FCC Adds Mobile Robots Over 2 kg to Foreign Equipment Ban List
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has added mobile, communicating robots weighing more than 2 kilograms to its "Covered List," which identifies communications equipment and services deemed to pose national security threats.
The FCC's Covered List, originally published in 2021, now encompasses advanced robotic devices alongside other restricted categories such as power inverters used in solar panels. Under the new rules, new products from foreign countries in these categories are no longer eligible for import into the United States.
The move represents a Department of Defense-driven expansion of federal efforts to limit U.S. exposure to potentially sensitive Chinese technology. However, the regulation may also impose significant changes on the robotics industry in allied countries, not just adversaries.
Drones, connected vehicles, and medical devices have been exempted from this particular restriction, having gone through their own regulatory processes previously. The FCC defines "advanced robotic devices" as mobile systems that incorporate on-board sensing and communications capabilities.
The policy includes a provision allowing the Department of Defense to determine whether specific foreign-produced robotic devices or classes of devices do not pose unacceptable risks to national security or the safety of U.S. persons.