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ABSTUCT Miniature robots enable low-cost planetary surface exploration missions, and new military missions in urban terrain where small robots provide critical assistance to human operations. These space and military missions have many similar technological challenges. Robots can be deployed in environments where it may not be safe or affordable to send humans, or where robots can reduce the risk to humans. Small size is needed in urban terrain to make the robot easy to carry and deploy by military personnel. Technology to sense and perceive the environment, and to autonomously plan and execute navigation maneuvers and other remote tasks, is an important requirement for both planetary and surface robots and for urban terrain robotic assistants. Motivated by common technological needs and by a shared vision about the great technological potential, a strong, collaborative relationship exists between the NASNJPL and DARPA technology development in miniaturized robotics. This paper describes the technologies under development, the applications where these technologies are relevant to both space and military missions, and the status of the most recent technology demonstrations in terrestrial scenarios.

The U.S. Army is undergoing a transformation from Cold War era "heavy" forward-deployed forces arrayed against a monolithic known enemy to lighter, more flexible, U.S.-based forces able to rapidly engage in a full spectrum of military operations. Unmanned systems can potentially contribute towards achieving this goal of a highly capable and flexible ground force. To support this effort, the U.S. Army Research Laboratory has undertaken a long-term research program to support technology development for unmanned ground vehicle systems. Over the course of the past year, this multifaceted effort has made significant technical strides, demonstrating sufficient technological maturity to potentially enable incorporation of semi-autonomous unmanned vehicles into the initial fielding of Future Combat Systems (FCS), while successfully conducting additional research directed toward improved capabilities for later increments of FCS and Land Warrior systems.

This report describes an algorithm for the recognition of military vehicles in Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) imagery. The input is a FUR image, and the output of a detector or clutter rejector listing a number of locations in the image for the recognizer to examine. The output is the same list with the decision of the recognizer appended to each location in the list. The algorithm is based on principal component analysis.

Robotics has been identified by numerous recent Department of Defense (DOD) studies as a key enabling technology for future military operational concepts. The Demo III Program is a multiyear effort encompassing technology development and demonstration on testbed platforms, together with modeling simulation and experimentation directed toward optimization of operational concepts to employ this technology. Primary program focus is the advancement of capabilities for autonomous mobility through unstructured environments, concentrating on both perception and intelligent control technology. The scout mission will provide the military operational context for demonstration of this technology, although a significant emphasis is being placed upon both hardware and software modularity to permit rapid extension to other military missions. The Experimental Unmanned Vehicle (XUV) is a small (approximately 1 150 kg, V-22 transportable) technology testbed vehicle designed for experimentation with multiple military operational concepts. Currently under development, the XUV is scheduled for roll-out in Summer, 1999, with initial troop experimentation to be conducted in September 1999. Though small, and relatively lightweight, modeling has shown the chassis capable of automotive mobility comparable to the current Army lightweight high-mobility, multipurpose, wheeled vehicle (HMMWV). The XUV design couples multisensor perception with intelligent control to permit autonomous cross-country navigation at speeds of up to 32 kph during daylight and 16 kph during hours of darkness. A small, lightweight, highly capable user interface will permit intuitive control of the XUV by troops from current-generation tactical vehicles. When it concludes in 2002, Demo III will provide the military with both the technology and the initial experience required to develop and field the first generation of semi-autonomous tactical ground vehicles for combat, combat support, and logistics applications.