The U.S. military is believed to have been testing rifle-toting robot dogs in Middle-East, according to new reports.
Possibly equipped with an AR-15/M16-pattern rifle, the robot dog appears to be a Ghost Robotics Vision 60 quadrupedal-unmanned ground vehicle (Q-UGV).
The testing was conducted at Red Sands Integrated Experimentation Center in Saudi Arabia.
The Q-UGV engaged several static ground targets during the trials, but results of the tests weren’t revealed, according to reports.
Q-UGV with rifle comes with anti-drone capabilities
The Q-UGV with an AR-15/M16-type rifle is one of the anti-drone capabilities demonstrated at Fort Drum, New York, as part of Operation Hard Kill. This event, led by the Army’s 10th Mountain Division and the Development Command-Armaments Center (DEVCOM-AC), began last month and concludes this week, reported Army Recognition.
Developed by Ghost Robotics, Q-UGVs are architected to allow rapid adaptation to new environments using our proprietary blind-mode control core that mimics how mammals operate across a range of urban and natural environments.
Even if the environment is completely unknown, vision sensors degrade or fail, you can be assured that when our legged robot does fail, slip or fall, it will get right back up and continue moving, according to the company.
Vision 60 Q-UGV can spot aerial targets with thermal vision capabilities
The company claims it’s aim is to make Q-UGVs an indispensable tool and continuously push the limits to improve its ability to walk, run, crawl, climb and eventually swim in complex environments that our customers must operate in, day in and day out. “Ultimately, our robot is made to keep our warfighters, workers and K9s out of harm’s way.”
In the Operation Hard Kill exercise, the Vision 60 Q-UGV reportedly features an anti-drone configuration with a small turret mounted at the front, on which the AR-15-type rifle is fixed.
Capable of spotting aerial targets with infrared/thermal vision capabilities, the rifle is equipped with electro-optical targeting system, labeled “Lone Wolf”.
Laser aiming device is also attached
A laser aiming device is also attached to the side. A GoPro-like video camera appears mounted on a mast at the rear of the Q-UGV. A video released by the Army shows individuals using tablet-like devices to remotely control the robot dog’s rifle. Whether the system includes offboard sensor cueing is unknown, but some level of automated targeting would be highly preferable in the anti-drone role, according to Army Recognition.
United States’ Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC) is reportedly testing Vision 60s armed with rifles and conventional Marine units are testing other robot dog types equipped with anti-armor rocket launchers.
These robot dogs could be used against drones and other threats.
