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Credit: Robin Murphy, Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue (CRASAR) |
Washington, DC--From Sept. 12-23,
National Science Foundation-funded researchers
aided World Trade Center recovery efforts.
University of South Florida engineering
professor Robin Murphy and three graduate
students took six urban search-and-rescue
robots to "ground zero" in New York to
help find survivors. Murphy's 11-day mission
was a part of a larger team that recovered the
remains of six victims.
Murphy's robots are unique in that they
are small and can maneuver in very tight
situations. Tethered and fitted with headlights
and cameras, these robots bring distinct
advantages to a rescue mission the magnitude
of the World Trade Center attacks where
the damage is massive and recovery very
dangerous.
Although the robots cost between $10,000 and
$40,000, Murphy foresees search-and-rescue
robots becoming standard equipment in
fire departments across the country.
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