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Spot, the quadruped robot from Boston Dynamics, has just received some improvements. The American company presented on May 3 the new functionalities that its famous mechanical dog will have. It will now be able to see the world in color, be controlled with more ease by its user and become more efficient in collecting data.
Spot’s vision is enhanced
It’s been two years now since Boston Dynamics’ robot dog was in sale on the American territorymainly for commercial and industrial uses, recalls Gizmodo. The Waltham, Massachusetts-based company has announced that Spot has just received several improvements to make it more powerful and easier to use for its owner.
Until very recently, the mechanical animal could only see the world in black and white. A physical characteristic that is not a real characteristic of dogs, contrary to popular belief. By seeing in color, Spot will get closer to canines. Thanks to the five cameras placed on his body, he will be able to capture images of his environment in color. The cameras now offer a sharper image quality and are able to perform a 3D mapping of Spot’s environment with a better depth.
The robot owner will benefit from these improvements by looking through Spot’s eyes via a control tablet. This tablet allows to supervise the movements of the machine. The user can also use it to program routines and automated tasks.
Based on a Samsung tablet, the screen expands by 20 centimeters and the battery life reaches eight hours. It is also more resistant to drops and water. Users can add buttons and joysticks to facilitate simultaneous control of Spot’s movements and the articulated arm that can be attached to its back.
A customizable robot
The Boston Dynamics robot is very useful in industry and scientific research. It is capable of carrying a wide variety of advanced equipment on its back, such as sensors, cameras and scanners. It can perform a wide variety of measurements and data collection with this type of equipment while moving.
The American company has announced the arrival of two new pieces of equipment. First, the CORE I/O, a computer that improves data processing capabilities in the field and enables tasks such as site inspection using computer vision. It also provides access to a 5G connection to share collected data more efficiently.
The second piece of equipment is called the Rajant Kinetic Mesh Radio Kit. It is a radio device consisting of three radio beacons to be placed in Spot’s environment to create a space of up to 18.5 square kilometers. The robot then has its own secure communication network, which is essential in areas where other networks, such as 5G, do not work.
With these additions, Boston Dynamics is ensuring that Spot can continue to operate in challenging environments and that its user never loses contact and control over it. The French army understood Spot’s strengths in hostile terrain and had conducted military exercises in 2021.
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