Qinetiq,
MCLEAN: QinetiQ North America, a global developer of innovative technology solutions for national defense, homeland security and first responders, today announced that its Technology Solutions Group subsidiary, Foster-Miller, is now offering a TALON® Responder robot specifically designed for public safety, fire and rescue organizations. TALON Responder provides the same rugged, high-performance, fast-response capabilities of the military version of the robot, but at a cost that addresses the budget realities law enforcement and first responders face today. The first sale was recorded in December 2008 to a California police department.
With long-range and agile wireless digital communications, as well as analog, TALON Responder is ready to serve even in the most challenging conditions, such as those found in highly RF-congested inner cities. The robot includes a disruptor-ready manipulator arm, wrist and gripper that provide exceptional combined lifting, dragging, towing and grabbing capabilities. The gripper can exert up to 30 inch-pounds of force on a 6-inch-wide object — more than enough to meet the needs of emergency response teams. Three infrared illuminated color cameras, including a pan/tilt mast with color zoom camera, complete the robot's standard configuration. A laptop controller with gamepad controls allows operation of TALON Responder from a safe distance — up to 500 to 1,200 meters (1,600 to 4,000 feet) — depending on the radio option selected.
“Some firms give law enforcement only entry-level products,” said Dr. William Ribich, president of QinetiQ North America's Technology Solutions Group. “We focus on providing robust, rugged solutions that meet the need to protect explosive ordnance disposal technicians and others from injury or death – providing mission-critical performance that can still work within the budget of a state or local agency.”
With the same industry-leading reliability, serviceability and toughness as all other robots in the TALON family, the TALON Responder is hardy enough to operate 24/7 under even the harshest of weather conditions — including 100 percent humidity — to address the high-performance requirements of first responders everywhere.
According to Dr. Ribich, the ongoing expansion of the TALON line of robots is QinetiQ North America's response to the nation's growing interest in using robots not only for combat missions and support, but for expanded first responder operations as well. Today, more than 2,500 TALON robots are deployed around the world with military and first responders, providing life-saving distance from threatening devices and situations.
“We're always improving and expanding our line of products to meet the complex challenges of national defense and homeland security, and we're dedicated to delivering the best robotic solutions in the industry,” Dr. Ribich added.
About QinetiQ North America
QinetiQ North America delivers world-class technology and responsive solutions to government agencies and commercial customers for many of their most urgent and complex challenges. QinetiQ North America is an independent, innovative technology provider that earns over a billion dollars in revenue operating with small company speed and agility while leveraging significant global resources. More than 6,000 QinetiQ North America engineers, scientists and other professionals have the mission knowledge and proven, reliable performance to meet the rapidly changing demands of national defense, homeland security, information assurance and state and local customers.
