Dstl has run field trials of a prototype of the robot, which features X-ray Backscatter (XRBS) imaging technology attached to remote-controlled, movable robotic system. The images taken by Backscatter are then transmitted back to an operator in real-time.

Use of the robot would allow operators to look inside materials and containers, such as walls and cars, for hidden explosives or weapons without being near the potential threats themselves.

The trial manager for the project said: “X-ray Backscatter is an established technology but what we are trying to do is apply it to explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) — this approach is novel.

“Being able to robotically mount X-ray Backscatter provides additional situational awareness, potentially to see if there is a threat item without having to go anywhere near it.”

The project is a collaboration between Dstl and the U.S. Government, with the robot’s prototype having been produced by Rapiscan American Science and Engineering, the X-ray technologies firm.

The Dstl trial team has recently demonstrated the prototype’s capability to UK and U.S. stakeholders, using both simulated explosive and non-conventional threats as well as various firearms.

They showed the prototype detecting threats through a variety of wall materials, cars, metal lockers, plastic drums, and bags.

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The project’s senior principal scientist commented: “The feedback we’ve had from our stakeholders who have come to see the system up here has been very positive, better than I could have hoped for really.

“I’ve been jotting things down – some direct quotes to use – and I think my favourite so far has been ‘I want one!’

“When they say something like that you know you’ve delivered something that has piqued their interest.”

The project team will use the feedback to assess what modifications would be needed to turn the prototype into a deployable asset on the battlefield, Dstl said.

Previous to the news of the X-ray robot trials, DIGIT last covered Dstl when it signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Google Cloud as part of an agreement to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence in the UK’s defence sector.