Battlefield Robots Leap From Science Fiction to Reality

Once the fantasy of science fiction, battlefield robots are now a reality. "The whole idea is to take the war fighter out of harm's way," Robin Laird said. Laird is supervisor of the Unmanned Systems Branch of the U.S. Navy's Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center (SPAWAR) in San Diego. "In my mind, someday we'll be doing battle with robots not killing people," said Laird, whose program serves all four branches of the U.S. military. The military robots currently available, however, are not nearly as sophisticated as those that are sometimes portrayed by Hollywood films.