South Korean arms maker reveals new robotic combat vehicle

South Korean arms maker Hanwha Defense is to unveil its new robotic combat vehicle ahead of ADEX 2021 to be held from Oct. 19 to 22 in Seongnam, just south of Seoul.

The defense contractor said that named the Intelligent UGV, or I-UGV, the fully electric vehicle features enhanced mission capabilities, compared to the existing 4×4 Multi-Purpose UGV, or M-UGV, and other UGVs built in South Korea.

The I-UGV is on trial this month at an infantry unit of the Republic of Korea Army.

The 2-ton I-UGV has a payload capacity of 500kg or more. It has an outstanding cruising radius of 100km per charge. The vehicle can move at a top speed of 40km/h on paved roads and 20km/h on unpaved roads. It has a detection range of 4 kilometers both at day and night.

Based on artificial intelligence technologies, the I-UGV can carry out remoted-controlled operations or GPS-enabled autonomous driving to conduct various missions such as surveillance and reconnaissance, transport of cargo and wounded soldiers.

The I-UGV is also equipped with a high-end remote-controlled weapon station that can lock on to targets automatically using acoustic sensors to determine the source of gunfire during the confusion of combat.