December 16, 2008: A major complaint of small combat robot users is the lack of strength in the arm most of these droids are equipped with. These arms can rarely lift more than ten pounds or so, and don't have a real tight grip. So the manufacturer of the largest of these robots, the 120 pound Talon, has developed a much stronger arm. It can lift up to 65 pounds, and has a gripping strength of 100 pounds. Developers found that, with the help of a little duct tape, the new army can hold and manipulate the standard AN/PSS-14 mine detector, making it much safer to use.

The Talon is more popular with police departments, than with combat troops (who prefer much smaller and lighter droids). But Talon does have fans in the military, especially among the bomb disposal and mine clearing specialists. However, during the last four years, users of current battlefield robots (UGVs, or unmanned ground vehicles) have filled military message boards with interesting uses they have found for these robots, and new features they could make use of. The main result of all that chatter is the new, 30 pound, SUGV, and the troops want it ASAP. But only a few dozen have been delivered so far, mainly for testing.

Before September 11, 2001, the army didn't expect to have small robots like SUGV until 2013. But the technology was there, and the war created a major demand. The robots expected in 2013 were to be part of a new generation of gear called FCS (Future Combat Systems). SUGV is still waiting for some of the high tech FCS communications and sensor equipment, and is using off-the-shelf stuff in the meantime. The troops don't care, as long as it works.

Meanwhile, a slightly heavier "SUGV" (PackBot) has been available for the last few years. The PackBot 510 weighs 42 pounds, and can carry up to 46 pounds of equipment. It uses a controller that looks, and operates, very much like a video game controller. This makes training, and use, of the PackBot much easier. Most troops have video game experience. The wireless controller can operate a PackBot at a distance of up to 1,000 meters. The battery lasts 2-12 hours, depending on mission. The longer time is for when you are using the PackBot as a sentinel, just sitting there with its camera on. It's a compact device (28 inches long, 16 wide and 8 high). It can be tossed through a window into a room, and quickly get to work. Top speed is about 2.5 meters a second, and it can climb stairs. It's waterproof and can travel up to ten kilometers on one charge. This model will cost about $90,000 each. Police departments are also big customers, using the PackBot for checking out bomb threats, and in SWAT type situations.

The larger Talon robot even has an armed (with a 5.56mm machine-guns and 350 rounds of ammo) version. Three of them were sent to Iraq, for more realistic testing. This Talon IIIB, also known as Swords, ended up being used as a 125 pound armed sentry, not a combat droid. Or so the official announcement went. So far, the tests appear to have been successful. In effect, Swords is a remotely controlled machine-gun, that can also be moved. It's seen as more of a security, than a combat, device. But in practice, there was just not enough need for an armed droid. Humans with guns were much more effective, if also more vulnerable.

While the U.S. Army has just contracted to buy 7,000 more PackBot and Talon combat robots, it seems likely that most of those machines will not be delivered. The contracts allow for cancellation of machines that turn out not to be needed. With the plunge in roadside bomb activity in Iraq, and the weak efforts of the Taliban in Afghanistan to use those devices, there is a sharp drop in need for these small robots services. Talon has been equipped with the stronger arm specifically for service in Afghanistan. 

Efforts to have the infantry use the small robots in combat have not been as successful as expected. The 42 pound Packbot and hundred pound Talon were fine for dealing with roadside bombs, but too big and heavy to easily haul around the battlefield. But most troops admitted that if the small droids were a bit smaller and lighter, they would be more welcome.

This led to the next generation infantry droid, the SUGV (Small Unmanned Ground Vehicle). This is a 30 pound robot, similar to the slightly larger Packbot. Both of these were designed and produced by iRobot. SUGV can carry 6.5 pounds of gear, and seven different "mission packages" are available. These include various types of sensors and double jointed arms (for grabbing things.) SUGV is waterproof and shock resistant. It fits into the standard army backpack, and is meant to operate in a harsh environment. The battery powered SUGV is operated wirelessly, or via a fiber optic cable, using a controller that looks like a video game controller with a video screen built in. Like the current PackBot, SUGV can climb stairs, maneuver over rubble and other nasty terrain.

The SUGV design is based largely on feedback from combat troops. For example, it is rugged enough to be quickly thrown into a room, or cave, activated and begin sending video, as well as audio, of what is in there, This feature makes it very popular with the troops. No one likes being the first one going into dark, potentially dangerous, places. Throwing a grenade in first doesn't always work, because sometimes frightened civilians are in there.

SUGV can also perform outpost and listening post work. These are two dangerous jobs the infantry are glad to hand off to a robot. Outposts are, as the name implies, one or two troops dug in a hundred meters or so in front of the main position, to give early warning of an enemy attack. A listening post is similar, but the friendly troops are often much deeper into enemy territory. The SUGV battery enables it to just sit in one place, listening and watching, for eight hour or more. After that, you send out another SUGV with a fresh battery, and have the other one come back for a recharge. No risk of troops getting shot at while doing the same things, and the troops really appreciate that. Other dangerous jobs for the SUGV are placing explosives by a door (to blow it open for the troops), or placing a smoke grenade where it will prevent the enemy from seeing the troops move.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of troops have combat experience with PackBot and Talon, at least in bomb disposal work. A small number of troops have used the small robots for security jobs, and an even smaller group for combat work. The smaller and more compact SUGV may become a combat staple, but that won't be known for another year or so.