Japan develops its own UGVs, up to 10 tons, for its military

Japan’s defense procurement agency is building its own uncrewed ground vehicles in three weight classes, ranging from under 1 ton to as much as 10 tons, a display at the agency’s technology symposium shows.

The display was shared by Rikuno Yuuno, a former Japan Ground Self-Defense Force soldier who now comments on military affairs, in a post on social media.

The panel comes from the Ground Systems Research Center of the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency, or ATLA. It says the center is carrying out research with UGVs that use different types of drive, chosen with their operational roles and off-road mobility in mind. The vehicles shown are examples used in the research, the panel says, and some of them are still being built.

The smallest, in a class under 1 ton, is a tracked platform with four separate track units and an open cargo frame on top. The middle vehicle, in the 1 to 2 ton class, is a wheeled utility vehicle with a flat bed, roll bars and sensors mounted around the body. The largest, in the 5 to 10 ton class, is a low, tracked vehicle with a flat deck and what appears to be a sensor turret mounted on top.

Japan’s ATLA showcases ongoing research into unmanned ground vehicles in multiple weight classes, including new prototype concepts for future operations. Image by Rikuno_Yuuno

Other text on the panel refers to work on self-position estimation, coordination between uncrewed systems and manned vehicles, and the use of technology from the civilian sector.

Rikuno said Japan has long worked on UGVs, but until now mostly bought foreign-made systems or adapted civilian vehicles. The new research appears to be the start of work on prototype vehicles designed around more specific military requirements, Rikuno said.

The heavier 5 to 10 ton class is notable. A vehicle that size is closer to a light armored vehicle than to the small robots that carry supplies or remove mines, and could carry heavier sensors, cargo or weapons. Japan has not said what roles each class is meant to fill.

Japan’s work on uncrewed ground systems has mostly stayed out of public view. Earlier, a covered vehicle drew attention when a blacked-out Mitsubishi was spotted near Mount Fuji in what appeared to be a UGV test. The Ground Self-Defense Force has also experimented with robotic systems in exercises, and Japan used robotic dogs during an airborne assault drill.