Firefighting Robots Fighting London blazes

Firefighting Robots

Remote controlled robots formerly used in combat situations in Iraq are now being used by London firefighters to combat dangerous fires; especially when they find acetylene gas is part of the situation.

Created by defense contractor, QinetiQ, the tree robots will be able to enter into danger areas and safely deal with the gas cylinders.

This is important because even if acetylene gas cylinders have cooled off, they are still a danger to explode, and so the robots can help deal with that situation safely.

Because of that, fire crews have had to stop transport links for up to a period of 24 hours and also evacuate local communities from a danger zone.

What the robots can help with is cooling off the cylinders much more quickly, and then they can be remove safely by the firefighters in a more efficient manner.

one robot is able to find a hot acetylene cylinder, while another can cool it off with water quickly. The final robot can clear debris out of the way and also pick up the cylinder with its claw.

In experimental trials, the robots were able to do the job in under three hours, whereas in other situations it has taken firefighters over 19 hours on average to take care of.

The robots and their controllers will work with London firefighters for the next two years, and will be funded by Network Rail, the Highways Agency and Transport for London.





Firefighting Robots