The Centaur is a medium-sized unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) developed by Teledyne FLIR Defense under the Man Transportable Robotic System Increment II (MTRS Inc II) programme with the US armed forces.
The Centaur UGV was initially developed by Endeavor Robotics. The US Army selected Endeavor Robotics as its medium-sized robot provider for MTRS Inc II in 2017. Endeavor Robotics unveiled the details of the UGV in March 2018.
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In February 2019, Endeavor Robotics was acquired by FLIR Systems, which launched the Centaur UGV as its MTRS Inc II solution.
Teledyne Technologies later acquired FLIR Systems in May 2021 and renamed the company Teledyne FLIR Defense.
The remotely operated UGV can detect, confirm, identify and dispose of hazards including landmines, unexploded ordnance and improvised explosive devices along the path of manoeuvring forces.
The fully interoperability profile-compliant robot is designed for tasks such as remote monitoring, debris clearance, route proving and casualty evacuation, as well as inspection and reconnaissance.
Centaur UGV design and features
The Centaur ground robot is a tracked UGV with three wheels on either side of the hull. It weighs under 74.3kg (164lb) and can operate for up to eight hours.
The vehicle’s robotic arm offers five different movements: shoulder pitch, shoulder yaw, elbow pitch, wrist pitch and wrist roll.
The UGV has a lifting and carrying capacity of up to 14.5kg and can lift up to 6.8kg when its arm is fully extended, while also offering a vertical reach of 75.5in above ground level.
The standard chassis of Centaur supports modular mission payloads to support current and future missions. The modular payloads of the system can be used for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear and explosives detection and other missions.
Camera details
The UGV is installed with a robust pan-tilt-zoom camera with the ability to detect objects using visible-near infrared, near infrared and long-wave infrared spectrums.
The camera provides four degrees of freedom, with one pan axis and three tilt axes, and can be remotely raised to operate between five and 40in above ground level.
Additionally, the camera allows the UGV to detect persons located within a 300m range in low light and night conditions, as well as at 600m range in daylight.
Control and communications
The Centaur ground robot is controlled by the MOCU3 (multi-robot operator control unit) with a rugged laptop and hand controller.
The vehicle has a radio communications range of up to 800m in line-of-sight conditions and around 150m in non-line-of-sight conditions. It can also be connected via a fibre tether extending to 200m.
Performance and mobility
The vehicle has high agility with zero radius turn, while its operating speed is more than 4km/h (2.5mph) and it can turn on the spot.
The platform can traverse slopes of up to 30 degrees, negotiate obstacles up to 6in in height, and climb stairs with inclines of up to 43 degrees.
Centaur UGV orders and deliveries
FLIR Systems secured a $23m contract from the US Air Force for more than 180 Centaur UGVs in March 2020.
The US Marine Corps placed a $18.6m contract with FLIR Systems for more than 140 Centaur UGVs and spares in April 2020.
In June 2020, the US Army and Navy awarded a $23.4m contract to FLIR Systems for 160 Centaur UGVs along with associated spares and accessories. The contract was placed under the MTRS Inc II programme.
In January 2021, FLIR Systems secured a $30.1m contract from the US Army to support sustainment activities linked partly to the MTRS Inc. II and Common Robotic System Heavy ground robot programmes. This modification increased the ceiling value of the company’s existing contract to $88m. The contract covers maintenance, spares and sustainment support for the US Army’s fleet of FLIR UGVs.
FLIR Systems secured more than $70m in new orders from the US Armed Services in May 2021. The US Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps ordered almost 600 Centaur robots, along with spares, antennas and payload mounting kits.
Separately, the US Army issued a $31.6m contract uplift under the MTRS Inc. II programme, increasing the overall contract cap from around $158m to $190m.
In July 2022, Teledyne FLIR Defense secured additional orders valued at $62.1m from the US Armed Services. The US Army and Navy, alongside other command centres, requested close to 500 extra Centaur systems, together with spares, antennas and payload mounting kits. The new orders increased the overall value of the original MTRS Inc. II contract from about $190m to over $250m.
