The UK Border agency has enlisted the help of a briefcase-sized robot they’re calling HERO in order to help patrol its borders. HERO is undergoing some testing at Calais and has been officially certified to be deployed when it’s needed. Each robot can hold a wide array of equipment that helps it find hidden people. And it gets around just fine with a four-wheel drive chassis. The bots are outfitted with heartbeat detectors, searchlights and high-resolution video cameras, which makes them pros at searching the insides of vehicles as well as underneath them. HERO isn’t just about finding smuggled people and goods, it can also be outfitted with equipment that detects chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear threats.

[electricpig]