OREANDA-NEWS. Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) has developed the Envoy™ software solution to quickly and affordably integrate newer weapons onto legacy aircraft.

Integration of non-Universal Armament Interface (UAI) weapons was previously expensive and time consuming, requiring changes to aircraft operational flight programs – a very costly process that can take years. Envoy, formerly known as Interface Bridge, will provide numerous integration options for UAI weapons without costly hardware changes.

Envoy has been completely funded by Raytheon to provide more affordable, easier integration. It is adaptable across various platforms, carriage systems and platform-to-weapon interfaces.

"The Envoy software solution is a real breakthrough for weapons integration," said Mike Jarrett, Raytheon Air Warfare Systems vice president. "With Envoy, today's state-of-the-art weapons can be easily and affordably integrated into legacy aircraft worldwide."

Envoy can be implemented across various platforms and current bomb rack systems. The software has already been demonstrated on F-16 and F-18 fighter aircraft. Work is underway for integration on the MQ-9 and other international aircraft.

About Envoy
Envoy™, previously described as the Interface Bridge, is adaptable software and an optional hardware suite that will provide a communication bridge between MIL-STD-1760 and Miniature Munition Store Interface (MMSI) weapon interfaces. This functionality will allow legacy platforms to communicate with new, UAI type weapons. Envoy allows conversion between the physical layer (MIL-STD-1760 / MMS), and converts legacy interfaces into the UAI message set so that advanced weapons can receive initialization and tasking messages.

About Raytheon
Raytheon Company, with 2015 sales of $23 billion and 61,000 employees worldwide, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, civil government and cybersecurity solutions. With a history of innovation spanning 94 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems  integration, capabilities in C5I (command, control, communications, computing, cyber and intelligence), sensing, effects and mission support services. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Mass.