Filipino-made robot to help police

By Anna Valmero INQUIRER.net MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine National Police Makati Unit has launched the mechanical anti-terrorist concept (MAC) robot that looks like a magnified v ersion of a robotic toy weighing about 80 kilos. It is a good sign the government defense unit is looking at technology to bette r their operations. However, a look at the robot also signals how the technolog y is really in its infancy -- well, itâs a prototype. A good point about the MAC is that it uses locally sourced parts but it also po sed problems for developers. According to Engineer John Judillo of the Mapua Institute of Technology (MIT), they had difficulty in making the parts fit the configuration of the other thus it took them about nine months to come up with MAC -- seven months for concept ualization and two months for development. Structure: The MAC uses simple electronic motors for actuation sourc ed locally which can allow immediate repair of the machine. It takes a while fo r the person behind the control console to command MAC to pick up and drop the explosive to a bomb basket, as Iâve seen in the demo. As I remember, since the student developers in the team will compete in the Fir st World Cup on Computer Implemented Inventions, possibly the key focus for dev eloping MAC is the programming behind it, specifically using C++ language. Suggested modification: It is possible to use advanced parts for the design wit hout importing them. How? By partnering with local electronics and if possible, semiconductor companies in the country for the chip parts. In my understanding, robotics as a discipline combines electronics, mechanics a nd software. The developers can focus on these three to develop a better MAC. A t present, TI and NXP, two of the big names in the chip manufacturing space, ha ve offices in the Philippines. It is possible to tap them as partners for the e ndeavor and donât forget homegrown electronics firms, which abound in Manila an d nearby provinces. Built: The first-generation MAC has a fiber glass casing painted black and uses four tires to move around. It is a remotely operated vehicle tied to the contr ol console via an umbilical cord. The cord can be extended to 30 meters, said t he developer team. Suggested modification: If the casing is fiber glass, the MAC could be destroye d in scenarios it cannot wheel away immediately from an exploding bomb. Time is critical to controlling bomb explosions and at P300,000 cost, losing three of these MACs in a month sums up to lost of public money. According to the developer, the MAC uses wires to enable reliable control. Goin g wireless is not an option but a must for solutions like this. One can never a ssume the explosive will always be located less than or equal to 30 meters away from the bomb team. What if itâs on top of the 50th floor? This question brings to another possible modification. Can the next-generation MAC climb stairs in case explosives are located there and not on the ground flo or? Current solutions from other countries use eight wheels to enable the robot to climb stairs. This could be an interesting area to look at. The MAC has four cameras that can be viewed by the person behind the control co nsole. Despite the four cameras, it takes a while to let the robot move around as well as for the person behind the console to command it without receiving ad ditional input from other bomb disposal members about MACâs grip on the bomb or how it needs to adjust a little on the left to fit the way. Suggested modification: In addition to the four cameras, the next-generation MA C can add a camera that will form 3D visualization to allow spatial perspective of the MACâs location with respect to the bomb based on the images from the fo ur cameras. This will allow the person behind the control console to âseeâ the environment the MAC is in as well as estimate its distance to the explosive. What other modifications will you suggest to be included in the next-generation MAC?