OLE pill bug robot concept could fight forest fires
![](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/ML9Zzita20hMccMjEMIaUQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTU0NQ--/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/wUMIhq2UvwT.rcHJJyG8qQ--~B/aD0zMTc7dz00MTA7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2007/08/ole-forest-robot.jpg)
German researchers at the University of Madgeburg-Stendal have developed a concept for a robot shaped like a pill millipede that could potentially detect and fight forest fires. Were the "OLE" a real robot, it would be able to scuttle around the forest floor at speeds of around 6 to 12 MPH, using infrared and "biosensors" to detect fire sources. If it gets into trouble, it can curl up just like a real pill bug and be fully protected thanks to a ceramic-fibre compound shell that can withstand temperature of 1,300 Degrees Centigrade. According to the researchers, 30 of these OLEs could protect a forest area as large as 2,700 square miles, whilst simultaneously freaking out hundreds of forest animals.
[Via GearFuse; thanks, Steve]