Current methods for detecting and removing mines are dangerous, too costly, and, considering the number of abandoned mines, very slow. Mechanical systems are most frequently used to clear large areas polluted by mines. Mechanical systems usually consist of a tank that uses rollers to apply pressure to the ground, rotary flails that beat the ground, or a rake that unearths and presses the mines. The main drawback of purely mechanical demining is that no system can satisfy the desired 100% reliability of humanitarian demining. Consequently, all cleaned areas require manual verification. Thus, an urgent need exists to develop safe and efficient demining methods. This requirement represents a big challenge for robotic research. Research for detecting and localizing mines is still ongoing. In addition to known methods, new sophisticated sensing principles are under development. These sensing principles make it possible to detect and recognize mines as hidden objects. Several vehicles equipped with demining technology also are being produced.
Havlík, Stefan and Licko, Peter
"Humanitarian Demining: The Challenge for Robotic Research,"
Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction: Vol. 2
, Article 2.
Available at: http://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cisr-journal/vol2/iss2/2