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The Airport in Rio in Brazil has “recruited” a falcon robot in order to ward off birds of ill omen

More seriously, this robotic falcon is used to scare the birds which fly above the airport so that they don’t collide with planes taking off.

Usually, airports use real falcons, not robots.

It is probably a world first.

This step has been taken because collisions rose dangerously between 2008 and 2009 at Rio’s international airport. (659 in 2008 and 926 in 2009.)

The falcon robot is European technology (Spain/Italy)

The bird is remote-controlled by airport staff and flies at 50 km/hour; it can reach 300 meters high and even skim the ground.

It’s an experiment for now which, if it proves successful, will be extended to other airports in Brazil.

Above is a photo of falcon robots used at Liverpool airport; in this case they act as decoys and don’t fly.

via afp/msn

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Hummingbird is a flying robot insect developed by the Japanese at the University of Chiba.

This prototype weighs only 2.6 ounces; it is operated via an infrared remote control, and can fly for several minutes at 10 meters high.

Its four wings can flap up to 30 beats per second.

Future developments will include video and photo cameras.

The project’s cost was nearly 3 million dollars; Hummingbird may be used in rescue operations during natural disasters, to hunt down fugitives, or even to explore Mars.

The Japanese are not the only ones working on this type of prototype since Berkeley Lab is currently working on a similar model named “Robofly,” which is even more advanced, technologically speaking.

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A joint project between the Missouri University of Sciences and the University of Missouri – Columbia has led to the development of a robot that provides 3D images of inaccessible or dangerous structures.

The prototype, which required 400,000 dollars in funding for its R&D (via the Leonard Wood Institute), is a remote controlled robot equipped with an infrared camera and LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology that sends millions of laser points that bounce off objects and relay an image to a portable computer.

The robot relays 3D mapping of a room, even at a distance through a window, and in the dark.

Once the image is defined, one can zoom on it as desired, and also view the image from different angles.

This new technology could be used to track down terrorists in caves, and also to assist research teams in quake relief like in Haiti.

Marketing is planned: the 200-pound (90 kg) prototype would cost 25,000 dollars per unit.

via Missouri S&T

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An interesting Courrier International article reports the fact that in Europe and in the United States governments plan to put robots at the borders to limit uncontrolled migration and prevent terrorism.

The idea results from a recent United Kingdom conference on national security, and putting robots in place along the borders was considered in order to watch for illegal intrusion attempts 24/7.

In a future closer than we think, illegal immigrants will be caught in the act and escorted by humanoid robots until their arrest.

Many countries around the world are considering this technology, and in the meantime some of them have already implemented temporary solutions.

Libya for example has installed remote control sound and infrared sensors on their borders that send information to the central district.

The United States is in the process of implementing an 8 Billion dollar project called Secure Border Initiative Network (SBINET) in collaboration with Boeing Intelligence and Security Systems. It consists of erecting towers 82 feet high equipped with optical sensors and infrared cameras on 1,864 miles of border. The instruments will automatically detect the presence of a human (or animal) in a visual and acoustic manner; the zone in question will be zoomed in on and an alert sent to the command post that will decide whether or not to send a police patrol to the area.

In Europe, the PIAP (Industrial Institute for Automation and Measurements) was funded with 20 million Euro by 10 countries to establish stronger border surveillance measures made up of drones, robots and mobile command units.

All this is waiting for the next generation of autonomous humanoid robot border guards.

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A group of Indian students, traumatized by the horrors they saw in Haiti have developed a seismologist robot capable of detecting earthquakes hours before they occur.

Hiran Patel, an engineering student at Surat in India reported to One India that the robot feels the vibrations in the ground hours in advance.

Evidently, this would assist in providing quick responses and saving lives.

The operation is simple in theory: the robot is equipped with one sensor and two transmitters. The transmitter circuit is located underground and can take real-time measurements such as temperature and water levels.

The information is transmitted to the robot through microwave frequencies.

If the robot detects vibrations, it triggers the alarm.

The advantage of this technology is that it can be geo-tracked anywhere on the planet and remotely controlled via the Internet.

Watch the video:

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