Tactical mobile military robots

Robotics & Mechatronics

March 2011 Robotics & Mechatronics

iRobot and aerospace company Boeing have teamed up to develop the small unmanned ground vehicle (SUGV), a tactical mobile robot that gathers situational awareness in dangerous conditions while keeping warfighters and public safety professionals out of harm’s way. Weighing about 13 kg, it is lightweight and easy to carry and can be used for surveillance, reconnaissance, bomb disposal and explosives detection.

The first 30 SUGVs were recently delivered under a contract with the US Air Force for the service's Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team. This is the first order of an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract which runs through to September 2012.

"We are pleased to work with iRobot to enable Air Force EOD technicians to perform reconnaissance while reducing their exposure to unexploded ordnance," said Mike Huddleston, robotics programme manager for Boeing Network & Tactical Systems.

"Unmanned ground vehicles have been saving lives for years on asymmetric battlefields," said Robert Moses, president of iRobot's Government and Industrial Robots division. "SUGVs represent an important advancement in UGV technology because of their light weight and state of the art capabilities. They give warfighters the ability to deploy the robot at a moment's notice when faced with a variety of dangerous missions."

Boeing and iRobot developed the SUGV family of vehicles under a strategic alliance that began in 2007. The robot is designed to give warfighters real time awareness of critical situations and allow them to complete missions from safe standoff distances. SUGV is ideal for a variety of mission types, including EOD, route clearance and reconnaissance. As the prime contractor, Boeing provides programme management, contracts and quality control. iRobot is responsible for engineering, design, manufacturing, training and logistics services.

iRobot’s government and industrial robots protect those in harm’s way. Its consumer and military robots feature iRobot Aware robot intelligence systems, a proprietary technology incorporating advanced concepts in navigation, mobility, manipulation and artificial intelligence.

Boeing’s operations include the Ground-based Midcourse Defense programme and other missile defense work such as the Arrow system and the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 seeker. It is also associated with the Ares I crew launch vehicle, army integrated logistics, brigade combat team modernisation and engineering for the 787 and the P-8A Poseidon.

For more information visit www.irobot.com

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Tactical mobile military robots

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