Maine tech firm contributing to robot for one-on-one battle

WATERBORO, Maine (AP) — Two Maine brothers will be contributing to a human-piloted robot that’s competing in a one-on-one battle with another robot from Japan.

Twins Geoffrey and Michael Howe tell The Portland Press Herald their Waterboro company, Howe & Howe Technologies, will add to an enhanced version of a prototype called the Mk. II.

The prototype was built by a California startup called MegaBots Inc. The company announced in the summer of 2015 that it had challenged a Japanese robotics firm to a battle and that it had accepted the challenge.

Howe & Howe is responsible for building a track base, which resembles a small tank.

Geoffrey Howe says the company has designed and built many vehicles for the military and Hollywood studios, but has never worked on a human-piloted battle robot.

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Information from: Portland Press Herald, http://www.pressherald.com