Open road ahead for unmanned vehicles

China is speeding up the development of unmanned ground vehicles, which will play an important role in future battlefields and civilian sectors, according to a senior expert.

"The UGVs can be used in a wide range of military and civilian fields," said Meng Hong, deputy director of the China North Vehicle Research Institute of China North Industries Group. "In fact, they have been extensively deployed by foreign militaries to handle tasks in hazardous environments."

Since starting in the mid-1990s, China's UGV development has made remarkable strides, but it still lags behind the United States, Germany and Israel, which outdistance their competitors, according to Meng.