Remotely controlled mechanical watch towers guard hostile borders

feet) tall and two meters (six feet) in diameter. At the top of the tower is an armored shelter that conceals a remotely controlled machine-gun. This remote control technology is similar to that used for many armored vehicles. The tower also contains vidcams and other sensors. The remotely controlled machine-gun also has a vidcam that can see at night and the ability to enlarge and enhance the image in the crosshairs.

The operators are at a central location (and are mostly female soldiers). If intruders are detected, the operator opens the top of the tower and brings out the machine-gun. The 12.7-mm machine-gun has a range of 2,000 meters. Some towers use a 7.62-mm machine-gun, with a range of 800 meters. Allowing for some overlap, 16-17 of these towers can cover the entire Gaza border.

Strategy Page writes that the South Korea towers use a 5.56-mm machine-gun, with a max range of 900 meters (if you just want bullets hitting close enough to the intruders to scare them into turning around.).

In addition to the towers along the Gaza border, Israel also experimented with remotely controlled armed vehicles. These were to be used to reinforce the towers or patrol areas where there are blind spots (“Israel’s military avatar: Robots on the battlefield, II,” 29 December 2009 HSNW). Four years ago, the AvantGuard vehicle was introduced. This one used sensors and software that enabled it to patrol along planned routes, and was capable of some cross country operation as well. The AvantGuard mounted a remote controlled gun turret equipped with a 7.62-mm machine-gun. The vehicle had digital cameras facing every direction, and used pattern recognition to identify potential threats (like people sneaking around where they are not supposed to be), or obstacles on the road.

The idea was that a pair of human operators could control a dozen or more AvantGuard vehicles. This system was particularly effective at night, because it had night vision and moved quietly. Weighing only 1.3 tons, the AvantGuard was protected against rifle fire and fragments from shells and roadside bombs.

AvantGuard was adequate for guarding industrial parks, but not the vast stretches of Negev desert, along the border with Gaza. The developers, however, persisted in responding to suggestions and complaints from the military, and AvantGuard vehicles are again being tested along the border. The new, heavier, version rolls along on bomb resistant tracks, and is equipped to detect (with ground penetrating radar) and survive roadside bombs. South Korea also showed interest in these mobile security vehicles, and may again try using them on the DMZ.