ICx Teams with iRobot to Secure $16.58 Million Contract with Department of Defense Joint Ground Robotics Enterprise (JGRE) to Provide Mobile Explosives Detectors
The ICx Fido® Explosives Detector Enables iRobot® PackBot® for Mobile, High-End Explosives Detection Applications
ICx Technologies, a developer of advanced technology solutions for homeland and military security, today announced that its ICx Nomadics business unit has teamed with iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT) to service a $16.58 million contract with the Department of Defense's Joint Ground Robotics Enterprise (JGRE).
Through the initial agreement, more than 100 ICx ultra-sensitive Fido Explosives Detectors will be incorporated onto iRobot PackBot robots. Due to the unparalleled sensitivity of the Fido, the combined systems are capable of searching for and detecting explosive devices, then disarming those devices by utilizing the PackBot's on-board capabilities.
"The sensitivity of the Fido explosives 'sniffer' is comparable to that of highly trained bomb dogs, and integrating this advanced detection capability with the versatile iRobot PackBot robots will help keep soldiers out of harm's way," said Colin Cumming, chief technology officer of ICx Technologies.
Inspired by the ability of bomb sniffing dogs to detect explosives, the ICx Fido Explosives Detector has the advantage of being both ultra-sensitive and capable of quickly screening packages, facilities, people and vehicles for traces of explosives. The breakthrough sensing technology behind the Fido detector supports both particle and vapor detection and allows operators the versatility and portability necessary for diverse detection and screening scenarios.
In the integrated Fido-Packbot system, the Fido sensor head and a separate communications interface are attached to the robot, and explosive detection results appear on the Packbot Operator Control Unit (OCU). This integration model allows the Fido detector to be removed and utilized for general handheld operations in addition to the remote applications made possible by the Packbot.
"iRobot PackBot's all-digital architecture allows for easy and fast integration of new life-saving capabilities, such as the ICx Fido," said Vice Admiral Joe Dyer (U.S. Navy, Ret.), president of iRobot Government & Industrial Robots. "Fido's small, lightweight design and acute sensitivity make it an ideal payload for PackBot and will expand the robot's utility on the battlefield."
The iRobot PackBot is a rugged, lightweight reconnaissance and bomb-disposal robot used by U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan to disarm roadside bombs and other improvised explosive devices (IEDs). To date, iRobot has delivered more than 800 PackBot robots to a broad range of military and civilian customers worldwide. The robots have performed tens of thousands of missions in Iraq and Afghanistan and are credited with saving soldiers' lives.
The DoD Joint Ground Robotics Enterprise program aims to increase warfighter capability and survivability with integrated and interoperable unmanned systems for national security. The Fido-iRobot integration aims to further this mission by using the most advanced technology for detecting and disarming explosives.
About FLIR Systems
FLIR Systems, Inc. is a world leader in the design, manufacture, and marketing of sensor systems that enhance perception and awareness. The Company’s advanced thermal imaging and threat detection systems are used for a wide variety of imaging, thermography, and security applications, including airborne and ground-based surveillance, condition monitoring, research and development, manufacturing process control, search and rescue, drug interdiction, navigation, transportation safety, border and maritime patrol, environmental monitoring, and chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives (CBRNE) detection. Visit the Company's web site at www.FLIR.com.
The statements in this release by Earl R. Lewis, and the other statements in this release about the award described above, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the Company's business based, in part, on assumptions made by management. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such forward-looking statements due to numerous factors, including the following: the ability to manufacture and deliver the systems referenced in this release, changes in demand for the Company's products, product mix, the timing of deliveries under the award discussed above, the impact of competitive products and pricing, constraints on supplies of critical components, excess or shortage of production capacity, the ability of the Company to manufacture and ship products in the time period required, actual purchases under agreements, the Company's continuing compliance with U.S. export control laws and regulations, the timely receipt of export licenses for international shipments, the continuing eligibility of the Company to act as a federal contractor, and other risks discussed from time to time in the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings and reports. In addition, such statements could be affected by general industry and market conditions and growth rates, and general domestic and international economic conditions. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release, or for changes made to this document by wire services or Internet service providers.
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FLIR, Systems, Inc.
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