The invention discloses a fire extinguishing robot adopting a fire extinguishing ball launching barrel and an operation method. The robot comprises a pan-tilt thermal imaging camera, a lifting platform, an illuminating lamp, distance measuring radar, a walking auxiliary camera, an alarm device, a controller, a vehicle body, a chassis, an infrared thermal tracking aiming device, the fire extinguishing ball launching barrel, fire extinguishing balls, an electromagnetic gas tap, a compressed gas tank, an electromagnetic ball placing opening, a fire extinguishing ball storage box, a front cover electromagnetic opening device, a movable front cover, an aiming electric pan-tilt, an electric lifting rod, a high-pressure inert fire extinguishing gas tank and a power supply device. The fire extinguishing robot and the operation method have the beneficial effects that the compressed gas tank and the high-pressure inert fire extinguishing gas tank are arranged, after gas in the compressed gas tank is used up, the high-pressure inert fire extinguishing gas tank is started to emit the fire extinguishing balls, and inert fire extinguishing gas in the high-pressure inert fire extinguishing gas tank can be jetted out for fire extinguishing; and the electric lifting rod is arranged, so that the height position of the pan-tilt thermal imaging camera can be adjusted, and then a picture in a larger range can be shot.