You might have seen this robot over the years through your favourite social media network. Called Spot, the four-legged robot together with other creations made by Boston Dynamics garnered millions of views on YouTube not only because of their capability but also the way they were being tested which can be quite horrendous.
If you saw some of those videos before and felt a little pity for Spot, well, then you might be glad to know that one of its latest assignment is much tamer. As the story goes, the Singaporean government has recently deployed Spot to roam one of its public parks as part of a trial program.
For starters, Spot is currently being used to promote social distancing at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. This implementation involved broadcasting a pre-recorded audio message as Spot patrol the park.
At the same time, NParks is using Spot to estimate the number of visitors in the park as the robot is equipped with plenty of sensors including camera. Ultimately, the organization hope that the usage of Spot could help lower the risk of COVID-19 exposure on its staff.
Meanwhile, the robot is being accompanied by Singapore National Parks Board’s officer when it is on duty. So, if you think that one can re-enact all those tests that Boston Dynamics did on Spot at the park though, well…no chance at all.
(Source: The Straits Times.)
