When the U.S. military first got serious about ground robots, it bought up a bunch of 42-pound machines called PackBots. The name implied that infantrymen would just throw the robots in their rucksacks. In reality, the things were too heavy for already-overloaded troops to carry around on the regular. The PackBot’s main competitor, the Talon, was even more of a burden. It weighed a whopping 125 pounds.
Now, there’s a new wave of reconnaissance bots being prepared for combat. And they are radically smaller than the previous generation; the tiniest of them weighs less than a pound-and-a-half. Which means they’ll not only fit inside a backpack, they might even squeeze inside a jacket or a pair of pants. Call them pocketbots.
Both the U.S. Army and Marine Corps are expected shortly to issue “urgent” battlefield requests for 3,500 to 5,000 of the micro machines. The idea that these new models can be tossed into a building or over a wall, allowing an infantryman to get a sense of what’s inside a room before he kicks down the door.
Three different bot-makers showed off their pocketbot models at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International conference in Washington this week. If they work as advertised, they could be the next big leap forward for military robotics.
Ground robots were originally issued to a specialized few, like explosive ordnance disposal technicians. That eventually grew to an unmanned force that’s now 2,000 strong in Afghanistan. These machines are so small, the military could potentially expand the robotic army even further.
“We can provide this capability to every soldier on the battlefield,” says retired Navy Captain Robert L. Moses. He’s an executive with iRobot, maker of the original PackBot — and a new, nine-inch “throwable” machine.
The First Look (that’s a video of it, above) appears to be almost identical to the PackBot. Like the bigger machine, it’s got flippers that allow it to spring up stairs (I saw it climb steps as big as the ‘bot). It’s got four color cameras, peeking out in every direction, and it can form a mesh network with its fellow machines. But the First Look has one not-entirely-insignificant difference from the Packbot: it’s five pounds, not 42.
Smaller still is the Throwbot, which was being demonstrated just across the aisle at the AUVSI conference. Shaped like a dumbbell and weighing just over a pound, the seven-inch machine scuttled across a pan of gravel and sand. Then a representative from Throwbot-maker Recon Robotics picked it up, and chucked it over a mock adobe wall. A handheld controller showed black-and-white footage from the machine’s single video camera. The feed won’t travel far — the Throwbot’s range is just 300 feet outdoors, and 100 feet inside. But it’s enough to provide a sneak peek of a room from the one next door. 1,000 of the machines have been sold to law enforcement and military units.
Machines like this have been in service for years — but not always with the best results. The robots aren’t the best at getting around obstacles, and a single, low-rez camera doesn’t provide ideal views. The Israeli Defense Forces, an early user or chuckable bots, has complained that using one early in an assault can sacrifice the element of surprise. “What could be more obvious than a several-pound robot crashing through a window to land at your feet?” our own David Axe asked a few months back. During a raid on a suspected drug house in Arizona, the local police waited until after the first round of fighting to throw a robot into the place.
At the other end of the conference call is the biggest of the pocketbots. In fact, at 15 inches long and 17 pounds fully loaded, it’s probably a stretch to say that the Dragon Runner 10 is pocketable at all. Then again, none of the other micro machines come with an optional arm and a claw.
Qinetiq, which makes the Dragon Runner 10, has spent years catering its heavier line of robots to bomb squads around the world. Military explosives-handlers tend to prefer the sturdier, stronger machines. The company has taken the same approach in its mini-me line. Along with the (relatively) big bot, there’s a rugged, eight-inch controller, plus another six pounds or so worth of batteries.
The Dragon Runner will go further than its competitors: 600 feet outside. The arm lets it do more than just scout out a dangerous area; it can detonate improvised bombs once it gets there. The Dragon Runner can carry two to three pounds — more than enough plastic explosives to blow a jury-rigged weapon into scraps. But it can’t climb stairs with the arm attached, which limits its utility.
This king-sized pocketbot could become an oxymoron as the military’s unmanned force continues to grow. Or this new wave of tiny robots might be big enough for something as large as a 17-pounder.
Photo: Noah Shachtman
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