The Fido explosives detector is created by ICx Technologies, Inc. and is based on a proprietary technology developed by MIT called amplifying fluorescent polymer (AFP). The AFP technology was invented by 2007 Lemelson-MIT Prize winner Professor Timothy M. Swager and adapted for use in the Fido explosives detector to detect trace levels of explosive materials. The product is so named because its level of detection is comparable to highly trained explosives detection dogs, the gold standard in explosives detection technology.
Fido is designed for operation in either handheld, desktop or robot-mounted configurations, and has recently been integrated on to the iRobot Packbot and Foster-Miller Talon as an explosives detection payload for EOD applications in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Fido has won the U.S. Army Greatest Invention Award twice since the year 2005.