Ukraine’s military has approved a ground robot adapted for some of the country’s most vital grenade launchers, the robot’s manufacturer said.
The autonomous vehicles, also called ground drones or unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), are playing a growing role in Ukraine, helping its military with one of its biggest disadvantages: its much smaller military.
The robots are used for a host of functions, including firing at Russian targets, blowing up Russian positions, and evacuating the wounded.
But the company, DevDroid, said this was the first time Ukraine has given this level of authorization to one adapted for these key launchers.
It wrote on LinkedIn this week that its Droid NW 40 “is the first codified reconnaissance and strike UGV” that is adapted for the US-made Mk-19 40mm and the Ukrainian-made AGL-53 automatic grenade launchers.
The American-made Mk-19 has been an important weapon for NATO militaries over the past few decades. The domestically made AGL-53 was approved by Ukraine’s military this year. Both are important for Ukraine as it seeks to modernize and not rely on its Soviet-designed weapons.
DevDroid said the codification means the robot is “approved for service with the Defense Forces and meets NATO standards.”
It said the system is designed to attack personnel and light armored vehicles at a range of 0.9 miles, with remote controls allowing operators to stay back.
It’s not the first time that ground robots have been used to fire grenades in Ukraine. But it appears to be the first time that a design engineered to fire those key grenade launchers has had official approval for use.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense could not be reached for immediate comment.
A Ukrainian unit has shared images of a ground robot equipped with a different grenade launcher, and Oleksandr Yabchanka, the head of the robotic systems for Ukraine’s Da Vinci Wolves Battalion, previously told Business Insider that his unit has “brilliant” turrets that attach the MK-19 grenade launcher to some of its ground robots.
He said robots can be fitted with different weapons, like machine guns or grenade launchers, to fire at Russian positions. It means they can attack while keeping Ukrainian soldiers safer, as Russia is likely to return fire to wherever the attack comes from, and can also drive closer to Russian positions to launch the attacks.
He said ground robot systems are best when they work like Lego, with soldiers able to put the same system together in different ways to perform different functions, rather than having many different systems to use.
Innovation on Ukraine’s front lines is evolving rapidly
Ukrainian soldiers are constantly learning new ways to use existing weaponry and encouraging the development of new types. It means innovation can also happen before any official defense ministry involvement.
The war has been marked by constant innovation, with both large and small defense companies continually developing new types of technology, particularly in the areas of robotics and drones. This includes on the battlefield, where soldiers stay in communication with manufacturers to give feedback and get fast upgrades.
The way soldiers use some robotic systems has even come as a surprise to the manufacturers themselves, a testament to how rapidly the technology’s use is developing.
Ground robots account for a tiny portion of Ukraine’s drone use. Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander in chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, said this month that in November, they accounted for less than 0.66% of Ukraine’s total drone missions.
And it is unclear how widely the Droid NW 40 will be used or how many can be manufactured.
But dozens of companies are working on the newer and growing tech in Ukraine, where its population is so much smaller than Russia’s that it needs systems to allow it to fight without much manpower.
DevDroid itself says that its system allows “the execution of complex combat missions from a safe distance and minimizing risks to personnel.”
And the robots’ achievements are growing too. A Ukrainian unit said on Monday that it used a DevDroid TW 12.7 that was equipped with a .50-caliber machine gun to hold frontline positions for 45 straight days.
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