The exercise centered on a vehicle from Milrem Robotics called THeMIS.
On June 2, at an army base in the forested interior of Belgium, a team of robots tentatively advanced through a mock battlefield. On treads and wheels, and alongside uniformed soldiers, these robots scouted buildings, took defensive positions behind packed earth bulwarks, and some even donned camo netting, hiding their bulky frame from casual view. An armed ground robot tucked into an outcropping of trees, its turret pointed to guard the advance.
By designing robots as part of a broader architecture, the project allows the robot-making companies and robot-using militaries to think about how these tools will work alongside existing traditional vehicles and in combination with one another.
What makes the THeMIS crucial as a platform for militaries to explore using battlefield robotics is the way it can carry other sensors and perform tasks beyond just mobile cargo haulers. A range ofcan be mounted on it, so the THeMIS can host cameras, rangefinders, and weapons from machine guns to anti-tank missiles like the Javelin to loitering munitions.