Robots at War - Experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan

Abstract : Recent activities in Iraq and Afghanistan have shown the importance of robotic technology as a force multiplier and a tool for moving soldiers out of harms way. Early user involvement in innovative and aggressive development and acquisition strategies are the key to moving robotic and associated technology into the hands of the user. This paper updates activity associated with rapid development of the Omni-Directional Inspection System (ODIS) robot for under vehicle inspection and reports on our field experience with robotics in Iraq and Afghanistan.