Tests of robotic dog prove successful, says Hamburg Port Authority

4 December 2023

Trusty, reliable Spot generates valuable data and eases workload on human colleagues

Regular structural inspections of e.g., Hamburg's Köhlbrand Bridge are crucial to safety. Then, inspectors have to check 3.8 kilometers of cavities in bitter, wintry cold and in extremely hot summers. "It's also really loud because the traffic is constantly roaring over the bridge," said Ulrich Baldauf, Head of R&D at the Hamburg Port Authority (HPA). However, Spot the robotic dog, remains unfazed by the din and the temperatures regardless of hot or cold. The dog, equipped with a laser scanner, sensors and a high-resolution camera with 30x optical zoom, carries out the inspection and generates a 3D point cloud from the data obtained. "That gives us a detailed 3D model that building inspectors can view on their computer or with VR headsets from the comfort of their remote office," said Baldauf. HPA had tested their "robotic pet" for a year and a half as part of a project with Boston Dynamics and the digital Reply company.

Better orientation thanks to AR headsets

However, a few photos are by no means enough. "Photos of changes must be taken at certain intervals to get concrete results. Spot has discovered small cracks in the concrete," said Baldauf. The repeated images make an assessment easier and the inspectors can tell whether cracks are becoming dangerous and in need of quick fixes. In that case, his human colleague takes over, who in turn benefits from Spot's preliminary work. "The exact location of the repair can be displayed on augmented reality headsets. That is extremely helpful, as the segments of the bridge all look the same down there," he added.

Spot proved great success

All eyes were on Spot's orientation skills during the intense test phase. "A bridge inspection like this takes time. So Spot had to work autonomously for several days. And just like a robotic vacuum cleaner, it had to return to the charging station itself as soon as its battery ran out and then continue exactly where it had interrupted its inspection." Spot mastered that task successfully, Baldauf said. "We tested the robot from January 2022 to June 2023 and the project was a great success." A decision on Spot's future career at HPA, i.e., the purchase of the system, will be made in Q1 of 2024. The investment of around EUR 200,000 for the robotic dog, sensors and control software would pay for itself in around five years. And there would be enough fields of application. "After the right training, Spot could be used in any building or could check containers for gas residue or rust and increase indoor and outdoor safety as an artificial guard dog."

Robots relieve staff of routine work

Spot would fit in well with HPA's high-tech strategy, which uses drones for inspections. "We fly drones to inspect facilities that are difficult to access or use floating drones to investigate damage caused by underwater corrosion of quay walls." And how do HPA employees react to the use of robots? "Extremely positively. The maintenance team has been given an extremely helpful tool and Spot can take over routine tasks in other areas, thereby relieving the workload on the workforce. That is a great help In view of the shortage of skilled workers," Baldauf stressed.

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