The robotics market isn't just the stuff of science fiction these days, as robots are seen doing everything from building cars to comforting the elderly, and quite a bit in between. But now, robots are looking to join the war on terror, as evidenced by a recent joint venture between Quantum (News - Alert) International Corporation (QUAN) and Poland's Industrial Research Institute for Automation and Measurement (PIAP).

The QUAN / PIAP joint venture has borne fruit in the form of Proteus (News - Alert), a set of three robots that can not only operate autonomously, but in a variety of different capacities supported by unmanned aircraft and by a full mobile command center. The result is a complete system of robotics that can serve to bring down terrorist plots, as well as to operate in disaster response, law enforcement and several other situations.

The group can also enter environments unavailable to humans and return with useful pieces of information.

Robert Federowicz, Quantum International Corp.'s CEO, described the project as a way to "save a lot of lives and money," calling "the kind of innovation we hope to help the institute develop and market worldwide."

Moreover, Proteus is only the beginning of the coalition's development projects, with development currently in the works on projects ranging from oil spill cleanup and well beyond. Quantum, for its part, is in the midst of a due-diligence proceeding in order to form a full agreement with PIAP.

There's no denying that robotics as a whole are well on the way toward being a major force on the world stage. Robots are playing a large part in manufacturing, healthcare, entertainment and a variety of other fields, and their contribution to society as a whole steadily increases with time.

Of course there are still plenty of issues associated with the use of robots – especially where they eliminate the jobs formerly held by human beings – but it's hard to forget, and even harder to forswear, the value that they bring to our lives.

Whether as bomb disposal systems or a way to move people from one point to another, robots will likely continue to be a big and growing part of our lives for some time.

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