Spot, the most famous four-legged robot in the world, sometimes looks more like an animatronic entertainer than an industrial machine. But Boston Dynamic creators want to remind the world at large in a new video that this thing can work as well.
The new Spot site, titled “No Time To Dance,” features the four-legged robot performing a range of tasks in an industrial setting. Spot takes meter readings, uses an infrared camera to scan some equipment, and generates work orders for human employees. And yes, then it dances too.
It’s a chic video – a testament to Boston Dynamics ’ability to make a robot that has been tested for use with the military and the police, appearing beautiful and harmless. (And to be fair: it is safe. Only the ways in which people could use it are of concern.)
The video is really a way to show a a set of small but useful updates that Boston Dynamics is announcing for Spot: the robot’s five stereo cameras are now producing full-color images; its tablet controller has been upgraded to a Samsung unit with a larger screen, longer battery life and a sturdy case; it has a new charging module; and it has a new system-on-chip for faster on-device AI processing and 5G compatibility. (For the spec-hungry among you: the module is Nvidia Jetson Xavier NX with – if BD uses the regular load – 384 CUDA cores, 48 Tensor cores, and 6 Arm CPUs.)
Again, all of this is to remind you that Spot is a tool, not a toy. And he is looking for a job.
You can check out a detailed summary of the new features in the video below: