Foster-Miller - TALON Robots for Nuclear / Chemical Detection, EOD, IED, Weaponization and Reconnaissance

Foster-Miller is an engineering, development and manufacturing company located in suburban Boston, MA, with additional offices in Albany, NY, and Washington, DC. The firm was founded more than 50 years ago by three graduates of MIT who believed there was a need for a company that could solve clients' difficult technical problems through first-class analysis and design. It became an independent, wholly-owned subsidiary of QinetiQ in November 2004.

TALON® robots are powerful, durable, lightweight tracked vehicles that are widely used for civil and military Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD), reconnaissance, communications, sensing, security, defense and rescue. They have all-weather, day / night and amphibious capabilities, and can navigate virtually any terrain.

TALON NUCLEAR / CHEMICAL DETECTION ROBOT FOR FIRST RESPONDERS

TALON Hazmat robots use JAUS (Joint Architecture Unmanned System) software to make it possible to 'plug and play' up to seven sensors mounted on a quick-release universal mounting tray for easy removal.

In addition, the Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) at the Operator Control Unit (OCU) has been upgraded to include audio and visual alarms if any of the mounted sensors exceed preset limits, so operators can concentrate on maneuvering the robot and not be distracted by having to constantly monitor the sensors.

TALON software currently supports seven sensors in five categories, including:

• Smiths' APD 2000 WMD detector
• BAE Systems' Chem Sentry 150C WMD detector
• Canberra's AN / VDR beta and gamma radiation-monitor
• Draeger Multiwarn II industrial gas detector
• RAE's MultiRAE industrial gas detector
• Nomadics' Fido® explosives detector
• Raytek's target-temperature probe

Data from the chosen sensors are integrated into the Foster-Miller designed PDA so that robot operators can send the TALON Hazmat robot forward to check a suspicious area for the presence of chemicals, radiation, gases or fires before sending any personnel downrange.

Alternative sensors can be placed on the universal mounting tray but only viewed by the robot cameras. Data from these sensors would not be available on the PDA.

TALON WEAPONIZED RECONNAISSANCE ROBOTS

TALON robots can be configured with M240 or M249 machine guns or Barrett 50-caliber rifles for armed reconnaissance missions. The system was evaluated by the 5th special forces in Iraq, and three systems have completed evaluation with the 3rd infantry division and will probably be deployed to Iraq in 2007.

Additional systems are being deployed and evaluated by military units throughout the United States. Alternative weapons, including 40mm grenade launchers and anti-tank rocket launchers, continue to be evaluated by the US Army.

TALON EOD / IED TECHNOLOGY

TALON robots have been in continuous, active military service since 2000, when they were successfully used in Bosnia for the safe movement and disposal of live grenades. They were the only American-made robots successfully used at Ground Zero in search and recovery efforts after the September the 11th attack on the World Trade Center, and the only robots to last through the entire mission without requiring a major repair.

TALON robots were the first robots taken into Afghanistan during action against the Taliban and Osama bin Laden in February 2002. They initially accompanied the special forces on a classified mission, and are still there now doing EOD work.

They were also on the ground in Kuwait when coalition forces massed in 2003 and have been in Iraq ever since performing EOD / IED (Improvised Explosive Device) missions. TALON robots have now completed more than 30,000 EOD missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

TALON RECONNAISSANCE TECHNOLOGY

A smaller, lighter TALON weighing just 60lb (27kg) and equipped with a variety of day / night color cameras and sensitive listening devices is ideal for reconnaissance missions. It has all the features of the large TALON, but does not have an arm or gripper.