MOSCOW, June 29. /TASS/. Russian specialists conduct tests on controlling combat robots with voice commands, with commanders issuing orders to the robotic complex in the same way they do with human soldiers, says Oleg Martyanov, head of the Russian Foundation for Advanced Research Projects’ National Center for Development of Technologies and Basic Elements of Robotics..
According to Martyanov, the robots were initially made to be controlled by an electronic tablet.
"Then we tried the voice control technology, when a commander gives orders to both his subordinates and the robots. We are developing it now," Martyanov said.
The new solutions on robot control are being tested on the Marker robotic platform, he said.
"The Marker is learning to understand the received command and act, like a human," the Center head said.
The specialists also work on increasing the robot’s autonomy, because the distance of operator control today does not exceed 2 to 5 kilometers, Martyanov disclosed.
"Our goal is to teach the Marker to perform tasks on its own at a significant distance from the operator, at a distance determined by the robotic platform’s range," he said, adding that the Marker is supposed to be able to update its route and target locations on its own, by launching a reconnaissance drone. The Marker can move up to 500 kilometers away.
The Marker robotic platform is the joint project of the Center and the Android Technics Scientific Production Association, the developer of the FEDOR/Skybot android. The platform is supposed to become the key element for practice of joint operation of ground robots, unmanned aviation and Special Operations forces. The Marker is positioned as a construction set for development of combat models in the future.