The muzzle response is the main feature affecting the firing accuracy of weapons. To research the muzzle response characteristics of small unmanned ground vehicles with small arms (SUGVsSA) during shooting, this paper designs a test method that combines an inertial measurement system (IMS) with a high-speed photogrammetric system (HSPS) to measure the muzzle response. That is, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) is fixed onto the gun body to record the three-dimensional angular motion of the barrel; meanwhile, a high-speed camera is used to capture the characteristic markers of the unmanned ground vehicle from the side. After data processing, the muzzle response curves during four consecutive firings when the vehicle is running at different speeds and firing angles are obtained. Considering the presence of noise in muzzle response signals, the wavelet threshold de-noising (WTD) algorithm based on a novel variable threshold function is used to de-noise the test signal. The processing results demonstrate that the WTD algorithm based on the novel variable threshold function can not only suppress noise in the muzzle response signal but also retain the local details of the signal. The combination of the IMS and HSPS complements the muzzle response data and can comprehensively and accurately reflect the muzzle response characteristics of SUGVsSA. As the vehicle speed and firing angle increase, the muzzle vibration intensifies, only when the vehicle speed is 0.3 m/s, and the muzzle maximum elevation angle displacement after each firing decreases when it is stationary. The results presented in this paper may provide a workable reference for understanding the muzzle response characteristics of SUGVsSA and evaluating the firearm compatibility of other unmanned systems.

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To promote the development of unmanned ground vehicles, it is very necessary to establish a scientific and reasonable evaluation system for unmanned ground vehicles. This paper analyses the structure and operation of unmanned ground vehicles, and also proposes a multi-attribute comprehensive evaluation system for unmanned ground vehicles. Based on six aspects including environment perception, communication command, behavioural decision-making, human-computer interaction, weapon system and mobile platform, a new evaluation indicator system is established. In the quantitative process of qualitative indicators, Z-number theory is introduced to better describe the uncertainty degree of judgment and reasoning in human’s understanding of complex things. In order to make the indicator weights more scientific, the combined weighting model with analytic hierarchy process and information entropy is adopted for weight analysis, which not only takes into account the influence of evaluation experts on weights, but also reduces the subjective arbitrariness of weights. The least-squares grey relational analysis method is used to analyse the correlation between the comparison series and the reference series, and a comprehensive quantitative evaluation result of the unmanned ground vehicles is obtained. The evaluation examples of unmanned ground vehicles show that the proposed evaluation system can quantitatively evaluate the overall technical performance of unmanned ground vehicles. This evaluation system has high reference value for the evaluation of other complex weapons.