Russian arms manufacturers from the Far Eastern Institute of Marine Technology Problems under the Academy of Sciences presented advanced robotics technology to Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday.
The institute expects to launch soon the serial production of the pilot samples of military and dual-use systems, for example, a submarine reconnaissance robot and sapper robot that had been tested in 2012 during the preparation for the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum’s summit in Vladivostok.
The prime minister met the defense industry representatives at a testing facility in the town of Krasnoarmeisk outside Moscow at the base of the Geodetic Research Institute that has multifaceted experimental base.
The institute director Leonid Naumov said the reconnaissance submersible quickly makes 3-D maps of port water areas or high seas areas. It is equipped with an autopilot, the navigation system, sonar, a manipulator and other equipment for getting comprehensive information about the seabed.
If dangerous objects, such as mines, are detected, the robot-sapper destroys them. According to Naumov, on the eve of the APEC summit, the reconnaissance robot explored bays near the Russky Island just in two days. It detected 2,700 explosive devices, including mines of the Russian-Japanese War and World War II periods. These innovations have already attracted attention of other countries, including the United States, the institute director added.
Other innovations include a robotics system, based on the Tigr (Tiger) armored vehicle, equipped with the Kornet anti-tank guided missile system; the system can be remotely controlled with the use of advanced technology, as well as a robot helicopter and an unmanned boat with a machine gun mount, which have already been ordered by the Defense Ministry.
Russian Foundation for Advanced Research Projects in the Defense Industry, established in 2013, is engaged in research and development in the field of armaments. The foundation works independently from the state armaments program. It has already considered more than 1,000 projects and proposals, selecting 77 promising ones.
One of foundation’s priorities is robotics-based “distancing of soldiers from direct engagement.” Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin previously said that this research area envisages the creation of a universal Russian android - humanoid robot controlled through a suit, repeating the pilot’s movements. This type of “Avatar” will be able to perform the functions of a doctor, a rescuer and a military sapper. The first phase of the project will be completed in 2015.
The prime minister at the “cognitive technologies” stand was shown an unmanned vehicle project and the program for identification of any equipment. The program can identify, for example, the type of a tank “by a piece of the barrel,” which is important in target acquisition.
The question of import substitution was often raised during Medvedev’s conversation with the developers, as almost every sample contained foreign-made microprocessors and other components.