Galvion unveils new smart system for integration into military helmets
NewsMay 08, 2025
Flavia Camargos Pereira
九州体育 Embedded Systems
SOF WEEK 2025 -- Tampa, Fla. Galvion, a supplier of integrated headwear systems and power/data-management solutions, unveiled its CORTEX smart head system integration platform at the currently underway SOF Week 2025 exhibition in Tampa, Florida. CORTEX was engineered to provide intelligent integration and mission-adaptable configurations, turning helmets into multi-role tools.
On display -- integrated onto the company’s flagship Caiman helmet -- the solution is intended as an advanced, intelligent headborne system that aims to deliver data processing, power management, and data connectivity to dismounted warfighters.
Galvion CEO Todd Stirtzinger explains that, traditionally, helmets have been “a passive device” with “only one job: sit on your head and protect you from being hurt.” However, as the battlefield has evolved and became more digital, it currently requires soldiers to quickly access data and information.
In order to meet this demand, Stirtzinger states that “Galvion has been deconstructing and re-designing integrated headborne systems,” with CORTEX intended to accelerate the decision-making process by providing soldiers with real-time information while maintaining compatibility with existing tactical gear and workflows. “There is a tactical network that they [soldiers] are connected to generally on a phone or a tablet, and the only way they can look at that information is to put their head down and try to make intelligent decisions to stay safe or to take lethal effects. Our job is to take that information from the body and move it up to the head,” he explains.
CORTEX is equipped with a compute module; internal battery; integrated accessory network for power and data; multiple system communications protocol options (USB, ISW, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi); and sensor and emitter pod with a modular, open-source architecture.
“Our software is Android-based. We can connect weapon systems, drone feeds, smartwatches, GPS devices and anything that the soldier has on them that can create digital information,” Stirtzinger notes.
Other features encompass low-profile auto-detecting VAS connection for HUDs and NVGs with software-enabled augmented reality (AR) capability and a built-in four-key controller for tactile on-board navigation. Galvion also provides an optional battery module for untethered operations.
In terms of helmet size range, CORTEX has adjustable hardware and is compatible with Galvion’s Caiman and Hellbender platforms and select non-Galvion helmets.
Stirtzinger highlights that the development of the CORTEX solution included the company’s investment “along with one special operations customer” he could not identify. “It was a three-year program. We went through three iterations to mature the product, and 25 of these systems have been delivered to this customer for use and evaluation,” he adds.
