A robot dog could soon perform tasks such as surveying on construction sites after technology company Boston Dynamics perfects its automated Spot robot.
The company has announced that it working with several others to allow its Spot robot ‘dog’ to perform and Trimble and Hilti are also reported to have planned integration of their construction management software solutions, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) technology and reality capture devices with the Spot platform.
Global reports quoted Aviad Almagor, senior director for Mixed Reality and Brain-Computer Interface at Trimble, as saying: “Utilising robots for routine tasks in hazardous environments to improve safety, efficiency and data capture consistency is part of our digital transformation vision. We are excited for this latest collaboration and looking forward to the integration of our hardware and software solutions with the Boston Dynamics’ Spot Robot to enhance field-oriented workflows, reduce amount of rework, and facilitate on-site tasks.”
Reports also say that another company, HoloBuilder, has already released a product integration app that works with Spot to provide reality capture of construction sites. The data is then processed using artificial intelligence enabling the tracking of the site’s progress.
HoloBuilder and construction firm Hensel Phelps have run pilot tests at San Francisco International Airport’s Harvey Milk Terminal 1 with Spot where robotic ‘dog’ performed site surveying that a human engineer would normally have to do with handheld cameras. Spot was first controlled around a construction site by remote operation, but can later navigate itself in the future using a digital map.
