Driverless construction vehicle digs and builds walls

摘要

A PROTOTYPE of an autonomous construction vehicle weighing 12 tonnes has demonstrated that it can operate on very difficult terrain without a human operator. A Swiss-German team converted a type of excavator that can "walk" on extendable struts and handle steep slopes so that it can work independent of a human operator. They used the adapted machine to build a 4-metre-tall stone wall and grab trees for mock forestry work. They also used it to dig out a trench containing live ammunition from the second world war, one situation where driverless vehicles could limit safety hazards.