New Atlas
Hyundai Motor Company, the South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer has recently enhanced its security system in one of its facilities and it is somewhere the start of autonomous vigilance in real-time.
Yes, Hyundai has recently employed Boston Dynamics’ Spot robot dog to serve as a safety inspector in one of its Kia manufacturing facilities in South Korea. Spot will reportedly be used to ensure that the facility is a safe place for workers. The automaker is still testing the prospects of using Spot as a safety inspector.
According to reports, not very long ago in the month of June, Hyundai acquired a majority stake in Boston Dynamics and this is the first public collaboration that the technology giants are representing, as mentioned in a report by Engadget.
Spot is an intelligent robot dog that has recently been updated with new features but for Hyundai’s use to employ the robot as a factory safety inspector, Boston Dynamics has custom equipped Spot with what we can essentially call a backpack. This backpack includes enhancements much suited especially for Hyundai, such as the inclusion of a thermal camera, LiDAR sensors, and much more powerful computing additionally equipped for tasks involving Artificial Intelligence.
As mentioned in a report by Engadget, the additional backpack on Spot that we can also see in the company’s official announcement video is called “AI processing Service Unit” and it allows the robot dog to monitor temperatures, detect people and also check for potential fire hazards.
The report further mentions that Spot will not be completely autonomous with its functions, a factory personnel will be monitoring the robot’s activities from a distance or remotely from a completely different location. Let’s say we need to check the facility as a part of late-night patrolling, the inspector can either completely take control of Spot to move it around that corner to check if everything is fine or it can command Spot to go in that direction.
Anyhow, Hyundai is still testing the effectiveness of Spot starting with the Kia factory in South Korea and if it seems successful, the automaker may employ the Boston Dynamics’ Spot- the robot dog to other facilities as well.
Technology has come a long way and it is advancing day by day. What do you think about robots being used as safety inspectors? Could robots take away human employment opportunities in the future? Do let us know what you think because your opinions are the voice of TechStory.
