Military robots

Exercise 1

Read and translate the text.

Military robots are autonomous robots or remote-controlled devices designed for military applications. Such systems are currently being researched by a number of militaries.

Military robots date back to World War II and the Cold War in the form of the German Goliath tracked mines and the Soviet teletanks. The use of robots in warfare, although traditionally a topic for science fiction, is being researched as a possible future means of fighting wars. Already several military robots have been developed by various armies.

Some believe the future of modern warfare will be fought by automated weapons systems. The U.S. Military is investing heavily in research and development towards testing and deploying increasingly automated systems. The most prominent system currently in use is the unmanned aerial vehicle¹ which can be armed with air-to-ground missiles and remotely operated from a command center in reconnaissance roles. The field artillery has also seen some promising research with an experimental weapons system named "Dragon Fire II" which automates the loading and ballistics calculations required for accurate predicted fire, providing a 12 second response time to artillery support requests. However, weapons of warfare have one limitation in becoming fully autonomous: there remain intervention points which require human input to ensure that targets are not within restricted fire areas as defined by Geneva Conventions for the laws of war.

The use of autonomous fighters and bombers to destroy enemy targets is especially promising because of the lack of training required for robotic pilots, autonomous planes are capable of performing maneuvers which could not be done with human pilots, plane designs do not require a life support system, and a loss of a plane does not mean a loss of a pilot. However, the largest drawback to robotics is their inability to accommodate for non-standard conditions. Advances in artificial intelligence in the near future may help to rectify this.

Here are some examples in development. US research company Mechatronics has produced a working automated sentry gun and is currently developing it further for commercial and military use.

A four-wheeled robot outfitted with several cameras, radar, and possibly a firearm automatically performs random or preprogrammed patrols around a military base or other government installation and alerts a human overseer when it detects movement in unauthorized areas. The operator can then instruct the robot to ignore the event, or take over remote control to deal with an intruder, or to get better camera views of an emergency.

Autonomous Sniper System is an experimental robotic weapons system being developed by the U.S. Army since 2005. It consists of a remotely operated sniper rifle attached to an unmanned autonomous helicopter. It is intended for use in urban combat or for several other missions requiring snipers. Flight tests began in Summer 2009.

Speaking about potential risks it seems aptly to present here some doubts about advantages of military robots. In 2009, technical experts attended a conference to discuss hypothetical possibility that robots and computers could become self-sufficient and able to make their own decisions. They noted that some robots have acquired various forms of semi-autonomy, including being able to find power sources on their own and being able to independently choose targets to attack with weapons. They also noted that some computer viruses can evade elimination and have achieved "cockroach intelligence." They noted that there were other potential hazards and pitfalls.

Some experts have questioned the use of robots for military combat, especially when such robots are given some degree of autonomous functions. The US Navy has funded a report which indicates that as military robots become more complex, there should be greater attention to implications of their ability to make autonomous decisions.