Creepy Crawly Robots

Though robotic soldiers as advanced as The Terminator may still be years away, the British military has announced plans to introduce less-evolved mechanical critters onto the battlefield. British defense company BAE Systems is creating a line of insects, spiders and snakes that can be used by the military as the eyes and ears of the troops.

According to the Daily Mail, the robots will be transported to the battlefield on vehicles controlled by the soldiers. Once there, they can relay information back to the front line. Some creatures will be fitted with tiny cameras, while others will be able to detect the presence of chemical, biological or radioactive weapons.

Prototypes may be on the front line by the end of the year, and BAE systems recently signed a contract with the United States military worth 19 million pounds (about 37 million dollars) to produce the critters for the U.S.

BAE has created a computer-generated video to show what the robots will look like in action. Check out the nasty little buggers here.

UPDATE: BAE Chief Technology Officer Aaron Penkacik talks about the mechanical critters on Word of Mouth on May 22nd, 2008. Click here to listen.