The picture shows Finnish "Sentinel" ATM anti-tank mines. Data picture

  In recent years, information on the research, development and use of new anti-tank mines has frequently entered people's vision. At the end of last year, a Finnish company completed the delivery of another batch of "Sentinel" ATM anti-tank mines. It is said that the minefield composed of this mine can destroy opponents' tanks and "release" their own tanks.

  This mine is significantly different from traditional anti-tank mines.

  As we all know, anti-tank mines are explosive equipment designed specifically for attacking armored vehicles, especially tanks, and are mainly composed of detection and identification systems, control systems and warheads. Shock waves, metal jets or fragments generated by explosions can destroy the tracks, chassis, side or top armor of an armored vehicle, causing it to lose its mobility or be directly destroyed.

  The traditional anti-tank mine triggering device has relatively single functions, such as relying on mechanical pressure triggering, which is easily removed by a rolling minesweeper.

  The new anti-tank mine integrates multi-mode sensors and has multiple triggering methods. Taking the Russian PTKM-1R as an example, its acoustic and vibration sensors can detect armored targets within a range of 50 meters, and after calculating the ballistic, it fires sub-munitions into the air 30 meters. The sub-munition uses infrared and radar sensors to scan the ground. Once the target is found to have entered the strike range, it will immediately carry out a "top attack" strike. Similar technologies are also reflected in the ADW developed by Rheinmetall, Germany. This mine can detect targets through a variety of sensors such as vibration, acoustics, millimeter-wave radar, etc., and fire SMArt155 sub-munitions above the target, achieving the "top attack" of armor-piercing projectiles. During the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the Ukrainian army equipped PTM-1L anti-tank mines launched by drones with magnetic induction fuses, which can trigger detonation by sensing changes in magnetic field caused by armored vehicles passing by.

  Anti-tank mines are becoming smarter in recent years.

  Once a traditional minefield is deployed, it is difficult to adjust, especially the tactics that deploy anti-tank mines and anti-infantry mines, which makes this minefield become a "Jedi" once it is formed. In order to adapt to the reality of frequent offensive and defensive transformation, countries have begun to develop more "smart" anti-tank mines, and then create a controllable "smart minefield" to make anti-tank mines "all-regional controllable".

  The "Hornet" anti-tank mine developed by the United States can form an intelligent combat alert system together with audio sensor arrays and intelligent minefield control stations. The system can detect and collect target information in the minefield control area, analyze and judge independently, instruct landmines to enter combat state according to the situation, or issue attack orders to a landmine.

  After the new intelligent mines developed by the Russian military are deployed, the system can automatically draw a minefield map, and can be remotely controlled from the detonation time to the self-destruction time. This function allows it to detonate the enemy's attack in a timely manner during defense, or to prevent remote control of anti-tank mines from being detonated while its own attack, avoiding accidental injuries.

  It is said that Finland's "sentinel" ATM anti-tank mines can form a real-time and controllable minefield through networking. The mine location and changes will be displayed dynamically on the screen of the control unit. The operator can monitor the minefield status through the terminal and implement remote arming and disarming of the minefield.

  It is not difficult to see that the current intelligence of anti-tank mines refers to the controllable arming/disarming of minefields to a considerable extent. With the increasing maturity of artificial intelligence technology, future anti-tank landmines may have stronger autonomous operation capabilities in detecting, identifying and attacking targets. (Li Lun and Li Runxin)

[Editor in charge: Wang Jinzhi]