Australia avanza en el proyecto de camiones autónomos

Autonomous Truck Project Passes Major Milestone

Australian Army to develop autonomous trucks (photo : Aus Army)


A $3.5 million Australian Army project to develop a convoy of autonomous trucks that use technology to follow the leader has passed a key milestone by successfully completing a series of road trials.

The autonomous leader-follower vehicle technology, using modified Land 121 40M cargo trucks, was developed under a contract between the Institute for Intelligent Systems Research and Innovation (IISRI) at Deakin University, and Army’s Robotic and Autonomous Systems Implementation and Coordination Office (RICO).

The trials took place over a two-week period at Defence’s Trials and Proving establishment at Monegeetta, Victoria, and involved a five-vehicle convoy.

Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price said the development of robotic and autonomous systems were vital to meeting Australia’s future operational challenges, including for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, and in combat operations.

“The completion of this assessment within one year of the allocation of the funding demonstrates the strong industry and Defence partnerships in experimentation, prototyping and exploration of autonomous vehicle and new technologies,” Minister Price said.

“These technologies are ‘disruptive technologies’ that provide marked advantages on the modern battlefield by bolstering ADF capability while protecting Australian personnel.

“This is exactly the type of capability that the Morrison Government announced in the four new Sovereign Industrial Capability Priorities which will help to build a robust, resilient and internationally competitive defence industry in Australia.”

Army, through RICO, continues to work with IISRI and the Australian Road Research Board on the potential transfer of the capability testing onto public roads with further refinement, performance enhancement and understanding of road rules.

“There are a number of technical and regulatory challenges to address to get these platforms into common use,” Minister Price said.

“The ongoing efforts will enable Army to navigate these challenges.”


Ministerio de defensa de Australia

Robots antibomba españoles para Tailandia

Kingdom of Thailand Incorporates Seven Explosive Deactivation aunav.NEXT Robots

 


04 Desember 2020

NEX robot (all photos : aunav)


Kingdom of Thailand has incorporated seven units of the aunav.NEXT robot. Developed and manufactured entirely in Spain, its two synchronized arms make it unique on the market.

The customer, an active counter-terrorism unit, was also supplied with seven aunav.VAN command and control vehicles, the rapid intervention and transport unit developed to meet the needs of CBRN and explosive deactivation units.

This operation gives recognition in Thai market, which expands the brand’s presence in Asia. The continent´s security forces in countries such as Vietnam, China, and India already trust aunav robots. aunav has more than 200 units sold in 16 countries worldwide.



This acquisition allows the counter-terrorism unit to neutralize possible threats in various southern provinces of the country. The aunav.NEXT robot combined with the aunav.VAN units enhance the ability of the customer to safely disable improvised explosive devices hidden in motorcycles or other vehicles.

Spanish technology that helps save lives

The aunav.NEXT robot is developed in Spain in collaboration with bomb squad units. It is specifically designed for the deactivation of improvised explosives (IED), ammunition control (EOD), or CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) activities. It is an advanced system that effectively combines strength and dexterity thanks to its two synchronized arms, capable of lifting up to 250 kg.



The aunav.VAN is a light transport and rapid intervention vehicle, specifically designed to meet the operational needs of aunav robots as a control center unit at the intervention site.

aunav is part of the Robotics Unit of everis Aerospace, Defense and Security (everis ADS), and designs and manufactures all its products in Spain, at the production center located in Binéfar (Huesca).

Aunav

Singapur presenta su robot armado

ST Kinetics Unveils Weaponised Probot

The Weaponised Probot is based on the Israeli-made Probot logistics and medical evacuation unmanned ground vehicle. 

ST Kinetics, the land systems and specialty vehicles division of Singapore Technologies (ST) Engineering, revealed at the Singapore Airshow 2018 exhibition a weaponised unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) designed to perform reconnaissance and combat missions in support of dismounted troops or armoured fighting vehicles (AFVs).

