DRDO Pune lab developing humanoid robot for military operations
Pune: A team of scientists from the Research and Development Establishment (Engineers) of the
is developing a
for various defence applications essential for operational purposes.This robot, designed to operate under human command, aims to participate in high-risk
, thereby reducing soldiers' exposure to life-threatening scenarios.
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The robot was showcased at the three-day national workshop on advanced legged robotics, which began in Pune on Thursday. This is the first time the DRDO has publicly showcased a technological demonstration in this field."The humanoid robot consists of a complex operating system that functions through a combination of advanced software and sensors.
We have currently developed prototypes for both the lower and upper bodies of the robot and have achieved some applications during our internal testing," SE Talole, Group Director at the Centre for Systems and Technologies for Advanced Robotics of the R&D Establishment (Engineers), told TOI. The team has been working on the project for the past four years and has completed the initial stages of development. Once fully operational, the humanoid upper body system would have the ability to perform complex autonomous operations with closed-loop gripping. It will also be capable of turning, pushing, pulling or sliding doors, pushing obstacles, opening valves, and operating in high-risk zones. The robot should be able to process and successfully execute commands given by the operator, according to scientists. The functioning of the robot is based on three principles — actuators act as muscles to generate movement, sensors gather information, and control systems process this information."The challenging aspects for us are to execute various tasks seamlessly. To achieve that, we need to ensure high-level balancing, information processing, and execution on the ground," said Talole. "Our team is working on achieving these three objectives in the advanced phases of development. Our aim is to complete the task by 2027," said Kiran Akella, a scientist leading the design team.The legged robots being developed by the DRDO's premier research laboratory in Pune have the potential to be put in use by Indian Armed forces.Once fully functional, the humanoid upper body system would have a lightweight arm with spherical revolute joint configuration. It would have 24 degrees of freedom, including seven in the arm, four in the gripper, and two in the head.It has been designed to safely handle hazardous objects such as mines, explosives, and liquids using both arms collaboratively. It can perform operations at day or night, indoors or outdoors. Audiovisual perception, multiple proprioceptive and exteroceptive sensing abilities, data fusion, and tactical sensing would also be available.The humanoid biped system has been designed to possess stability, control, and balance while navigating unstructured terrain.It would have real-time dynamics and kinematics, besides capabilities for fall and push recovery, and real-time map generation and navigation.Path planning and simultaneous localization and mapping in unstructured terrain as well as the ability to perform complex autonomous operations in high-risk zones are also features that the humanoid biped system would have.Private global players have also been developing effective humanoid robots for military purposes, with some countries already in the process of inducting these robots for logistics and other applications.Legged robotic systems, such as bipedal and quadrupedal robots, have numerous practical applications in various fields, including military and security, medical services, home services, space exploration, and manufacturing. However, the design and development of autonomous legged robots face a variety of technological challenges, an official said.
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