NATO Looks Into the Near Future of Military Robotics
15 May 2008
The IST-058/RTG-024 working group organised a workshop in Bonn, Germany, that led to their plan to bridge the gaps between military user requirements for robotics and industrial robotic capabilities expected by 2008.
About 70 people related to the military, industry, research and government areas, from 16 mainly European countries, attended the NATO workshop named Bridging The Gap In Military Robotics, which provided a deep and integral analysis on the subject for the first time. Meetings were held during three days and the outcome was two major points: military tasks and requirements and technological gaps and the way to close them.
The first defines the tasks for which the military would most like to have robotic support by 2008. For the second, six technological groups were organised, each for six different fields of technological interests that are expected to be developed in two more years.
On one hand, the working group identified the five most relevant military tasks, which are:
- Reconnaissance and surveillance for tactical support for the forces on the ground, including NBC
- Tactical and post-conflict de-mining – clearing roads and fields from AP and AT mines
- Convoying – transport of goods
- Checking vehicles and people for explosives and weapons at checkpoints
- Carry equipment for dismounted soldier
On the other hand, roadmaps were constructed to identify which actions should be taken to achieve, by 2008, the required level in the following six technological fields:
- Communication
- Robot platforms
- Sensing and world modelling
- Navigation and mission planning
- Human / robot interaction
- Multi-robot systems
A ‘Core Group’ was established to keep the integrating outcomes of the workshop alive. This group is partially a NATO activity, which focuses on supporting military-like tasks by robots, and partially a EUROPEAN ROBOTICS activity, focusing on stimulating research to achieve goals relevant to the users and the industry.
