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Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald
National

Spot the robot takes on Tomago

Robot Dog: Spot the robot with workers at Tomago Aluminium. Shane McDonald described Spot as "eye-opening".
Spot the robot.
Robot Dog: Spot the robot with workers at Tomago Aluminium. Shane McDonald described Spot as "eye-opening".

This is Spot, a four-legged robot, having a walk around the Tomago Aluminium plant.

Spot is a pricey little fella. He cost about $200,000. He's quite heavy too - weighing just over 32 kilograms.

But the main thing to know about the dog-like Spot, is that he was developed by American robotics company Boston Dynamics.

There are videos on YouTube of a robot named Atlas doing parkour. It's a stunning and eerie video that makes one wonder - with chills down the back of one's spine - where the robot revolution is heading.

There's also a video on YouTube of Spot on a worksite, helping out the humans. The video's groovy soundtrack doesn't quite erase the Terminator fears. This is robot marketing for the new age - exciting, fascinating and totally creepy.

One of the Spots - there are several in the video - is carrying a 14-kilogram brick. [Look out bricklayers!]

Spot is pretty agile and can navigate different terrain, such as carrying out routine inspections in difficult conditions or confined spaces.

Spot can do dangerous tasks that usually require specially-trained people in protective clothing. Humans are still involved, remotely controlling him with tablets. Digital tablets, of course.

Spot was put through a series of tests at the Tomago aluminium smelter's electrical substation and potrooms. Employees took turns at the controls to guide the robot across a variety of obstacles, including uneven ground, water puddles and stairs.

Spot was subjected to strong magnetic fields to ensure he was unaffected by electronic interference. He passed the test.

He was also programmed to take an autonomous walk around the switchyard, following a learned path [this is what's called machine learning, folks].

Tomago's substation electricians sent Spot into the switchyard to perform thermal imaging inspections, while livestreaming images from his cameras to their devices.

Tomago substation supervisor Shane McDonald described Spot as "eye-opening".

"We were amazed at how autonomous it was," Shane said. "Spot was very stable across all areas of the yard. Gravel, cable pits and stairs - nothing presented a problem for Spot. We put a bin in front of him and he just stepped around it."

How would Spot go against Sarah Connor, though?

The Impeach Tree

Richard Nixon in the Hamilton hedge.

We wrote on Monday about a photo of Richard Nixon in a Hamilton hedge.

"I looked very closely at that image and I'm wondering if that's Nixon in the impeach tree," New Lambton's Ross Greig quipped.

"You also mentioned anti-gravity technology in the article. Recently I read a book on anti-gravity. It was so good, I couldn't put it down.

"Oh, by the way, I saw Donald Trump in my cereal this morning. It turned out to be flake news."

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