robotic-vacuum maker, bu team up on antisniper device - laser distance rangefinder

(
Correction: Due to an edit error, one in the business section yesterday was about
The sniper system developed by IRobot incorrectly confirmed the date the company released the system.
IRobot showed this on Monday at the US Army Association meeting in Washington. )IRobot Corp.
Burlington, known for its robotic vacuum cleaner, has partnered with researchers at Boston University to develop a military robot capable of identifying enemy snipers.
Joe Dyer, executive vice president and general manager of IRobot, said: "You will see snipers before the smoke disappears . ".
IRobot demonstrated the name REDOWL (
Robot detection outpost for laser enhancement)
At the US Army Association convention in Washington yesterday
Testers hit metal fragments to simulate shooting.
REDOWL quickly aligned the infrared camera and the laser range machine to the noise source, as in the test at the Medfield gun range.
REDOWL PackBot based on iRobot, a battery-
Electric light robots already serving in the armed forces.
PackBots are used to explore dangerous terrain or enter buildings to search for trapping devices.
Glen Soren, deputy director of the photon Center at Boston University, wants to know if an anti-sniper system can be installed on a packaging robot.
He used the laser range machine from Insight Technology.
In Delhi, London, N. H. , and sound-
Acoustic start-detection equipment developed by Bionic system
Up company founded by Boston University
REDOWL also includes a digital camera that can zoom in on objects or people in the distance and display infrared images at night.
When REDOWL's microphone detects a shot, the device calculates the source of the sound, rotates the camera, illuminates the target with visible or infrared light, and calculates the distance using a laser.
However, only about 5 more were added to the whole system.
5 pounds of the weight of the packaging robot.
It is small enough to fit on military vehicles or on the side of the building, Soren said.
This makes it much smaller than the swing ang, a competing anti-sniper technology developed by BBN Technologies Inc. for the militaryin Cambridge.
Dell said that in the test, the Red Cat detected the shooting Source with 94% accuracy and could distinguish between guns.
"It can distinguish between 9mm pistol and AK-47 or an M-16," he said.
The machine also works in the urban setting as the gunfire echoes through the buildings and snipers are hard to spot.
Dell says REDOWL's software can detect the original sound source and ignore the echo.
In theory, the Red owl system can counter the enemy, but Solon says the hardware is not enough to support the weight of the gun.
Besides, he said it is dangerous to have weapons.
Robots that can fire on their own.
"You need a man in the loop," he said . ".