The Joint Electronics Type Designation System (JETDS), which was previously known as the Joint Army-Navy Nomenclature System (AN System. JAN) and the Joint Communications-Electronics Nomenclature System, is a method developed by the U.S. War Department during World War II for assigning an unclassified designator to electronic equipment. In 1957, the JETDS was formalized in MIL-STD-196.

Computer software and commercial unmodified electronics for which the manufacturer maintains design control are not covered.

Applicability

Electronic material, from a military point of view, generally includes those electronic devices employed in data processing, detection and tracking (underwater, sea, land-based, air and space), recognition and identification, communications, aids to navigation, weapons control and evaluation, flight control, and electronics countermeasures. The JETDS applies to equipment throughout the DoD and select NATO allies today. Over time it was extended to cover the Marine Corps and the Navy's ship, submarine, amphibious, and ground electronic equipment. When the Air Force was established as a separate department, it continued the use of the system for electronic equipment. JETDS was adopted by the United States Coast Guard in 1950, Canada in 1951 and the NSA in 1959 (though the NSA continued to use its own TSEC telecommunications security nomenclature). In 1957 the U.S. Department of Defense approved a military standard for the nomenclature, MIL-STD-196. The system has been modified over time, with some types (e.g. carrier pigeon -B-) dropped and others (e.g. computers and cryptographic equipment) added. The latest version, MIL-STD-196G, was issued in 2018. but the 1990s J/APG-1 is clearly different from the 1940s AN/APG-1 on the P-61B.

  • The Military of the Republic of China (Taiwan) uses a similar system with the "CS/" prefix. For example, CS/MPG-25 is a radar related to the AN/MPQ-46.

See also

  • List of military electronics of the United States
  • Signal Corps Radio early system
  • List of U.S. Signal Corps vehicles V-numbers
  • AWS color code for resistors and capacitors following AWS/JAN specifications
  • Army Nomenclature System naming system for items not classified as electronics
  • United States Department of Defense aerospace vehicle designation naming system also called MDS (Mission Design Series)

Notes

  • The US government's BINCS database currently assigns CAGE code 80058 to JETDS items.
  • The US government's system for input of Form DD-61 Request for Nomenclature is the Joint Electronic Type Designation Automated System (JETDAS).
  • MIL-STD-196
  • A detailed description of the system