Robot soldiers hit the battlefield

Nick Verhaar
Remote-controlled machine-gun-wielding robotic armies sound like something out of a sci-fi movie, but the US Army is actually utilising such technologies in the battlefield.
Designed primarily as a means to decrease risks to human life on the battlefield, the robotic soldiers are essentially a robotic vehicle primarily used to conduct surveillance missions remotely.
They have been tested extensively by defence agencies in the past to disable bombs and mines in real-life situations and were heavily utilised to disarm and dispose of explosive devices on the roads of Iraq.
They have also been used in Bosnia to dispose of grenades, and even helped to aid the clean-up of the World Trade Centre.
Although they are of a relatively small build, the robots are built to last as they can take quite a beating from explosives, ammunition and projectiles.
Eventually, the US Army is planning to mount these units with machine guns and possibly even rocket launchers, which will allow soldiers to remotely conduct attacks on the battlefield from a safe distance.