US Marine Corps tests robot dog soldier

DARPA has already tested a number of robots made by Boston Dynamics in the past, including a quadruped robot called the BigDog.

The US military is interested in the use of robots in combat because they can more confidently be sent into unsafe situations without the worry of loss of life.

Last week the U.S. Marines got up close and personal with the Boston Dynamics Spot robot.

Spot, Boston Dynamics’ latest quaduped robot, traverses a hill at Quantico during tests with the Marines that began September 16.

In addition to its robotics technology, Spot includes a small LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) laser imaging sensor that’s similar to the sensor installed on the top of Google’s self-driving cars to give them an all-around view of the world.

“I think a robot like Spot has tons of opportunities [Marines] could use it for, like scouting or load carriage”, DARPA roboticist Ben Swilling said.

The Marine Corps are also testing autonomous vehicles as support infantry in the field. The robo-dog was used as part of an urban terrain drill, among other things.

“Spot is great and has exceeded the metrics that we’ve provided”.

Built by Google-owned Boston Dynamics, the 160-pound, electrically-powered bot spent a week being put through boot camp at the Marine Corps Warfighting Lab in Quantico, Virginia. Spot also acted as a scout, a role often filled by a working dog. Pineiro told a Defense Media Activity reporter that the Marines “were very receptive to the new technology” and “came up with new ideas we couldn’t even dream up”.

Four-legged soldiers aren’t new to the USA military, but the Marine Corps’ recent trials with “Spot” could offer an entirely new set of combat capabilities.

The robot weighs only 160 pounds and is controlled by a game console-like controller attached to a laptop as far as 500 meters away.