Robots Guarding US Nuclear Stockpiles In Nevada 128
kkleiner writes "The US National Nuclear Security Administration recently announced that it has started using autonomous robot vehicles to patrol the vast desert surrounding its Nevada National Security Site (NNSS). The 1360+ square miles of territory is home to millions of tons of low grade nuclear waste, as well as Cold War Era nuclear weapons, and cutting edge nuclear testing research. Guarding those precious nuclear materials is the Mobile Detection Assessment Response System (MDARS) robot, which is essentially a camera on a mini-Hummer. The MDARS can roam and scout the desert on its own, alerting a remote operator when it encounters something that shouldn't be there."
Automated robots (Score:2, Interesting)
Tedious, dangerous, time-consuming tasks should be done by robots.
I'm still sad my Roomba doesn't empty, clean, and charge itself. I suppose it could, but that would probably be the last step before self awareness, and we all know how that will go.
Re:Automated robots (Score:3, Interesting)
Doesn't the Roomba automatically go back to its charging station after it's done cleaning?
The only thing missing, AFAIK, it's the "empty itself" part. I'm puzzled over that one because they could simply add a "garbage can" part to the charging station...
Must have missed them (Score:5, Interesting)
I was on a tour of the Nevada test site a few months back and didn't see any robots running around, I guess they weren't operating at that point. It's a pretty interesting place to see if you ever get the chance, and so big that I can understand why they want robots patrolling 24/7.
And the tour guide claimed that years ago a visitor was accidentally left behind in a portapotty near one of the craters, so at least if it happens again they'll be able to flag down a passing robot. Assuming it doesn't go all Terminator on their ass.
What happens north of New Vegas... (Score:5, Interesting)
(When I first saw a picture of the thing, I thought it was an asset from Fallout:New Vegas. It's a Robobrain come to life... awesome! :)
These things could actually have civilian applications. Scatter a bunch over Death Valley or other remote areas, and partner 'em with a high-altitude drone overlooking the area for stranded motorists or backcountry hikers, and send an autonomous mount with a few gallons of water after 'em after a few hours of immobility. It'll have pretty decent odds of getting there in time to help, and the remote operator can then talk with the hiker/motorist to determine what sort of human intervention (if any) is necessary.
Re:What could possibly go wrong? (Score:3, Interesting)
What could possibly go wrong?
An MDARS robot, parked in the middle of a vast desert, dreams of becoming a Google Driverless Car [wikipedia.org] one day. "I know I checked the 'do no evil' box on my application form. I wonder what happened? Stupid computers should never be trusted to handle something as complex as paying attention to details on a job application ..."
I call BS (Score:1, Interesting)
Not too long ago I had a NNSA contract and before we were allowed to drive on the NTS we had to take a course in how to not run over desert tortoises and other wildlife we might encounter (you were supposed to move the tortoise gently to the other side of the road). And that was just to get to drive cars on paved roads. Now they are going to let this offroad gizmo roam by itself and only phone home if it sees an anomaly?
Just one word.... (Score:2, Interesting)