AbstractIt is essential to provide disaster relief assistance after coal mine explosions. Often, it is life‐threatening for rescuers to enter an accident scene blindly; therefore, a coal mine rescue robot (CMRR) has been developed. However, the application of the CMRR has not proven satisfactory after decades of development. To solve this problem, we summarize the reasons for this disappointing state and address the technical challenges of the CMRR. Based on these reasons and the associated technical challenges, two generations of tracked robots have been developed. The China University of Mining Technology‐V (CUMT‐V) (A) robot was first developed and its walking system, body support system, communication system, environmental awareness system, and control system are described in detail. A performance test was performed on the CUMT‐V (A) robot and some problems were encountered. To address these problems, we designed the CUMT‐V (B) robot. The field test was conducted in Shanxi province, China, in August 2016. The application results show that the robot has good adaptability to complex terrain and high reliability in terms of environmental awareness and data transmission. In conclusion, the robot is nearing practical applications.