Anti-Terror Robots Debut in Beijing

BEIJING:  Amid increasing terror attacks at home and abroad, a Chinese firm has introduced three robots specialising in reconnaissance, armed attack and moving and defusing a bomb.



The toy-sized robots which made their debut at the 2015 World Robot Conference in Beijing can coordinate with each other on the battlefield.

The scout, or reconnaissance robot, is responsible for field detection through camera or sensor, Wu Yanpeng, an engineer at HIT Robot Group in northeast China's Harbin city, developer of the robots said.

When the scout detects or senses something suspicious such as poisonous gas, dangerous chemicals and explosives, the information is transmitted back to headquarters for further analysis, Wu told state-run Xinhua news agency.

Based on the analysis of the type of explosives and need for evacuation, the small explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) robot and the armed attack robot will start their missions.

The small EOD robot is tasked with moving and defusing the bomb. If the complexity is beyond the robot's capabilities, then bomb experts in the office have to come up with a proper solution, Wu said.

The small EOD robot, which weighs about 12 kg, is especially designed for soldiers working alone. Made of aluminum alloy and industrial plastic, the robot can be carried on the back of a single soldier.

The armed attack robot, or the attacker, is designed to carry minor-caliber weapons, recoilless rifles and grenade launchers.

With a sighting telescope, a trigger and a safe installed, the attacker can hit its target from a long distance.

The set of three robots is priced at 1.5 million yuan (about USD 2.30 lakh) Chen Deqiang, sales manager of HIT Robot Group said.

Wu said the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau is among the buyers.

Apart from anti-terror operations, they can also be applied in fire fighting, public security, forestry and agriculture, said Chen.

China is on national alert for months to deal with terror threats in the volatile Xinjiang province and its impact in the rest of the country following string of attacks.