Boston Dynamics

What’s new in Spot and Orbit? We’ve added a few new tricks to help Spot do more—including acoustic vibration sensing and laser scanning—and to help customers achieve ROI faster. Thanks to ST Engineering - MRAS for the footage of Spot working at your facility and to Fluke Process Instruments and Leica BLK Original for your partnership.

Keep your factory humming with acoustic vibration detection. Join our upcoming webinar to learn how you can inspect more equipment, more frequently and spot issues earlier. https://bit.ly/3N1Lu8Y

The latest release from Spot is music to your ears. Introducing acoustic vibration sensing with Spot—Listen for signs of wear and tear on rotating equipment to predict and prevent breakdowns. Read the blog to see what else is new in Spot 4.1: https://bit.ly/4exrpmt

The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) and the Oxford Robotics Institute (ORI), University of Oxford, have achieved a first-ever autonomous robot deployment in a fusion facility... The 35-day trial took place in UKAEA’s Joint European Torus (JET) facility, which until its recent scientific operational shutdown, was one of the largest and most powerful fusion research machines in the world. In a step towards the commercial viability of fusion energy, a world-leading robotics alliance has successfully demonstrated that part of a fusion facility’s maintenance can be carried out by an autonomous robot, thus making such work safer for humans and more cost efficient for its operator. Fusion powerplants will need regular maintenance. Traditionally, robotic inspections required humans to make decisions and to operate. “The project aimed to validate the reliability of autonomous robotic technology and instil trust and confidence in their use for safe and efficient inspections in fusion facilities over extended periods,” said Dr Robert Skilton, Head of Research, at UKAEA’s Remote Applications in Challenging Environments division. Such advancements pave the way for autonomous maintenance and decommissioning in future fusion facilities where human access may be limited owing to challenging conditions posed by radiation, vacuum-level pressure and extreme temperatures. JET provided the ideal opportunity to test ORI’s autonomy platform “AutoInspect” controlling a Boston Dynamics Spot quadruped robot in an environment still hazardous after two high-powered deuterium-tritium experiments in the space of three years. The inspection tasks within JET involved mapping the entire facility, taking sensor readings of its environment, and avoiding obstacles and personnel involved in the decommissioning process. To address these challenges, UKAEA’s inspection payload was integrated with ORI’s localisation and mission autonomy solutions, developed through a collaboration between Professors Hawes’ and Fallon’s teams. This setup was combined with Boston Dynamics’ hardware and collision avoidance technology to enhance the robot’s capabilities. This integrated robotic system collected essential data on JET’s environment and overall status twice a day.  This allowed the team to assess the feasibility of replacing human inspections with fully autonomous processes. Prof. Nick Hawes, Professor of AI & Robotics, University of Oxford, said of ORI’s aims in the project, “Projects like this demonstrate the value of autonomous robots – robots that can do things themselves without direct control of humans.” ORI’s work in this project was supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) through the Embodied Intelligence: From Sensing to Collaboration programme grant which aims to create autonomous systems that enhance human capability and potential.

When retail and logistics giant Otto Group set out to strengthen its operational efficiency and safety, it embraced robotics and automation, becoming the first company in Europe to deploy Stretch. See how Stretch is helping associates with the heavy lift at Otto's Hermes Fulfilment site in Haldensleben, Germany. Read the full story: https://bit.ly/3MO8Fnb

Over at our EV build and test facility in Lyons Park, Coventry… a unique colleague is helping our engineers to save time, whilst also enhancing their safety at work. Meet Rover, our four-legged robotic dog! Built by Boston Dynamics, this remarkable quadruped robot plays a critical role in keeping our facility running smoothly, constantly patrolling and monitoring machinery and valves. This helps to free up our engineers’ time, so they can focus on insightful maintenance predictions or perform repairs. And our good boy Rover is just the beginning—we’re now sniffing out future opportunities for robotic quadrupeds across our global operations. This includes at our Solihull plant where preparations are underway for the launch of Range Rover Electric, as well as  Jaguar, which is set to begin an exciting new era as a pure-electric vehicle. #Innovation #Electrification #Robotics #JLR #RangeRoverElectric #Reimagine #BostonDynamics #RoverTheRobodog #Jaguar

7 AM at the logistics center in Haldensleben: At this time, the incoming goods area is bustling! On peak days, up to 40,000 cartons of new goods are delivered, unloaded, and stored. Physically demanding work awaits the colleagues, as the the packages can be very heavy. In the summer, the containers can heat up, while it can also get very cold in the boxes during winter. However, the colleagues now have a 1.3-ton support: "Stretch", the robor from Boston Dynamics! It can handle cartons of various sizes weighing up to 23 kilograms and unload around 500 packages per hour. But what happens when packages shift or obstacles are in the way? No problem! Find out now in our story which technologies are involved and whether any colleagues had concerns about the robot: https://lnkd.in/eaWV-nt5 #robotics #logistics #AI

Automation should fit into existing workflows and empower people to do more. Learn how Spot helps amplify your maintenance teams time and expertise with automated inspections. https://bit.ly/3Xxx1Yx

We've be blown away by the dedication and drive of our 2024 summer interns! Wishing them all the best as they head back to school - Keep working hard and sharing your talents with the world. We're committed to supporting young professionals and providing growth opportunities for our entire team. Check out out careers page for more information about life at Boston Dynamics.

Autonomous robots can help improve operations at Food & Beverage production and processing plants with safe and reliable data collection. Lean how some of the largest F&B companies are putting Spot to work. https://bit.ly/3T6Jm2W