and the central Hydris compute instance.

Hydris deployed at the edge: The Hydris instance on an Android smartphone displays measurements instantly and creates NATO-standardized CBRN reports.

Hydris integrates with BMS: The Hydris instance on a Windows laptop interfaces with fielded CBRN and Battle Management System (BMS) applications.

The Outcome:

Digitizing the reporting chain reduced the time from measurement to report from hours to minutes. Soldiers no longer have to remain exposed to hazardous substances or an active combat environment for extended periods while reports are processed manually. Human errors and conversion faults dropped to zero, and the Android app enables direct plausibility checks of measurements in the field.