military robots

ABSTRACT:
Everyone knows that being a soldier is a dangerous job, but some of the tasks that soldiers are required to do are more dangerous than others. Walking through minefields, deactivating unexploded bombs or clearing out hostile buildings, for example, are some of the most dangerous tasks a person is asked to perform in the line of duty.
What if we could send robots to do these jobs instead of humans? Then, if something went wrong, we'd only lose the money it cost to build the robot instead of losing a human life. And we could always build more robots.
The U.S. military has been developing robotic systems for all sorts of jobs for years now, and some of them are even on the front lines in Iraq . In this article, we'll meet some of the military's latest robot soldiers, find out what sorts of jobs they can do and get a glimpse of what the future holds for military robots.
Now, let's get started.

PRESENT USE : The term “robot” is often a misnomer in the present day to refer to these machines, since while a robot performs "autonomous or preprogrammed tasks" most "robots" in current use are in fact remote controlled by a human operator and have no automation or intelligence, due to the limitations of current artificial intelligence.
Robots are used increasingly in wartime situations to reduce human casualties, being used for a mix of both combat against the enemy and non-combat roles such as scouting and bomb disposal . At present stages robot casualties are less financially damaging than human, SWORD taking $230,000 to produce while the average cost of a U.S. soldier from enlistment to internment is $4,000,0 Developments
DEVELOPMENTS:

Defense contractors in the USA are hard at work developing autonomous "robot soldiers", but most current models look more like tanks than humans. There are problems with threat recognition and response; some models will not shoot cows with guerillas crouched behind them, but will fire at anything stenciled with an AK-47 silhouette.

BASIC TRAINING:
The military doesn't use the kinds of humanoid assault robots we've come to expect from films like "The Terminator." Whether or not a robot looks like a human doesn't matter much in today's military applications. Robots come in many shapes and sizes, and although there isn't really any single definition of a robot, one common definition is this: a machine that is controlled, in whole or in part, by an onboard computer. Robots also have sensors that allow them to get information from their surroundings, some form of locomotion and a power source.

If military robots aren't shaped like humans, what shapes do they come in? It depends on the kinds of jobs the robot is built to carry out. Robots that have to negotiate difficult terrain use tank treads. Flying robots look pretty much like small airplanes. Some robots are the size of trucks, and they look pretty much like trucks or bulldozers. Other, smaller robots have a very low profile to allow for great maneuverability.
Today's military robots don't do a whole lot on their own. Their computer brains aren't very sophisticated in terms of artificial intelligence (AI). AI is a form of computer program that allows the robot to process information and make some decisions on its own. Instead of independent AI, most military robots are remote-controlled by human operators. The military doesn't usually use the term "robot" -- it calls them unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
One other important thing to remember about military robots: Robots designed to help soldiers on the battlefield have to be carried onto the battlefield by those soldiers. For that reason, robot builders try to design "man-portable" designs. A man-portable robot can be carried by a single soldier, usually in a special backpack.
Small Bots: TALON:
The most common robots currently in use by the military are small, flat robots mounted on miniature tank treads. These robots are tough, able to tackle almost any terrain and usually have a variety of sensors built in, including audio and video surveillance and chemical detection. These robots are versatile, with different sensor or weapon packages available that mount to the main chassis. Virtually all of them are man-portable.
TALON
The TALON is a man-portable robot operating on small treads. It weighs less than 100 lbs (45 kg) in its base configuration. TALON is designed to be very durable -- one of the robots reportedly fell off a bridge and into a river in Iraq . Some time later, the soldiers set up the TALON's control unit and simply drove it out of the river . That brings up another important feature of the TALON -- it's amphibious .
TALON is operated with a joystick control, has seven speed settings (top speed is 6 feet/1.8 meters per second) and can use its treads to climb stairs, maneuver through rubble and even take on snow.
Versatility has been designed into the TALON as well, with multiple possible configurations available that adapt the robot to the situation at hand. The basic TALON includes audio and video listening devices and a mechanical arm. A lightweight (60-lb/27-kg) version omits the arm. TALONs were used for search and rescue at WTC Ground Zero, and they have been used in Bosnia , Afghanistan and Iraq for the disposal of live grenades, improvised explosive devices and other dangerous explosives.
Recently, the TALON was prepared to take on an even bigger role. All TALONs are now equipped with chemical, gas, temperature and radiation sensors. The military is even running tests on TALONs that carry guns. "TALON robots can be configured with M240 or M249 machine guns or Barrett 50-caliber rifles," according to manufacturer Foster Miller.

Big Bots: ACER
Larger military robots are basically trucks or tanks with computers in them, operated by remote control.
ACER(Armored combat engineering robot) :
ACER is another robot made by Mesa Robotics. This robot is about the size of a small bulldozer or a Zamboni.
ACER can handle many heavy-duty tasks, such as clearing out explosives with a mechanical arm, clearing and cutting obstacles down with a plow blade or a giant cutter, pulling disabled vehicles (up to and including buses), hauling cargo in a trailer and serving as a weapons platform. This robot can roll along with a mine-sweeper attached to the front, clearing a field of anti-personnel mines before any humans have to walk there.
One of ACER's more innovative uses is as a firefighting/decontamination platform. Equipped with a pan-and-tilt nozzle, ACER can pull its own supply of foam retardant or decontaminant in a 350-gallon (1,325-liter) tank. A nozzle can also be mounted on a mechanical arm for very precise aiming.

Flying Bots: Global Hawk and Pointer
The military uses several different flying robots, mainly for reconnaissance . Instead of UGVs, these are known as UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), and they are sometimes referred to as drones . UAVs look like model aircraft, and they range in size from small planes that can be held by a person and launched with a good throw, like the FQM-151 Pointer, to full-size airplanes that operate by remote control, like the RQ-4A Global Hawk.

Flying Bots: Predator:
Reconnaissance plays a key role in military planning -- drones help military commanders keep track of their own troops and also spot enemy troops that might be waiting to ambush soldiers.
Flying robots like the Predator provide constant real-time data on troop movements, enemy locations and weather. In at least one case, a flying robot did a lot more than just spot the enemy: Predators can be fitted with Hellfire missiles, and when one of these Air Force drones spotted an anti-aircraft gun in southern Iraq in March 2003, it used one of the Hell fires to take it out.


CONCLUSION:
Here after we conclude that military robots are certainly essential to save the mankind from the humanoid assault activities.