Boston Dynamics has made a lot of headlines in recent times not only for the way they test their robots but also for the bloopers they have made during live demonstrations. Despite the fact that Boston Dynamics has made some of the most advanced robots the world has seen, the company has been mocked for being the maker of viral videos, not robots.
From Videos To Real World
Boston Dynamic’s Robot Dog Spot has been watched with great interest by tech enthusiasts. From its resemblance to a robot dog from Black Mirror to its acrobatic agility, the robot gained fame swiftly.
However, Boston Dynamics CEO Marc Raibert is of the firm belief that robots are not evil and has reportedly planned to ship the first 1,000 Spot models to customers by the summer of 2020.
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Now, Spot the agile dog is going to be working for developing applications in construction. Boston Dynamics believes that it’s a popular goal in construction is to collect data to measure the progress of the construction site and having robots do that on a more routine basis is definitely a great opportunity.
Spot At Work
Despite the claims about the abilities of Spot, people have only seen the robot dog jumping around and opening doors in videos rather than doing some serious work, and this has also brought a lot of criticism to Boston Dynamics.
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And to deal with this here’s what the robot makers have done:
- Boston Dynamics have recently partnered up with construction software specialist HoloBuilder.
- The goal of this partnership is to test how Spot would perform when deployed in construction sites. Spot will walk around the large construction sites and will be collecting 360-degree images in order to help engineers involved in the project to track the progress of work in construction.
- In order to make the entire project seamless, HoloBuilder has also released an application called the SpotWalk to bring 360-degree reality capture to projects.
- Boston Dynamics has also tied up with two companies called Trimble and Hilti who would integrate their construction management software solutions and reality capture devices with the Spot platform.
- Spot has also managed to land its first job with construction firm Hensel Phelps in the Silicon Valley area to survey the $1.2 Billion construction of the new Harvey Milk Terminal 1 at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
Future Plan
Looking into the future, Boston Dynamics is planning to play the leasing game instead of selling it. And the company also believes that the Spot would do great in remote oil rigs. So, if Spot passes this test in the construction arena, then the chances are high that this robot dog will get to see a lot more in the future. Also, Boston Dynamics would be able to erase the tag of viral video maker and hold the throne of one of the best robot makers in the world.
Talking about more real-life use cases, Boston over the years have demonstrated different robots doing different jobs. And in terms of Spot, other use cases might also open up in the future – Spot might be able to work in a warehouse, or restaurants or hospitals helping doctors getting their tools.
Wrapping Up
The robotic industry has boomed over the past couple of years and its use cases have increased as well. Now, it is not just traditional robotics but robotics that is powered by technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning. And this entire journey, Boston Dynamics have managed to play a vital role.
However, it is not just Boston Dynamics that is making a sheer attempt to bring robots to the real world, Indian eCommerce giant Flipkart has also deployed 100 robots in its Bengaluru delivery hub that pick up products from conveyor belts, scan them and drop them down a chute.
The robotic industry is witnessing a massive transformation currently and with time it is going to witness some sheer advancements. The time is not so far when robots will be seen in almost every place working side by side with humans.
