Field trials for the elite of European military robotics

A key feature of the European Land Robot Trial is its problem-oriented tasks. These are based on real-life situations in the military environment and are difficult to solve using conventional technologies. It is intended to force participating teams to develop innovative solutions. Generally, automated solutions are preferred at ELROB – a requirement that is even more emphasised in the upcoming event in 2026. The tasks to be completed are essentially divided into four scenarios:

•     Transport - Convoy (Transport with two vehicles)

The task must be completed with at least two vehicles as quickly as possible and with the highest possible degree of autonomy. Each team receives a map with GPS points that must be visited in the specified order within a certain period of time. Various additional tasks must also be completed on the circuit, and the teams must cope with further obstacles such as other vehicles within the convoy and intermittent GPS reception problems.

•     Transport - Mule (Shuttle between two locations)

The automated transport of material between two defined points forms the general task for this scenario: From a specified starting point, the robot must first follow a person who guides it to the destination point. This position is then used as a turning point for autonomous shuttling. The goal is to complete as many autonomous trips as possible between the starting and the turning point within a specified time. In this scenario, too, the participating teams must contend with disrupted GPS reception, unexpected obstacles and sudden changes to the route – for example, due to temporary closures.

•     Search and Rescue (SAR) / CasEvac (Find and drag a dummy body)

Rescuing wounded persons in a military environment is often a difficult and dangerous task. The wounded in the scenario simulated at ELROB are represented by dummy figures of varying weights. The task is to find the dummies within a certain time frame, pick them up, transport them to a designated position and place them there with as much autonomy as possible. In addition, participants must take pictures of the dummies' location and determine their exact position.

•     Reconnoitring of Urban and Non-Urban Areas (3D mapping and search for OPIs)

Reconnaissance of structures and their surroundings is an important part of urban combat operations. In 2024, the focus in this category was on a completely darkened tunnel tube in which various objects were placed that had to be autonomously detected, photographed and mapped. The objects to be identified are, for example, sources of noise and heat, as well as hazardous material signs familiar from long-distance freight transport. During the search, a 3D map of the surroundings must also be generated.

The European Land Robot Trial (ELROB) provides participants with a real-world operating environment with current scenarios for testing their systems. State-of-the-art vehicles are to demonstrate their capabilities in a realistic environment. To this end, real-world scenarios with military issues are recreated in simplified form. The top priority is to complete all courses as autonomously as possible.

The event, which takes place every two years in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, is organised as a performance comparison. The participating teams can register for different disciplines and compete in them. A jury of experts and the direct involvement of decision-makers ensure that the technologies presented are not only evaluated from a technical perspective but also assessed in terms of their potential for use by the German Armed Forces.

Validation of new technologies

Another important aspect is prototypes, pilot projects and demonstrators, which are often presented by universities, research institutions or start-ups. Such approaches, which are usually highly innovative, can also be tested directly at the events and thus in real-life environments, which is a low-risk and cost-effective way of validating new technologies. For their part, participants have the opportunity to network, exchange information on the latest developments and advances, and compare different approaches to tackling the various tasks.

Overall, evaluation events such as the European Land Robot Trial are considered a useful and beneficial tool for comparing and evaluating systems and system components in the field of robotics – provided that scenarios, rules and evaluation criteria are carefully designed. They offer a good opportunity not only to identify important new robotics technologies at an early stage, but also to actively integrate them into a possible procurement process.

With regard to autonomy, at ELROB 2024 some teams showed promising approaches in the ‘Convoy’ and ‘Mule’ courses. For ELROB 2026, which will be held from 15 to 19 June at the Thun military training area in Switzerland, the autonomy and automated functions will continue to be highly prioritised.

Combined use of UGV and UAV

For the first time in 2026, all scenarios will also focus on the combined use of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). This is not without reason, as ELROB initiator Dr Frank E. Schneider, deputy head of the CMS department, emphasises: ‘Both current deployment situations and previous events have clearly shown that the sole use of robots or drones is often not effective. Better results can often be achieved when they are used in combination.’