Boston Dynamics’ two robot dogs, Spot and Flully, aim to scan Ford warehouses to better optimize space and reorganize production lines.
After the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA or the Cirque du Soleil, it is around Ford factories to adopt robot-dogs designed by Boston Dynamics. The car manufacturer has equipped itself with two Spot type electronic quadrupeds: the first is called Fluffy while the second is simply called Spot. Each was purchased from the robotics firm for $ 75,000 and installed in the Van Dyke warehouse in Michigan. Despite the high price of both machines, Ford’s intention is to make money. Indeed, the goal of the two robot dogs is to scan warehouses more easily and quickly, according to information from SlashGear.
The automaker is always looking to optimize their space to reorganize and thus improve production lines. Under normal conditions, Ford hires several technicians for this over two weeks per warehouse, at a cost of $ 300,000 per operation. Spot robots, once ordered and deployed, can do this at the cost of a simple regular reprogramming of their tasks. Each is armed with several laser scanners and multiple sensors, including five cameras, capable of obtaining a full 3D rendering of each warehouse. This rendering will then be archived so that engineers can review certain models of production lines. The two robot dogs are assisted by a vertical robot called the Scouter, able to drop them from one place to another in the warehouse without losing battery (with a battery life of only two hours). Finally, they are managed by Paula Weibelhaus, an engineer who has never had a dog, or a video game controller in her hands, she confides in the video above. She is responsible for planning the routes used by Spot and Fluffy. In addition, as Mark Goderis, director of digital engineering at Ford, admits, “These robots have an undeniable cool aspect.”
–
