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The ULTRA AP (Armored Patrol) is a concept car that was unveiled in September 2005 by the Georgia Tech Research Institute, the applied research arm of the Georgia Institute of Technology, under contract from the Office of Naval Research. The Ultra AP was followed in 2009 by the ULTRA II, which was more focused on further developing the crew compartment.
The Ultra AP was reviewed in Rolling Stone magazine, Fortune Magazine, USA Today, and Car and Driver magazine other publications. Currently, the U.S. military and the Department of Defense was in the process of replacing the HMMWV or Humvee, because they were being fielded in situations they were not designed for, such as taking on small arms fire, rocket propelled grenades, and improvised explosive devices. The Ultra AP is a concept vehicle, and was not part of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle program to replace the Humvee.
It features an egg-shaped crew capsule nicknamed the "blast bucket". It is shaped to deflect blasts and bullets and act as a roll-cage if the vehicle flips. The four occupants sit back to back in a diamond arrangement so that they can see hazards from all directions, a suggestion from troops in the field. It also moves the occupants away from the wheels, which are typically what sets off a land mine. The Ultra AP includes race car technology from NASCAR engineers like multipoint safety harnesses and shock-absorbing seats mounted on Skydex, which is used to cushion the outfield walls of baseball stadiums. It also uses the latest in bulletproof glass and the newest light-weight armor technology.
The ULTRA concept had its vehicle genesis on the US Army TARDEC COMBATT Program, sponsored by the National Automotive Center. This program explored the use of commercial vehicle platforms as a fundamental building block of more rugged military vehicles. Michael Dudzik (GTRI) and David McLellan were principals in the early transition of the COMBATT achievements to the ULTRA platform. ULTRA was able to build upon the COMBATT results and explore revolutionary designs in the integration of armor and chassis systems for increased survivability.
Another key focus of the project was the protection provided by a replaceable sacrificial "blast wedge" that is bolted to the bottom of the vehicle. Constructed from welded steel armor, it absorbs and deflects energy from a blast, acting as a crumple zone.
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