B. Hattha

Papers

Total Citations

H-Index

About

B. Hattha is a pioneer in autonomous search and rescue robotics, with a focused body of work that bridges hardware design and field-ready autonomy. In their most-cited paper, “Plasma-RX: Autonomous Rescue Robots” (2009, 8 citations), Hattha introduced a groundbreaking multi-robot system tailored for urban disaster response. The Plasma-RX platform features differential drive tracks with front and rear flippers for traversing rubble, along with serial-link arms and cameras for manipulation and visual inspection. Critically, Hattha equipped these robots with a sophisticated sensor suite—including a thermopile array, CO2 sensor, microphone, and tilt sensor—enabling them to detect survivors through heat signatures, respiration, and sound in collapsed structures. This work demonstrated how a coordinated team of rugged, sensor-rich robots could autonomously navigate hazardous environments, significantly reducing human risk during search and rescue operations. While the citation count reflects a niche but deeply impactful contribution, Hattha’s design principles have influenced subsequent rescue robotics platforms and inspired further research into multi-modal sensing for disaster robotics. Their work remains a foundational reference for engineers developing field-deployable autonomous systems in extreme conditions.