We have the unmanned combat assassination flying drones now the United States Army is one-step closer to deploying weaponized robots to the front lines of battlefields
General Robert Cone, the chief of the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command, said during a recent symposium that he thinks there’s a chance the size of the military’s brigade combat teams will shrink by a quarter in the coming years from 4,000 total troops down to 3,000. Picking up the slack, he said, could be a fleet of robotic killing machines akin to the ground versions of the unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, increasingly used by the world’s armies.
“They're not just tools, but members of the squad. That's the goal," added Lt. Col. Willie Smith, chief of Unmanned Ground Vehicles "A robot becoming a member of the squad, we see that as a matter of training ... I think there's more work to be done, but I'm expecting we'll get there."
The US Army Tank-Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) and weapons contractor Lockheed Martin first demonstrated earlier this month the Autonomous Mobility Applique System (AMAS) at Fort Hood in Texas. The technology gives full autonomy to convoy vehicles. The driverless system has shown the ability to “navigate hazards and obstacles including pedestrians, oncoming traffic, road intersections, traffic circles and stalled and passing vehicles,” Wired reported.
Lockheed Martin integrated sensor technology and control systems with Army and Marine tactical-vehicle capabilities for AMAS, which the powerhouse weapons maker began in 2012 under an initial US$11 million contract. The versatile AMAS “is installed as a kit and can be used on virtually any military vehicle,” according to Lockheed.
Developers at Boston Dynamics, an engineering company specializing in robotics, have released video of an untethered robot capable of standing and mobilizing on its own. WildCat is a four-legged outdoor runner capable of rising, turning, and reaching running speeds up to 16 mph on flat ground. The project is part of the Maximum Mobility and Manipulation Program funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
The Protection Ensemble Test Mannequin, or “PETMAN,” for short, is a bipedal robot that has been displayed during previous tests as having the ability to climb stairs and even do pushups. The robot, adds the scientists, can balance itself, move freely, walk and do a variety of suit-stressing calisthenics. The robot will have the shape and size of a standard human, making it the first anthropomorphic robot that moves dynamically like a real person. Scientists have programed the robot to “simulate human physiology.” to mimic human sweating and switch its body temperature like a real-life soldier might do while on the field. So with PETMAN being able to do all of that and then some, what does DARPA have planned next? "It's going to be used for chasing people across the desert, I would imagine. I can't think of many civilian applications - maybe for hunting, or farming, for rounding up sheep,” Noel Sharkey, professor of artificial intelligence and robotics at the University of Sheffield, told the BBC . "But of course if it's used for combat, it would be killing civilians as well as it's not going to be able to discriminate between civilians and soldiers,” he said.
HDT’s Protector is not able to shoot on demand, but able to carry 750 pounds successfully up inclines of 45 degree grades — a tough task for even the most physically fit soldier.
Northrop Grumman’s Carry-all Mechanized Equipment Landrover — or CaMEL — can identify targets from 3.5 kilometers away by honing in with the help of a telescope and thermal imaging software. Once a machine like the CaMEL catches a target in its sight, a soldier — either a few feet away or operating remotely on the other side of Earth — gives the robot the go-ahead to open fire.
Taken from here and its links
General Robert Cone, the chief of the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command, said during a recent symposium that he thinks there’s a chance the size of the military’s brigade combat teams will shrink by a quarter in the coming years from 4,000 total troops down to 3,000. Picking up the slack, he said, could be a fleet of robotic killing machines akin to the ground versions of the unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, increasingly used by the world’s armies.
“They're not just tools, but members of the squad. That's the goal," added Lt. Col. Willie Smith, chief of Unmanned Ground Vehicles "A robot becoming a member of the squad, we see that as a matter of training ... I think there's more work to be done, but I'm expecting we'll get there."
The US Army Tank-Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) and weapons contractor Lockheed Martin first demonstrated earlier this month the Autonomous Mobility Applique System (AMAS) at Fort Hood in Texas. The technology gives full autonomy to convoy vehicles. The driverless system has shown the ability to “navigate hazards and obstacles including pedestrians, oncoming traffic, road intersections, traffic circles and stalled and passing vehicles,” Wired reported.
Lockheed Martin integrated sensor technology and control systems with Army and Marine tactical-vehicle capabilities for AMAS, which the powerhouse weapons maker began in 2012 under an initial US$11 million contract. The versatile AMAS “is installed as a kit and can be used on virtually any military vehicle,” according to Lockheed.
Developers at Boston Dynamics, an engineering company specializing in robotics, have released video of an untethered robot capable of standing and mobilizing on its own. WildCat is a four-legged outdoor runner capable of rising, turning, and reaching running speeds up to 16 mph on flat ground. The project is part of the Maximum Mobility and Manipulation Program funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
The Protection Ensemble Test Mannequin, or “PETMAN,” for short, is a bipedal robot that has been displayed during previous tests as having the ability to climb stairs and even do pushups. The robot, adds the scientists, can balance itself, move freely, walk and do a variety of suit-stressing calisthenics. The robot will have the shape and size of a standard human, making it the first anthropomorphic robot that moves dynamically like a real person. Scientists have programed the robot to “simulate human physiology.” to mimic human sweating and switch its body temperature like a real-life soldier might do while on the field. So with PETMAN being able to do all of that and then some, what does DARPA have planned next? "It's going to be used for chasing people across the desert, I would imagine. I can't think of many civilian applications - maybe for hunting, or farming, for rounding up sheep,” Noel Sharkey, professor of artificial intelligence and robotics at the University of Sheffield, told the BBC . "But of course if it's used for combat, it would be killing civilians as well as it's not going to be able to discriminate between civilians and soldiers,” he said.
HDT’s Protector is not able to shoot on demand, but able to carry 750 pounds successfully up inclines of 45 degree grades — a tough task for even the most physically fit soldier.
Northrop Grumman’s Carry-all Mechanized Equipment Landrover — or CaMEL — can identify targets from 3.5 kilometers away by honing in with the help of a telescope and thermal imaging software. Once a machine like the CaMEL catches a target in its sight, a soldier — either a few feet away or operating remotely on the other side of Earth — gives the robot the go-ahead to open fire.
Taken from here and its links
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