NSW Treasurer and Minister for State and Regional
Development Eric Roozendaal today announced a Sydney company has won a
$57 million contract with the United States Marine Corps to trial
advanced robot technology for training soldiers in live firing
exercises. In a major win for NSW technology, Marathon Robotics Rover
system will be tested by the US Marines for advanced marksmanship training. This is a great example of world-beating NSW technology, Mr
Roozendaal said. The NSW Government has assisted with technology development along
with the Australian Government, and has provided export support through
Industry & Investment NSW. The Rover - or Autonomous Robots Networked for Live Fire Training
(ARNLT) system - will be tested by the US Marine Corps Systems Command
in Orlando, Florida. If successful, this $A57 million trial could see the Rover system taken
on board as a live fire training platform by the US Defense Department. Marathon Robotics, based at the Australian Technology Park at Eveleigh,
was founded by three PhD students from the University of Sydney. The Marathon Robotics system uses free-ranging robots protected by
armour plating to train marksmen. These robots are programmed to mimic human behaviour to provide a
realistic, challenging and interactive training scenario for
marksmen, Mr Roozendaal said. They can turn on the spot, quickly change direction, navigate in and
out of buildings, react quickly to avoid obstacles, and even run for
cover when one of their buddies is hit by a bullet. This system can run day and night and in all weather, and promises
to revolutionise the business of marksmanship training. The NSW Government helped the development of the robotics technology
through its support of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Autonomous
Systems, and in May hosted a visit by the US Marine Corps to assess the
technology. Now the NSW Government is helping Marathon Robotics target worldwide
exports through Industry & Investment NSW and its Australian Technology
Showcase (ATS), export and Innovation Pathways programs. Marathon Robotics anticipates the creation of up to 30 jobs over the
next three years on the back of international technology sales.
In this years State Budget, the NSW Government announced it would
target high-value defence industries under a $75 million defence
attraction package. The funding package will create a hi-tech defence hub at Macquarie Park
in North Ryde and provide $25 million to secure new defence projects,
generating 1,500 new jobs. Marathon Robotics CEO Dr Alex Brooks said the Rover system was
developed at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Autonomous Systems in
conjunction with the Australian Department of Defence. The Rover uses a global positioning system (GPS) and a scanning
laser rangefinder for navigation, positioning, and obstacle detection
and avoidance, Dr Brooks
*Sitting atop the robotic platform is a human-sized 3D mannequin made
from durable plastic to withstand hundreds of shots. When a mannequin is
hit it drops backwards before resetting itself automatically. High-speed wireless ethernet is used to communicate with a central
control station and with other robots. This allows remote monitoring,
interactive control, and multi-robot coordination.
*On-board intelligence allows the robots to react quickly to
unexpected situations.
*Importantly, the Rover system has strong potential not only for
armed forces training worldwide but also for law enforcement and
security agencies. The NSW Government is helping Marathon Robotics target its technology
to a range of international export markets including Europe.
