Valkyrie: A Patient Recovery Robot

We propose to develop Valkyrie, a semi-autonomous mobile robot for the recovery of battlefield casualties. When a soldier is wounded in combat, Valkyrie will navigate to the casualty's location, and a remote medic will teleoperate the onboard manipulatorto lift, drag, or roll the casualty onto the robot or a litter. Valkyrie will then autonomously transport the casualty to a safe location for treatment. Valkyrie will also be able to autonomously search for casualties using its onboard infrared visionsystem. During Phase I, our first task will be to determine the best way for the robot to acquire the casualty for transport. Based on the results of this task, we will select an appropriate robot platform for Valkyrie. We have a unique opportunity toleverage three iRobot R&D projects that offer robots ranging in size from a backpack-sized reconnaissance robot to a golf cart-sized off-road vehicle. Our third task will be to develop vision software for detecting casualties using an infrared camera. Inthe Phase I Option, we will develop a prototype end effector that can be mounted on a manipulator to acquire the casualty, and we will test our infrared vision system in urban and wilderness environments. When a soldier is wounded in combat, the number one priority is to protect that casualty from hostile fire and move the casualty to a location where he or she can be treated safely. The time required to evacuate the casualty is the single most importantfactor in determining whether the casualty will live or die. If the casualty is under heavy fire, a medic may not be able to safely reach the casualty within the