You can teach a robotic dog new tricks, it seems, with mechanic canines now being deployed in tests to detect and defuse bomb threats.
The trials led by Ministry of Defence (MoD) scientists and carried out at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) involved a number of robotic systems, including robot dogs.
It is hoped this early experiment could eventually “revolutionize” bomb disposal operations and significantly reduce the risk to military personnel, both in Britain and overseas, according to the MoD.
Dstl worked alongside both British and international companies, including L3Harris, Marlborough Communications Ltd, and AeroVironment (Tomahawk Robotics). Pictures supplied by the MoD feature the familiar Boston Dynamics “Spot” robotic dog destroying an improvised explosive device (IED).
Robot dog disposing of IED – click to enlarge
The pilot study involved a number of scenarios where a robot was required to perform tasks such as opening and closing doors, navigating stairs, and inspecting IEDs. The mech mut was also eqipped with carbon fire disruptors.
The MoD says the tests demonstrate that the bomb disposal robots can reduce the need to put a human operator in harm’s way by increasing the number of tasks they can perform, offloading some of the operator effort in making delicate and precise movements reliably.
As no government tech story is complete without a mention of AI these days, drones powered by AI will be able to identify threats and monitor safety cordons to keep the public safe, or so we’re told.
Feedback from these trials will be used to inform the next phase of Dstl investment in robotics for the bomb disposal community.
“This is a great example of how Defence can achieve an advantage through the exploitation of technology, fusing together military and commercial systems to keep our people and country safe from deadly threats,” said Dstl Chief Science and Technology Officer Professor Andy Bell.
This use of robotic dogs to protect the public adds to the growing number of roles they have so far been tested for, some more successfully than others. CERN, home to the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), was last year trialing them to patrol and monitor for radiation hazards. The US Space Force was also using cybernetic canines for patrol duties at its Cape Canaveral base a few years ago.
Meanwhile, the ever-peaceful China demonstrated a robot similar to Boston Dynamics’s “Spot” carrying and firing a machine gun. Not to be outdone, an American company will sell you a robot dog equipped with a flamethrower, because wildfires are totally not a problem in the US, right? ®
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