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Surveillance Robot That is Programmed To Hide
An anonymous reader writes "The folks over at Lockheed Martin have just released information about their new covert robot that can sneak up on buildings, detect and evade sentries, and send reconnaissance information back to the good guys. From the article: 'What makes the robot special is its ability to build a computer model of its surroundings, incorporating information on lines of sight. The robot is fitted with a laser scanner to allow it to covertly map its environment in 3D. It also has a set of acoustic sensors which it uses to distinguish nearby footsteps and their direction.'"
... welcome our new hidden overlords
What's in the box?
Clearly it would never be used on students, protestors, political opponents or scornful ex-lovers.
That's a pretty risky assumption (from the southern hemisphere point of view).
La culpa no es del chancho...
...and send reconnaissance information back to the good guys
So if I know for sure that I'm the bad guy, I definitely don't want to be using one of these.
I am literally 3000 tokens away from the chaotic crossbow --Stephen
So, if the "bad guys" have this, does it still transmit information to the "good guys"? I suspect the good guys are simply the fellows with the bigger checkbook. But I'm an optimist.
dull-eyed footstool-temporary octopus
I'm glad it has a laser signature to help find it.
Heaven forbid, I assume this is another nightmare weapon made for a world overcrowded with weapons and nobody with a clue about what to do with them.
Surely LHM made this as a hide-and-seek companion for busy couples with lonely kids.
I know it doesn't fit into LHM's business model, but can't somebody stop this insanity and spend 1/10^6 as much money on figuring out how to prevent conflict?
"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure", goes the old saying, but it doesn't pay the bills.
Just how hard would it be to detect anything using a laser scanner to map its surroundings?
While potentially useful against unaware civilians, use in a combat situations or as a tool for covert operations would probably be easily thwarted by existing technology, using a standard digital camera (even a cell phone) to check for IR lasers (the most common non-eye visible lasers). There is nothing particularly covert about lasers.
Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
In Soviet Russia robots hide from YOU!
Now all they need to do is paint it green and make it blow up when it gets close to one of its surveillance targets.
Welcome!
I could prove it if I could just find the stupid thing...
Thank's for making me aware that there are robots out there sneaking around unseen and unheard, heaven forbid someone gets the idea to give them weapons or even voices. WALL-E was kinda cool, you know what's not cool? When he sneaks into your house in the middle of the night, neutralizes your dog and family members, then fulfill's your bittersweet fantasies of a robot style apocalypse!
It's like the mind going AWOL, it's there somewhere
In Soviet Chechnya robot hide YOU.
... it was safe to jerk off
Just waiting for the prophecies shown to us by the Governator come true...
TYVM meat.
Some days it's just not worth
chewing through my restraints.
...we don't end up with these.
... with a sort of round dome thing on the front? And little giggle voices?
The perfect pet for a NINJA!
and talk in the most insanely retarded and annoying squeaks and whimpers?
detect and evade sentries, and send reconnaissance information back to the good guys.
......I don't think it means what you think it means.
Anyone quoted by a reporter knows how little they understand
Don't believe what you read is the truth.
I detect 6 orthogonal intersecting layers of rigid paper-based material in+ve and -ve x, y and z directions cenetered on my current location. I suspect I am in a cardboard box. Help!
I don't know if there's a high-falutin' name for this strategy, but sometimes the best way to defend is to behave like an attacker. For example, if an opponent breaks through behind you in Rugby you run like his support player would in order to block his passing lanes.
In this situation you get your own robot that's programmed to sneak up on you in a similar way. If it doesn't find anything in one place it moves out, wanders around randomly and tries another route. Chances are it'll bump into the attacker at some point.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
"...sneak up on buildings, detect and evade sentries, and send reconnaissance information back to the good guys."
Just because someone owns one doesn't make them the "good guys".
Reminiscent of that classic Sci-Fi book _The Adolescence of P-1_
in fact, it's required that we know 'we're being watched', so we learn how to 'act' better/not afraid. thou shalt not...on & on it goes, unless you happen to be a chosen one?
Hide from that.
I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
Programming water sprinkler heads (probably require an additional misting head) to puff water into the air on a random pattern and then you use readily-available motion detection software to look for the laser scanner beam.
Then, of course, you send your battlebot out...
lollll...sounds like fun. I hope the g'ment/private industry go as nuts as they typically do trying to use these things.
Orwell: "In a Time of Universal Deceit, telling the Truth is a Revolutionary Act"
It's time for robots to be proud. They should not have to hide anymore. It's the 21st century!
You have one of these == you are a good guy ... oh wait, you mean you don't want to be a good guy?
Well, in that case for you we have an evil spying robot instead of good reconnaissance one. It is the same model, only in different color and different shape (evil) of painted eyes.
"Good Guys" is a relative term....
Does anyone remember the robot who was told to "get lost" and he hid itself (Isaac Asimov's robot novel) ? Can you imagine the testing folks verifying that it works ? Test Case : Main Function Step 1 : Begin Step 2 : Try to find robot. Step 3 : If found, then fail test Step 4 : If not-found, then ... .. umm... . start with a new robot on Step 1 :)
You ain't got a thing, if you ain't got that ping.
How difficult is it to detect a laser scanner? And if it isn't difficult, how can this robot still hide?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifmRgQX82O4
Every end has half a stick.
"The name's Bot. James Bot."
And send reconnaissance information back to the good guys
That's a rather large assumption about the motives of whoever is using these robots.
... their new covert robot that can sneak up on buildings...
Is that really so difficult? I surprise the hell out of buildings all the time. It's like they're never paying attention.
I didn't RTFA, but I did look at it. Did anyone see the screenshot of that robot? Who cares if it can tell you're coming. It's got 4 wheels, and couldn't hit a top speed with any amount of debris around it. Seeing as its lockheed, I'm willing to bet picking up one of those just net you a cool 100 million dollars.
ah, good old lockheed martin, sucking on the government funding teat.
lasers are "covert"? seriously? what kind of retard proposes this stuff? more importantly, what kind of retard funds this stuff?
OK, so it's hidden to the visible spectrum, but it's blasting fucking laser beamns like crazy to figure out it's environment so to a $5 IR receiver (or whatever part of the spectrum they use) the thing would look like a fucking christmas tree decorated with strobe lights.
Because buildings are just so tough to sneak up on.
I am Bennett Haselton! I am Bennett Haselton!
It was great at running and hiding, but the catching mice part was always six months of dev work away.
The board was getting impatient. Then their marketing guy happened to be talking to a L-M government contracts guy at a conference....
Geocache with legs! =)
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords...Well, I would if they'd stop playing hide and seek!
You would have your robot(s) level everything in sight. You don't need to do no stinkin' surveillance.
ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI!?
It says, "...and send reconnaissance information back to the good guys" but nothing in the article made me believe that this device can tell the difference between the 'good' guys and the 'bad' guys.
So far as I can see, it just sends information back to whoever is controlling it - good or bad.
of this article is the summaries statement that it will report information back to the good guys. seeing as the 'good guys' have a track record of illegal wiretaps and gps surveillance against muslim students and the average american, i dont think this bot is worthy of too much praise.
Good people go to bed earlier.
if it runs Windows i wouldn't be too scared ,,
... Stalkerbot is HUGE!
What if each side had one each? Would they hide from each other? If robot A spots robot B first, will it hide from it to prevent robot B from knowing it is there? It could be like a little game of hide and seek :)
If the robot looks like the one pictured, it will definitely blend in - passing by unnoticed. No one will suspect a thing.....