The role of robots in the battlefields of the future

Purpose This paper aims to provide an overview of robots presently in use by the military and an insight into some that are under development. Design/methodology/approach Following a short introduction, this paper first considers existing applications of robots in the military field, including details of Russian weaponised ground robots. It then highlights a range of military robot developments and concludes with a brief discussion. Findings Drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) and small unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) are among the most widely used robots by the military. Russia is developing a growing armoury of heavily weaponised UGVs, some of which were recently deployed in Syria. Some topics of development include humanoid robots, powered exoskeletons, load-carrying robots, micro-air vehicles and autonomous land vehicles. Robots will play an ever-growing role in military actions, and while some developments offer longer-term prospects, others are expected to be deployed in the near future. Originality/value Robots are playing an increasingly important role in military conflicts, and this provides details of present-day and anticipated future uses of robots by the military.