WARREN – As part of the Secret Service’s security plan a U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center robotics team assisted with the 56th Presidential Inauguration by providing training and operators for bomb-detecting robots.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security designated the Inaugural as a National Special Security Event. When an event is designated an NSSE, the U.S. Secret Service assumes its role as the lead federal agency for designing and implementing the operational security plan. Eight members from TARDEC�??s Intelligent Ground Systems Division and the Robotics Systems Joint Project Office formed the TARDEC RS-JPO 2009 Presidential Inauguration Support Team. They assisted the security detail by sending skilled operators, trainers and robotic technicians for the Omni-Directional Inspection System, Long-Range Vehicle Undercarriage Surveillance System, Foster-Miller TALON and iRobot PackBot systems.

The team prepared for the inauguration by setting up a training scenario near the Pentagon. The Pentagon Force Protection Agency, FBI explosive ordnance disposal teams, Secret Service, District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department and Fairfax County Police Department learned how to operate the robots and helped screen more than 500 vehicles through various check points.

�??It is absolutely a privilege to be a part of such a historic event like the 2009 Presidential Inauguration,�?� exclaimed TARDEC RS JPO 2009 Presidential Project Lead MAJ Anh Ha. �??The TARDEC robotic experts have been integrated into a security team consisting of great professionals. TARDEC once again represents its importance within, not just the military community but also in the national community, with its innovations and technological expertise. We, as its many essential members, can be proud to be in this organization and for the many great things we do for our country.�?�

TARDEC, MPD, U.S. Capitol Police and U.S. Park Police, as well as a number of other federal and local agencies, played a critical operational role in securing the Inauguration and many other resources were deployed to maintain the necessary level of security.

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