The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed the purchase of two Ghost Robotics Corporation Vision 60 (V60) quadrupedal unmanned ground vehicles (Q-UGVs), for experimentation. The UK Ministry of Defense spokesman confirmed this information to janes.com.
Valued at GBP449,000 ($590,332), the contract – let by the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Future Capability Group to UK reseller Edgar Brothers – also includes a two-year warranty package.
defence-blog.com
The Tactical Weaponised UGV project is exploring the use of Q-UGVs in dangerous and complex urban environments, and in extreme and complex terrain. It is envisaged that Q-UGVs can enable troops to operate faster and longer, and step back from some of the most challenging and dangerous operational tasks.
The V60 ‘robotic dog' is a mid-sized high-endurance Q-UGV designed for all-weather use in a broad range of unstructured urban and natural environments. UK Strategic Command has procured the two V60 systems to explore their application to ‘dull, dirty, and dangerous' roles: the V60 was sourced on the basis that it is the only solution on the market with the potential to be weaponised to support counter-terrorism and urban warfare missions.
Robodogs can operate in a semi-autonomous mode, carrying out surveillance along predetermined routes. If an intruder is detected, an alert is sent to the operator console. If necessary, the operator will be able to monitor the situation through the video communication system and use the built-in microphone and speaker to communicate with the perimeter violator.
