The Firefighting Assist Robot was completed during a robotics course taken at Southern New Hampshire University. It is a proof of concept of a robot that gets used by first responders to a fire to enter a burning structure, and providing temperature data while tracking towards flames. If these robots could be created more heat resistant than the prototype, many of them could be placed into a building at the same time, helping the first responders gain a clearer picture of what is going on internally, with the overall intent of saving lives.

The below video is of the Firefighting Assist Robot in action. Enjoy!

If you are interested in getting started in the world of robotics, a nice, cheap place to start is with the Finch. The Finch is a robot that was initially developed at Carnegie Mellon University, and it provides a simple yet versatile robot for cheap to students and amateurs alike. There is an API for several programming languages, including Java, as well as a modified version of the Alice visual programming environment, allowing for those with various levels of programming experience to get started.