Called the Weaponised Probot, the UGV is based on Israeli-firm Roboteam’s Probot (Professional Robot) logistics and medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) platform. ST Kinetics engineers have taken advantage of the Probot’s modular 215 kg base chassis – measuring 1.4 m long, 1.21 m wide, and 0.58 m high – which can carry a large payload capacity of 750 kg, to integrate its Adder RMG remote control weapon station (RCWS).

According to ST Kinetics’ specifications, the Weaponised Probot has a maximum speed of 8.2 km/h and is capable of negotiating stairs and other challenging terrain in tight spaces, making it particularly suited for urban environments. A 48 V mil-spec rechargeable battery provides up to 8 hours of operation.

ST Kinetics is quoting a control range of 500 m, with the vehicle controlled via the joystick-type ruggedised operator control unit-1 (ROCU-1) when performing basic manoeuvres within the operator’s direct line-of-sight. However, the unit does not display the video feed from the vehicle’s optical sensors and is unable to command the Adder RMG RCWS; full functionality and non-line-of-sight command is provided by the ROCU-7 control and display unit, which has been customised with proprietary control, navigation (with manual, semi-autonomous, and ‘follow me’ modes), targeting, and tracking algorithms developed by the company’s engineers.

The Adder RMG, which weighs less than 150 kg, is equipped with a sighting and video tracking system that is claimed to offer a high hit probability regardless of whether the platform or the target is stationary or moving, traversing 126° in the azimuth and -10 to 45° in elevation.

Jane's

Curiosity autorizado a disparar con su láser

Mars rover Curiosity gets license to shoot its laser at will
NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars
Feel the wrath of my laser!
NASA
By Jacob Aron - New Scientist



Watch out Mars, Curiosity is coming for you. NASA’s rover, which has been exploring the Red Planet since 2012, is now able to autonomously target rocks with its ChemCam laser without waiting for human approval.

ChemCam is an instrument designed to study the chemical makeup of rocks and soil on Mars by zapping them with a laser and studying the gas released on impact. Up until now, researchers on Earth have told Curiosity where to shoot, but it has just been upgraded to fire at targets of its own choosing.


Rocks on Mars, as seen by Curiosity
Curiosity hunts for new targets
NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP/LPGNantes/CNRS/

The rover has been equipped with new software that analyses images from its navigation camera to look for potential targets. If the software picks out a particularly interesting rock, Curiosity can drive over and target it with ChemCam without having to wait for the images to be transmitted back to Earth.

Curiosity’s new trigger-happy freedom will mostly come in handy when Mars is out of communication with Earth, or when Mars orbiters are otherwise occupied and unable to relay messages to the rover. Thankfully, no humans are on the planet, so we don’t have to worry about unleashing a killer robot.

Hace un año un robot militar yanqui labura en el espacio

ONE YEAR AGO TODAY, THE AIR FORCE PUT A SECRET ROBOT IN SPACE


IT'S STILL THERE, DOING SECRET SPACE ROBOT THINGS...
By Kelsey D. Atherton - Popular Science

X-37B Ready

Mr. X-37B, bring me a treat from space

Today marks one year since the Air Force’s X-37B secret robotic space plane last launched into space, as Spaceflight Now notes. It is still there, doing the secret things a robot space plane does. Things like test a new ion engine and maybe track other space stations. It’s spent 15 months and longer in orbit before, doing secret space stuff, so we can expect it to spend some more time there doing secret space things secretly. As a secret space robot. Because this is the world we live in, now. One with secret robots in space.

