Intriguing idea, but they are still having problems. “Sometimes it sees tall grass as a wall,” says one engineer.
The Marine Corps Times reports:
MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. — The Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory is pushing forward with development of at least two unmanned ground vehicles, including a 7-ton truck that would cut down on the number of Marines outside the wire during resupply convoys.
Upcoming experiments will determine the feasibility of taking Marines out of some Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement trucks, thus exposing fewer to improvised explosive devices and other threats, said Capt. Warren Watts II, a logistics officer overseeing the project. Marines in one command-and-control vehicle would control up to two other trucks via laptop computer, with sensors, cameras and a computer in the unmanned vehicles providing direction at speeds of up to 45 mph.
The first tests will take place at Fort Pickett, Va., from May 16 to 20, Watts said. One unmanned vehicle and a C2 vehicle will demonstrate how they work when guided by computer programming and a Marine equipped with an Xbox-style remote control.
“If we use these types of kits that make these systems robotic, we don’t want this big hulking, mechanical thing taking up a lot of space in the cab,” said Maj. Patrick Reynolds, head of the logistics combat element branch in the lab’s technology division. “We want the ability to have a Marine jump in the cab, and at the flip of a switch, he can drive it.”
The full report is here.