Friday, March 30, 2007
U.S. military to use explosive-sniffing robots to detect roadside bombs
Defense, Business
(Zeenews) - The US military -- increasing its reliance on robots in war -- soon will be using explosive-sniffing robots to better detect roadside bombs which account for more than 70 per cent of the US casualties in Iraq. 'Fido' is the first robot with an explosives sensor integrated into its body. Irobot Corp. is filling the military's first order of 100 in this southwest Ohio city and will begin shipping the robots over the next few months. There are nearly 5,000 robots in Iraq and Afghanistan, up from about 150 in 2004. Soldiers use them to search caves and buildings for insurgents, detect mines and ferret out roadside and car bombs.
As the war in Iraq enters its fifth year, the US government is spending more money on military robots and the two major us robot-makers have increased production. Foster-Miller Inc., of Waltham, Massachusetts, just delivered 1,000 new robots to the military. Irobot, of Burlington, Massachusetts, cranked out 385 robots in 2006, up from 252 in 2005. The government will spend a total of about USD 1.7 billion on ground-based military robots between fiscal 2006 and 2012, according to Bill Thomasmeyer, head of the National Centre for Defence Robotics, a Congressionally funded consortium of 160 companies, universities and government labs. That's up from USD 100 million in fiscal 2004.
Labels: Fido, Foster-Miller Inc., IED, Irobot Corp., roadside bombs, robots
