Powering that gear is another acute challenge for the Marine Corps and its expeditionary missions. The average Marine’s kit is already weighed down with heavy battery packs, and the Corps is continuing a search for the perfect battery or mobile power source.
Rechargeable, disposable and solar-powered batteries, as well as other experimental technologies have all . But so far there’s no silver bullet.
“They are all trying to find the right technology that can provide very high energy for a long period of time but it also has to be lightweight,” said Yves Destenaves, a product manager with Acumentrics, a Massachusetts-based company that specializes in battery and power systems.
Acumentrics sells a 9-lb. battery system that is sewn into a standard Marine’s backpack with USB ports and traditional electrical-plug inputs accessible from the pack’s exterior and within reach for the warfighter.
