Laboratory products news: USAR robots studied

Scientists are studying urban search and rescue (USAR) robots in order to make them more effective.

Used to investigate unstable areas at disaster sights, the robots send back images of locations that humans are unable to enter.

However, the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society has revealed that this process is not without problems, explaining that USAR robots often get stuck in action - something that can further destabilise the area they are in.

"Our research seeks to understand why operators are getting their robots stuck. With that knowledge, hopefully, we can reduce the problem, and increase the amount of time that operators spend searching for survivors," comments Keith Jones, a researcher at Texas Tech University involved in the study.

Both the size of the robot and the skill of the operator are important factors in the smooth running of the USAR machines.

Such robots were recently used to help locate survivors in the Japanese earthquake and tsunami disasters, which initially struck on March 11th.