Challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), transformation of modern armed forces and the ethical dilemma of robotic automation
Abstract
Introduction/purpose: The first industrial revolution used the power of steam and water for the mechanization of manufacturing. The second one used electricity for mass production. The third one used electronics and information technologies for the automation of production, while the fourth industrial revolution aims to enable erasing of the boundaries between the physical, digital and biological spheres in order to reach smart automation and increase the interconnection of system elements. Thus, previous industrial revolutions changed the way we work, the next one is changing the way we think. Our generation is privileged of being a contemporary of tectonic technological changes, a witness to changes that fundamentally convert production processes and relations in production, but also a witness to the changes that those products bring to the functioning of the mankind, from individuals to state organizations, including the military as well. The main goal of this paper is to indicate to the wider military academic community the need for coordination and interdependent development of combat systems, doctrine and structure of defence organizations.
Methods: This paper will use general scientific methods that are used, or can be used, to acquire scientific knowledge in all scientific fields and disciplines. We highlight the hypothetical-deductive method, the analytical-deductive method and the comparative method.
Results: (Increased) Еquipping with weapons and military equipment generated from the current technological revolution requires radical changes in the defence area, both in the combat component, i.e. changes of basic combat units that should optimally use these weapons (their doctrines, tactics, organization, training, etc.) as well as the administrative-bureaucratic component of the national defence system that deals with the procedures of weapons development, production and procurement, which should follow the fastest pace of innovation ever in the commercial industry area.
Conclusion: The authors would like to point out the interdependence between the emerging challenges of the 4IR and the directions of transformation of modern armed forces.
References
Armstrong, P. 2017. Disruptive Technologies: Understand, Evaluate, Respond, 1st Edition. New York, NY: Kogan Page. ISBN-13: 978-0749477288.
Bishop, C.M. 2006. Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning. New York, NY: Springer. ISBN: 978-0-387-31073-2.
Brinker, S. 2013. Martec’s Law: Technology changes exponentially, organizations change logarithmically. Chiefmatec.com [online]. Available at: https://chiefmartec.com/2013/06/martecs-law-technology-changes-exponentially-organizations-change-logarithmically/ [Accessed: 1 June 2023].
-Department of Defence US army. 2012. DOD directive 3000.09: Аutonomy in weapon systems. Washington Headquarters Services: Executive Services Directorate, 21 november [online]. Available at: https://www.esd.whs.mil/portals/54/documents/dd/issuances/dodd/300009p.pdf [Accessed: 1 June 2023].
-Headquarters Department of the US Army. 1990. Field Manual No. 21-18: Foot Marches. Elon.edu [online]. Available at: https://www.elon.edu/assets/docs/rotc/FM%2021-18%20Foot%20Marches.pdf [Accessed: 1 June 2023].
Hubin, G. 2012. La Guerre - une vision française. Paris: Economica. ISBN-13: 978-2717861525.
Miloradović, N. 2022. Nove tehnologije u izradi robotizovanih borbenih sistema: deca 4. industrijske revolucije. Odbrana, 361, pp.12-21 [online]. Available at: https://mod.gov.rs/multimedia/file/staticki_sadrzaj/mediji/2022/%D0%88%D1%83%D0%BD%202022/Odbrana361-str12-21.pdf (in Serbian) [Accessed: 1 June 2023].
Russel, S. & Norvig, P. 2016. Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach, 3rd Edition. Harlow, UK: Pearson. ISBN-13: 978-0136042594.
Schwab, K. 2016. The 4th Industrial Revolution: What It Means, How to Respond. GE.com, 17 January [online]. Available at: https://www.ge.com/news/reports/the-4th-industrial-revolution-what-it-means-how-to-respond [Accessed: 1 June 2023].
Sutton, R.S. & Barto, A.G. 1998. Reinforcement Learning: An Introduction (Adaptive Computation and Machine Learning) (Adaptive Computation and Machine Learning series), second edition. Cambridge, MA: A Bradforf Book, MIT press. ISBN-13: 978-0262193986.
-U.S. Army Acquisition Command (USAASC). 2022. Unstoppable plans. Army.mil [online]. Available at: https://asc.army.mil/armyalt/Summer2022/html/htmlArticles/index.html?origin=reader&page=88&article=/86_article.html [Accessed: 1 June 2023].
-U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. 2017. The U.S. Army Robotic and Autonomous Systems Strategy. Monthly Review (MR Online) [online]. Available at: https://mronline.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/RAS_Strategy.pdf [Accessed: 1 June 2023].
Copyright (c) 2023 Nenad M. Miloradović, Goran M. Vukadinović
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Proposed Creative Commons Copyright Notices
Proposed Policy for Military Technical Courier (Journals That Offer Open Access)
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).