Robot dogs are being deployed for security at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida; next stop: the battlefield?
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. – Four robot dogs this month will join the men and women serving at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. Freethink reports. Continue reading original article
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
6 Jan. 2021 -- While the U.S. Department of Defense has experimented with robot dogs before, these mechanized canines will be the first to join the military on a permanent basis — but they might not be the last.
The robot dogs headed to Florida are technically known as Vision 60s from Ghost Robotics Corp. in Philadelphia. The four-legged robot dogs can climb stairs, walk through water, and withstand freezing temperatures. While they don't have heads, they do have sensors and cameras, and that makes the robot dogs well suited for their future job at Tyndall as security patrol.
When the four-legged unmanned ground vehicles get to Florida, airmen will teach each of them to follow specified routes around the base. After that training, each trot along the path on its own. Human handlers can monitor or control them with a virtual reality headset -- and even talk to people through a radio attached to the robot dogs.
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John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics