The detection of buried landmines using probing robots

This paper presents a new approach to the detection of anti-personnel landmines which is based on the physical detection of landmines using a sharpened probe in a fashion similar to that employed by human deminers. Reviews of current techniques , proposed new sensor technologies, and current uses of robotic devices within landmine detection are presented. This is followed by a description of our proposed solution, a robot capable of performing the probing task, together with the results of the initial experiments. 1 Background: The landmine problem It has been estimated that more than 100 million active mines are scattered throughout over 60 countries in the world, and that more than 2,000 people are maimed or killed by mines every month 1,2]. Many anti-personnel mines are designed speciically to maim rather than kill as signiicant resources are required to care for people who are injured by such mines, and there is a signiicant psychological impact on fellow soldiers. Landmines have also been