Where Humans Fear to Thread

Robots are now taking over people to work in places and work conditions that pose high risks or threats to life and limb. Some dangerous jobs have lent themselves easily and more cost-effectively for robots to do the job. Here are some:

Bomb disposal and diffusion

With the use of sensing devices and remote controls, sophisticated bomb disposal squads are fast deploying robotic contraptions to explore and investigate places called in from bomb threats. And they can attempt to diffuse one if found, with no fear of losing lives should the effort fails. Except, of course, the cost of the robot.

The Mini-Andros is extensively used by most police and paramilitary units across the continent to sniff through, locate and defuse bombs. About the size of small armored truck, the Mini-Andros lumbers along on eight wheels spread on four "legs" that when extended, enable it to climb stairs. It has a moveable arm that can lift as much as 15 pound objects and put suspected explosives on bomb-resistant containers. Accessory attachments enable the robot to break boundaries, work in the dark and defuse or detonate bombs.

Looking for Enemies and Mine Fields

The military can benefit in deploying robots to search out enemy locations and potential mine fields. Unmanned spy planes that roam suspected enemy lairs have been known to fly air spaces freely in war torn areas. They are essentially robots by any definition, equipped with sensors and computing engines that can triangulate hot spots or even engage satellites to map out the terrain and identify enemy positions.

Much like the Mini-Andros, there are special robots sent out to explore terrains for potential mine field locations before deploying assault foot soldiers and tanks.

Chemicals and Radiation

Robots have been designed and deployed to venture into accidents that are life-threatening to any humans. These are often chemical spills in laboratories and radioactive zones in nuclear power plants that have encountered accidents.

A spider-like contraption, the robot Robug III is a designed to explore areas where extreme radiation would quickly kill a human. Equipped with vacuum-gripping armatures on eight legs, Robug III can walk over uneven terrain and obstacles as well as climb over walls. It can carry and drag loads over 220 pounds. Remote controls and video cameras ad radioactive sensors mounted on its head allow operators visualize and assess any damage from a safe remote location.

The need for unmanned machines like this made itself compellingly clear during the 1986 Chernobyl accident. The Russian nuclear power plant went through an explosion with an ensuing fire that ripped apart its reactor, releasing radioactive material into the plant and surrounding areas. Rescue work and containment efforts proved nearly impossible and life-threatening, to say the least.

It is plain that robots fill a valuable niche in exploration and containment where humans would unnecessarily expose themselves to risks. The future is quite clear for unmanned contraptions that can extend beyond these dangerous working conditions to meet man’s quest for knowledge and resolution to its life-threatening environs.