Unmanned Combat Ground Vehicle

tankphobia

tankphobia

Senior Member
Registered Member
by78 said:
The robot dog again from Kestrel Defense. Two ways of deploying/transporting the robot dog. For direct deployment to battlefield, the dog can be dropped off by a drone as an underslung payload (images 1 and 2). For non-battle field deployment, it can simply be transported atop a drone (images 3, 4, and 5).

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Just wondering the application for something like this, that drone must be super power hungry so it can at most go a few km forwards, well within SHORAD range , it makes no sense to transport the robot dog on top towards a forward operating position as it'll be much easier to just drive it up using trucks which can carry much more.

Due to the nature of drones the uptop arrangement will also alert everyone within a kilometre of your exact position due to the noise. The only viable method for battlefield use would be underslung for rapid deployment, with the drone acting as signal repeater for long ranged control.

I can see the allure of using drones to drop the robot dog on rooftops of skyscrapers in cities as part of a breach and clear team, but I really think they should focus on more practical weapons for CQC usage on the robodogs before designing the transport options, seems like this company is very experienced in drone design, but quite limited for weapons.
 
Aniah

Aniah

Senior Member
Registered Member
tankphobia said:
Just wondering the application for something like this, that drone must be super power hungry so it can at most go a few km forwards, well within SHORAD range , it makes no sense to transport the robot dog on top towards a forward operating position as it'll be much easier to just drive it up using trucks which can carry much more.

Due to the nature of drones the uptop arrangement will also alert everyone within a kilometre of your exact position due to the noise. The only viable method for battlefield use would be underslung for rapid deployment, with the drone acting as signal repeater for long ranged control.

I can see the allure of using drones to drop the robot dog on rooftops of skyscrapers in cities as part of a breach and clear team, but I really think they should focus on more practical weapons for CQC usage on the robodogs before designing the transport options, seems like this company is very experienced in drone design, but quite limited for weapons.
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Just a proof of concept, everything gotta start somewhere.
 
Blitzo

Blitzo

Lieutenant General
Staff member
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The robot dogs as UGVs at this stage are just eye catching novelties at this stage, with limited real world applications except for possibly ground level tactical recce in some urban environments.


The more realistic, useful and applicable UCGVs for the near future are tracked and wheeled sensor/shooters -- smaller sized AFVs that are unmanned that can extend the reach of manned AFV units, working in a combined arms fashion.
Less exotic and eye catching, but far more relevant for the near future.
 
A

Atomicfrog

Major
Registered Member
tankphobia said:
Just wondering the application for something like this, that drone must be super power hungry so it can at most go a few km forwards, well within SHORAD range , it makes no sense to transport the robot dog on top towards a forward operating position as it'll be much easier to just drive it up using trucks which can carry much more.

Due to the nature of drones the uptop arrangement will also alert everyone within a kilometre of your exact position due to the noise. The only viable method for battlefield use would be underslung for rapid deployment, with the drone acting as signal repeater for long ranged control.

I can see the allure of using drones to drop the robot dog on rooftops of skyscrapers in cities as part of a breach and clear team, but I really think they should focus on more practical weapons for CQC usage on the robodogs before designing the transport options, seems like this company is very experienced in drone design, but quite limited for weapons.
Click to expand...
Way better to use a drone with a mg turret and observation station that you can land on a hill or a building than to have a drone that carry that armed robot puppy that will be cornered and clubbed to dead by a bunch of kids with baseball bats...
 
tankphobia

tankphobia

Senior Member
Registered Member
Aniah said:
Just a proof of concept, everything gotta start somewhere.
Click to expand...
I think in regards to this there's a few main points that you guys won't disagree with:
1. With current technology UAV are more suited for recon and strike missions than UGVs
2. Currently, practical applications of UGV technology mainly consist of tracked fire support platform and autonomous logistics vehicles.
3. In the near future, greater mobility offered by advances in AI and mobility systems may allow for mixed robot/infantry operation when operating in urban environment/complex terrain.

Key technology requires for #3 to become viable:
- Higher power density energy source to improve endurance and capacity
- Customised weapon design for the platform rather than adapting weapons for humans
- Reliable ground based communication that is jamming resistant and can easily traverse through walls without drop in quality
- Tactics and doctrine around utilising UGVs in combat operations rather than one off demos.
 
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