OBJECT RECORD / AIM-CAS-2014-001

SAFFiR aboard ex-USS Shadwell

A bipedal firefighting research robot photographed during a bounded shipboard test.

An exposed-metal bipedal robot stands alone in a dark ship compartment, with cameras above its frame and cables around its feet.

SAFFiR during testing aboard the Naval Research Laboratory's ex-USS Shadwell in Mobile, Alabama, on 6 November 2014.

“Making Sailors 'SAFFiR' - Navy unveils Firefighting Robot prototype at Naval Tech EXPO [Image 7 of 8]” — John F. Williams; Wikimedia Commons (archival mirror) Local copies resized and re-encoded as WebP. No crop or generative alteration.

DVIDS marks this specific U.S. Navy image PUBLIC DOMAIN. That source assertion is recorded for the United States; DVIDS separately prohibits implied endorsement and warns that trademarks, privacy or publicity rights, and third-party material may remain.

CURATORIAL READING

Why it is here

SAFFiR makes a 2014 human–robot control boundary visible in one machine: a humanoid body, sensors intended for smoke-filled spaces, hose manipulation, and an operator who could intervene. The official record lets visitors distinguish a demonstrated research loop from a finished autonomous service.

Evidence boundary

This is a research-test record, not evidence of autonomous deployment. ONR says SAFFiR still took instructions from researchers at a console and retained human intervention. The record does not establish where the prototype is preserved today; the image's public-domain statement is limited to the United States and carries separate non-endorsement guidance.

09 / SHARE CONTROL

Position in the guided path

From written rules to learned representations

A humanoid research platform tests perception and action while an operator remains able to intervene.

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PROVENANCE

Source trail