IRobot to deliver explosive disabling robots to Naval Sea Command

IRobot wins contract from Naval Sea Command

BEDFORD, Mass. —The Naval Sea Systems Command has awarded iRobot a $13.5 million contract for robots capable of identifying and disabling improvised explosive devices.

The PackBot MTRS (Man Transportable Robotic System) will be similar to the PackBot 500 robot — more than 2,500 of those are already in use by the military.

Work under the contract is scheduled to be completed by next July.

In addition to designing robots for the military, Bedford, Mass.-based iRobot also builds products for the consumer market, including the Roomba vacuum cleaner.