Max Robotics — Global Service Robot Directory + US Certification

About

Hisato Ando is a robotics researcher whose work sits at the intersection of disaster response, continuum robotics, and autonomous firefighting systems. He is best known for pioneering the "Dragon Firefighter" (DFF), an aerial hose-type robot that uses high-pressure water jets both as a propulsion mechanism and as a fire suppression medium — a concept that fundamentally reimagines how robots can access dangerous, hard-to-reach fire sources without endangering human firefighters. His landmark 2018 paper on this system has garnered 96 citations, establishing it as a foundational contribution to the field of disaster robotics. Ando's research extends beyond the initial concept, addressing critical engineering challenges such as oscillation suppression in long continuum robots (34 citations) and multi-nozzle configurations for enhanced fire extinguishment (21 citations). His work on active nozzle design for search-and-rescue scope cameras further demonstrates his broad expertise in flexible robotic systems for hazardous environments. Collectively, his publications reveal a researcher committed to translating novel mechanical principles into practical, life-saving technologies, steadily advancing the Dragon Firefighter platform from theoretical design toward deployable real-world firefighting capability.