Japanese Researchers Develop 'Dragon Firefighter' Robot for Hazardous Fires

The remotely controllable robot, resembling a flying dragon, can approach and extinguish fires directly; blueprints made available worldwide for collective benefit.

• Japanese researchers have developed a four-meter-long, remotely controllable 'Dragon Firefighter' robot designed to safely and efficiently extinguish fires in buildings by directly approaching the fire sources.
• The robot, which resembles a flying dragon, is propelled upward by eight controllable jets of water spouting from its center and head.
• The Dragon Firefighter's blueprints have been published as Open Science, allowing roboticists worldwide to freely use the plans to build their own versions.
• The robot was first demonstrated at the World Robot Summit 2021, where it successfully extinguished a ceremonial flame from a distance of four meters.
• Despite the advancements, researchers estimate it will take approximately 10 more years to deploy the robot in real-world firefighting scenarios, with the primary challenge being to extend its reach to beyond 10 meters.

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