La mula robótica es muy ruidosa para la guerra

MARINES' ROBOT MULE IS TOO LOUD FOR WAR


THE LS3 IS BEING PUT OUT TO PASTURE
By Kelsey D. Atherton - Popular Science



Sarah Dietz, U.S. Marine Corps, via Wikimedia Commons


LS3 Robot At RIMPAC Exercises

War is heavy. Not, just, in the deep moral implications of organized violence, but also very literally, in that fighting a war takes a lot of heavy equipment. To help lighten the load, the United States Marine Corp looked to the future: a robotic mule, capable of carrying 400 pounds of gear. After years of development and a couple high-profile trials, the Marines are abandoning the machine. Listen closely and you can hear why:




The robot is built by the Alphabet-owned Boston Dynamics. It was developed for DARPA under the name LS3, or “Legged Squad Support System”, and it can climb hills, carry weight, and follow humans into battle. It just can’t do itquietly. Rather than aiding Marines in battle, that noise turns the mechanical mule into a dead (and deadly) giveaway.

From Military.com:

[Testing] exhibited the shortcomings of the prototype, Kyle Olson, a spokesman for the Warfighting Lab, told Military.com.
"As Marines were using it, there was the challenge of seeing the potential possibility because of the limitations of the robot itself," Olson said. "They took it as it was: a loud robot that's going to give away their position."
In addition to the lawnmower-like noise of the mule's gas-powered engine, there were other challenges without clear solutions, including how to repair the hulking robot if it breaks and how to integrate it into a traditional Marine patrol.

For a military that wants to dramatically increase its robotic soldiers by 2030, this is a setback, but not an insurmountable one. Next time the military asks for a legged squad support system, it should make sure it asks for a legged silent squad support system.

Terminator protegerá los ICBM rusos

Robots armados hasta los dientes defenderán bases de misiles estratégicos rusos


© ОАО «Ижевский радиозавод» / irz.ru
Las Fuerzas de Misiles Estratégicos de Rusia someterán a prueba un vehículo robótico de combate todoterreno para defender sus instalaciones.

El sistema, que está diseñado para defender las bases de misiles estratégicos, representa un vehículo blindado teledirigido montado sobre un chasis sobre orugas, según el coronel Ígor Yegórov, portavoz de la Tropa de Misiles estratégicos rusa citado por RIA Novosti.

Además de las cámaras de visión, el vehículo porta un potente kit de armas que incorpora una ametralladora pesada de 12,7 mm Kord, una ametralladora de tanques PKT Kaláshikov y un lanzagranadas automático de 30 mm de calibre.

Yegórov destacó que los ensayos se llevarán a cabo en dos etapas. En la primera el sistema se pondrá a prueba con el uso combinado del carro de combate Taifun-M y un dron, con el objetivo de localizar y eliminar a saboteadores.

En la segunda etapa, el sistema demostrará sus prestaciones de fuego real en un polígono de Klimovsk, una ciudad cercana a Moscú.

El carro está dotado de sistemas de reconocimiento, detección y destrucción de objetivos fijos y móviles y será empleado junto con el carro de combate Taifun-M, diseñado para la lucha contra comandos subversivos.


Actualidad RT

Robot francés para Myanmar

Nexter Robotics Announces First Sale for its Nerva LG Small Robot UGV to Myanmar



The NERVA® LG robot helps soldiers maintain their full operational capacity by enabling them to project their sensory capabilities during the critical phases of reconnaissance and counter-IED (Improvised Explosive Devices) missions. (photo : Army Recognition)

Nexter Robotics a subsidiary of the French Company Nexter Group announced the first sale of its NERVA® LG robot to Myanmar. Nexter Robotics designs and manufactures small-scale robots capable of performing reconnaissance and counter-IED (Improvised Explosive Devices) missions for route clearance, while also offering new applications for Civil Security units.

This is first order that could be followed by a contract for 50 systems. The Nexter Robotics NERVA® sold to Myanmar is a civilian version with degraded sensors.

The NERVA LG UGV (Unmanned Ground Vehicle) is stated to be fully waterproof and throwable. In addition to being operated by 15 remote control, it can have semi-autonomous capabilities to reduce the operator’s workload, such as waypoint navigation or automatic back homing when the mission has been completed.

Vea el artículo completo en Army Recognition