Robot goes to battle

Asendro slowly walked up the stairs and stopped in front of the closed door. Is there a bomb or armed terrorist group behind the door? That doesn't mean anything to Asendro, a fearless robot. He raised his hand, pressed the handle and opened the door to enter the room.

The German army is experimenting at a arena near the southern German city of Wurzburg with a model of Asendro - the latest generation of protective robots. At only 40kg, this lightweight robot looks like a toy tank. With their arms, this device can open doors and use their video eyes to spy on and investigate dangerous positions that people cannot reach.

The first Asendro robot built by Berlin's Robotwatch Company caught the eye of the German army when it introduced the first robot to join the security work of the 2006 World Cup. Under the new plan, Asendro did Its first major mission at the Hammelburg military school campus was north of Wurzburg, where the German army once held an exhibition of European ground robots (European Land Robot Exhibition - Elrob 2006).

Although the German military has been using drones for 30 years, they have little experience with on-board robots. Teodor, a robotic bomber that was used by the military and police in 30 countries, is currently the only 'steel soldier' of the German army. In June 2003, the robot produced by the Telerob factory in this near Stuttgart factory was noticed when it was used to remove a bomb from the main train station in the eastern city of Dresden.

The 'Asendro' robot model - a latest generation of protective robots - is being tested by the German army. At only 40kg, this lightweight robot looks like a toy tank (Photo: Asendro)

A new weapon

For other countries' military, the use of robot soldiers is also less common. The US military five years ago, when faced with the fierce resistance of the Taliban in its network of caves in Afghanistan, began bringing Packbot robots to explore military corridors. This robot was built by iRobot, an American company famous for its Roomba vacuum cleaner.

Robot soldiers are often used to dismantle mines and induction explosives (IED - improvised explosive devices). About one-third of the casualties of American soldiers at the Iraq battlefield are due to these weapons - they are often detonated by sensors that respond to motion sensors or are activated remotely by use a mobile phone. The recent remote control reconnaissance robots and fully automated transport vehicles have helped minimize these dangers.

Asendro robot caught the eye of the German army when participating in the 2006 World Cup security work (Photo: robotstocknews.blogspot.com)

More sophisticated, the Pentagon plans to develop a fully automated combat force in the coming years with a program called Future Combat System. In addition to small reconnaissance robots (SUGV-small reconnaissance robots), this system also includes transport systems called ' mules ' - which, like its name, will follow the army Duel and bring supplies and ammunition. Even transport vehicles and battle tanks are expected to be remotely controlled in the future. The estimated cost for this program is extremely large and will certainly be around $ 90 to $ 150 billion.

In order to promote the development of these robots, the US military has funded increasingly spectacular robotics competitions. For example, the goal of last year's Grand Challenge was to drive an unmanned vehicle, completely automated through a 131-mile route across the Mojave desert without using a remote control. The winning team completed the task in less than 7 hours and won a $ 2 million prize.

Teodor, a robot bomber that was used by the military and police in 30 countries (Photo: defence.gov.au)

Robot soldiers for Iraq

The US military is beginning to implement a major project to rapidly increase the number of troops by robots. The first robot army is expected to come out

Unmanned ambulance REV (Robotic Extraction Vehicle) carries a smaller second robot capable of taking the wounded out of the battlefield.

come on September 24. By the end of the year, 1,000 robots will " enlist ", and within the next 5 years there will be more than 2,000 more.

Small robots, weighing about 25kg or less, will be used primarily for exploration, reconnaissance missions - searching for their rebels and bombs. At the request of the US Government, military robots must be compact enough to be able to see into the windows of cars, and look under the car.

The government's request caused a fierce competition among robot manufacturers to win a contract to produce military robots.'The winner will be honored on September 14 with a contract to produce 101 robots. And the first robot must be delivered within 10 days' , Defense News said.

Due to the urgent demands of the US military, this order and purchase process is unusually fast. A series of robot tests has just been held in Redstone Arsenal, a US military base in the state of Alabama, before the official bid. Instead of a complicated process to become a competitor, bidders can register at Redstone. And the winner will be awarded a contract on the spot.

The military also has a number of small robots that can fit this requirement - from electromagnetic wave-driven trucks, to iRobot's Packbot machines. These robots, often considered too fragile for bomb clearance, seem to fit well with the government's requirements for compact robots.

New robot named Talon of the US military, has infrared eyes, 4 cameras, a headlight and is equipped with guns, is expected to be taken to Iraq next spring (Photo: foster-miller)

Thuc Phuong

TOY ALSO GIVE COMBINED

Toys are not useless, because the experience of the US military has proved this.In Iraq, US soldiers used small remote-controlled cars by electronics firm Radio Shack to protect themselves from explosive devices.They drove toy cars into the boxes they found on the road.If this toy cannot move the box, they will assume it can contain something heavier inside and will call a demining team.If the box moves, it means it's empty and they continue to walk safely.