Robot Reviews

The first half of 2009 saw an active participation of robots in law enforcement, military, and rescue operations. Let's have a look at 5 stories that made it into the headlines from today working backwards.

August

Los Angeles CA, USA - A man who threatened to blow up the White House was given a heavy dose of tear gas by a robot. Surprisingly, the man was able to withstand several rounds of the chemical agent. Officers had to shoot the driver's window with a bean bag gun and immobilized him with Taser to end the 8-hour standoff. The machine's seen here at the right-hand side of the suspect's car. 

Temanggung, Indonesia - Noordin Mohammad Top, Southeast Asia's most wanted Islamic militant was believed to have been brought down in a raid in one of the farm houses in Temanggung, a town some 250 miles southeast of Jakarta. To find the target, police deployed a camera-wielding robot while they blasted each room with grenades. DNA tests however revealed the body retrieved was not that of Top's. 

Still, this shows that law-enforcement robots are not only used in Japan or other big western countries like the US or UK. We don't have a picture of the robot but below is a video of MAC 1 (Mechantronic Anti-terrorist Concept 1), also from Indonesia.

South Waziristan, Pakistan - The man believed to be behind the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, Baitullah Mehsud, was killed in an aerial attack by a CIA Predator UAV. Although Taliban commander Hakimullah Mehsud denied the veracity of the reports, some reliable sources from the Taliban organization itself confirmed his death. Predator UAVs are being used for either reconnaissance or attack missions in conflicts areas involving the US around the world. Below is a typical UAV. 

June

Atlantic Ocean - Victor 6000, a deep sea robot, was deployed in the search operations for Air France Flight 447's black box. These robots can reach depths that are too deep for human divers. Victor 6000 partnered with Nautile, a manned submersible that was used in Titanic wreckage expeditions. 

March

San Ysidro CA, USA - When a witness spotted a group of people entering a drain system and notified the Border Patrol, a robot was sent in to look for them. A few members of the group were then found. Below, a robot (not the one used in the San Ysidro border) is shown navigating through a narrow tunnel. The location of the drain system is said to be one of the busiest intersections for illegal border crossings.