EEric
- Technology
Another Round, Jeeves
The American soldier may soon have a personal combat-ready sidekick that will fetch him essentials such as water, ammo and medicine and provide extra firepower when hes under attack. Its a robotic servant dubbed BirdDog thats in the works by the U.S. Navy and the private research firm Science Applications International Corporation. BirdDog is designed to complement the militarys future fleet of unmanned vehicles, which are expected to account for one third of all ground combat vehicles by 2015.
4.25.2008 at 11:28am - Comment by EEricWhat you're looking at is called a "Mule." The author couldn't see past that either. The SAIC technology is the software, sensors and controls that make the test platform perform. The neat thing about this, is the technology could be mounted on a lot of different vehicles. Imagine for instance you're alone in your 4wd and need a spotter to negotiate a rough section of trail. So you turn on "Birddog,"get out and lead your 4wd through the rough spot, then get back in and drive on. This is the first step that can expand to a number of great applications.
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December 2009: Best of What's New
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