THE robot looked on as a fire burned aboard the USS Shadwell, its eyes scanning for the heart of the blaze. Then it grabbed a hose and started spraying water into the inferno.
Staged in Mobile, Alabama, this was the first live test of SAFFiR – the Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot – and the first time any robot has fought a fire. SAFFiR was developed at Virginia Polytechnic Institute in Blacksburg for the US navy, and could one day be installed on every navy ship, tackling fires without risking human life.
With a mass of 65 kilograms and standing 178 centimetres tall, SAFFiR uses dual optical cameras to see, thermal cameras to peer through smoke and find fires, and laser sensors to gauge distances. Although it can walk and pick up a hose on its own, all other actions are controlled by a human operator.
Thomas McKenna of the Office of Naval Research announced this week that the navy wants to fund the next version of SAFFiR, which will have improved battery life and software.
He also foresees SAFFiR becoming a multipurpose robot. "We have taken a look at other kinds of sensors that you can put on these robots," he said. "A bipedal robot could be configured to take shipboard measurements, and scan for corrosion and leaks."
This article appeared in print under the headline "Naval firefighting robot hoses down its first blaze