DYLEMA: Using walking robots for landmine detection and location

Detection and removal of antipersonnel landmines is an important worldwide concern. A huge number of landmines has been deployed over the last twenty years, and demining will take several more decades, even if no more mines were deployed in future. An adequate mineclearance rate can only be achieved by using new technologies such as improved sensors, efficient manipulators and mobile robots. This paper presents some basic ideas on the configuration of a mobile system for detecting and locating antipersonnel landmines efficiently and effectively. The paper describes the main features of the overall system, which consists of a sensor head that can detect certain landmine types, a manipulator to move the sensor head over large areas, a locating system based on a global-positioning system, a remote supervisor computer and a legged robot used as the subsystems’ carrier. The whole system has been configured to work in a semi-autonomous mode with a view also to robot mobility and energy efficiency.This work has been funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology under Grant CICYT DPI2001-1595 and DPI2004-05824.Peer reviewe

State of the Art Review on Mobile Robots and Manipulators for Humanitarian Demining

Robotics solutions properly sized with suitable modularized structure and well adapted to local conditions of dangerous unstructured areas can greatly improve the safety of personnel as well as the work efficiency, productivity and flexibility. In this sense, mobile systems equipped with manipulators for detecting and locating antipersonnel landmines are considered of most importance towards autonomous/semi-autonomous mine location in a proficient, reliable, safer and effective way. This paper reviews the most relevant literature and previous research activity regarding mobile robots and manipulators for humanitarian demining.Robotics solutions properly sized with suitable modularized structure and well adapted to local conditions of dangerous unstructured areas can greatly improve the safety of personnel as well as the work efficiency, productivity and flexibility. In this sense, mobile systems equipped with manipulators for detecting and locating antipersonnel landmines are considered of most importance towards autonomous/semi-autonomous mine location in a proficient, reliable, safer and effective way. This paper reviews the most relevant literature and previous research activity regarding mobile robots and manipulators for humanitarian demining

MineSweeper: Not Just a Game Anymore

Cornell MineSweeper is a nonprofit student organization founded in 2006 by Cornell University engineering student Vikas Reddy that integrates robotics technology and humanitarian initiatives. The team, comprised of over 40 highly dedicated Cornell students, is designing practical robotic vehicles—still in the concept stage—to assist with demining efforts worldwide

Multi-function intelligent robotic in metals detection applications

Recent technologies for robotics have been offered an effective and efficient solution to safeguard workers from risks in their work environments. These risks involve radioactive, toxic, explosive and mines. In this paper, design and implement computer robot based on metal detection as well as avoiding obstacles automatically. The proposed wireless controlled robotic vehicle can be used in metal detection applications such as landmine detection, obstacles avoidance, selecting best routing without imposing human's harms and workforce aspects. The robotic wheel can sense the obstacles that positioning at ahead of its path, and also avoids the obstacles forward, left and right of its routes. The robot is controlled by using Bluetooth wireless communication to interface between the controller and the implemented robot. Furthermore, sensor IR (FC-03) for the metal detector and used ultrasonic sensor (HC-SR04) for objects or obstacles sensing. The presented controlled robotic designed for desert and dry soil that can replace the human role in avoiding obstacles and metal detection capabilities. The produced robot was useful due to it can detect metals and avoiding obstacles consecutively besides it was effective to select the best route based on the intelligent technique that adopted, the predefined metals by using an intelligent decision maker for route finder in a flat surface environment

TIRAMISU European Project: Design and Implementation of Tools for Humanitarian Demining

This paper presents the most relevant results of the work done within the framework of TIRAMISU European project (Toolbox Implementation for Removal of Anti-personnel Mines, Submunitions and UXO), by the Centre for Automation and Robotics CAR (CSIC-UPM). This project has been funded by European Union within the Seventh Framework Programme of R&D. In general, the works carried out during this project, currently in effect, have been the design and development of tools for training in search of landmines and other for locating anti-personnel landmines, such as: design and validation of e-tutors for land impact and non-Technical Survey tools, and landmines identification for training of trainee, who will collaborate in humanitarian demining tasks; design and implementation of a training tool to be used with compact metal detectors; design, implementation and evaluation of an intelligent prodder training tool for close-in detection of buried landmines; development of a semi-autonomous and teleoperated system for search and detection of anti-personnel mines, which consists of a hexapod robot and a scanning manipulator arm, that carries a metal detector at its end-effector.This project has been funded by European Union within the Seventh Framework Programme of R&D.Peer reviewe