KNDS France and S2M Equipment showed a prototype unmanned ground vehicle built on an old tank hull at France’s Journées nationales de l'infanterie (National Infantry Days) in Draguignan, home of the French Army’s infantry school, on Oct. 14. Defense outlet Forces Operations Blog (FOB) posted video of the REFURBOT vehicle and called it an "XXL robotic mule for the legionnaires of the 2nd REI," TechRadar reported . The 2nd REI is the French Foreign Legion’s 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment, based in Nîmes.

FOB described REFURBOT less as a single robot than as "a robotization kit to 'recycle' decommissioned vehicle fleets and rapidly scale up if needed." The kit, called TOXO, pairs radar, lidar, GNSS and a ring of cameras with drive-by-wire control, according to TechRadar. Its marketing slogan is "Turn any tank into your next UGV." FOB said the project is still a prototype, with other wheeled and tracked platforms under study.

A recycling pitch on a rare hull

In its Oct.…