Using a combination of robotics technology and wearable computing for specially trained rats, we have devised a new way to map land mine fields.
The rats are fitted with a waistcoat containing a small accelerometer-based electronic unit designed to collect real-time motion data while the rat searches for land mines thus enabling us to detect precisely when the rat gives an indication of the presence of a land mine.
Having developed the concept, methodology, and sensor electronics we are currently refining the prototype technology for field trials and to serve as a project kit for schools so students can learn how technology can facilitate interspecies communication.