It’s what every kid dreams of at Christmas—an all-terrain RC car that not only flips, tumbles and just keep going, but can also leap tall buildings in a single bound.
It’s called the Sand Flea, and this 11 lb. robot, developed by Boston Dynamics can jump an impressive 30 feet with exceptional accuracy.
It sounds like fun, but this little guy is (sadly) not for consumers. With funding from the US Army’s Rapid Equipping Force (REF), the Sand Flea is a military bot, through and through.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the US dominates the Global Military Robots Market, with a share of about 40 percent. America’s involvement in a number of global conflicts and its impressive military budget have kept the country as the leading developer of military technology in a market that is growing at a CAGR of 10.26 percent from 2013-2018.
And while ground bots like the sand flea are pretty darn cool, they don’t really hold a candle to unmanned aerial vehicles, which account for about 60 percent of the market, and are a major reason for market growth.
“The increase in demand for UAVs has resulted in high pressure manufacturers to update their technology or manufacture new UAVs” say senior TechNavio analysts.
“For instance, China’s Chengdu Aircraft Corp. has expanded its UAV production line to manufacture new unmanned combat aerial vehicles and new vertical takeoff UAVs. In October 2013, the company introduced its new twin-engine flying UAV, the VD200, which takes off vertically and lands on its vertical stabilizers.”
The increase in drone usage is also fuelling growth in other areas of the military technology world. The Global Military Electro-Optic Infrared (EO/IR) Systems Market is posting a CAGR of just over 6 percent from 2014-2018. Advanced EO/IR systems allow for long-range surveillance, tracking and targeting, which are all essential for both combat and non-combat UAVs.
Since these robots are deployed for information gathering, surveillance and patrolling in areas where climatic conditions are extreme or the front line is unpredictable and hostile, the information gathered through EO/IR systems is essential for the military operations they support.
Recently, US Marines were even able to land a full-sized helicopter equipped with an advanced EO/IR system on an unprepared landing site, using an iPad-like tablet. This has significant applications for both remote warfare and as well as surveillance, as the presence of global conflicts continue to drive military technology over the next four years.
For more insights, view our Global Military Robots Market 2014-2018 and Global Military Electro-Optic Infrared (EO/IR) Systems Market 2014-2018 reports.
