From Segway Human Transport to Segway War Robot
With the use of Pentagon funding, university researchers have programmed Segway robots that can open doors, navigate obstacles and chase soccer balls all under their own power. No human guidance.
Researchers say potential applications for the robots include performing search missions on the battlefield, transporting injured soldiers to safety, or following humans around while hauling their gear.
This military program has provided 15 Segways to universities and labs throughout the country. One important area of focus for this project is the development the software that will be the brains behind the robot. The software, called Mobile Autonomous Robot Software, is a open source program that is very compatible with the Segways platform.
“One of the focuses of this program is to develop software that would allow the robotic system to learn, so it can better perceive its outside environment,” Walker said.
The Segway can make much tighter turns than four-wheeled robotic vehicles currently used in the military and by researchers, and its high centre of gravity means cameras and sensors can be placed a metre or more above the ground _ a height more suitable for interacting with humans.
The scooters were modified by software engineers at Segway so they could be controlled by laptop computers. The researchers then loaded them up with cameras, sensors, communications gear and other gadgets.
Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology built a Segway robot that can navigate hallways and open doors.
So far it looks like the research teams are coming at this with different goals; At Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, they are trying to make the Segway robot work along-side its human partner; At University of Southern California, they are working to make the Segway robot a pack mule; At a University of Pennsylvania lab, they are working to use The Segway robot as a locator that can communicate its findings to others. If all of these projects are successful, the Segway robot can become a very versatile instrument for war.
Thanks Michael