{"id":22714,"date":"2021-06-26T22:41:50","date_gmt":"2021-06-26T14:41:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/boston-dynamics-spot-explores-martian-analogue-caves-video\/"},"modified":"2021-06-26T22:41:50","modified_gmt":"2021-06-26T14:41:50","slug":"boston-dynamics-spot-explores-martian-analogue-caves-video","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/boston-dynamics-spot-explores-martian-analogue-caves-video\/","title":{"rendered":"Boston Dynamics Spot explores Martian analogue caves [VIDEO]"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"img-border featured-image wp-block-image--obfuscated\">\n<p>\t<img width=\"100%\" src=\"https:\/\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/default-dronedj-related-guide.png?w=1600\" class=\"skip-lazy wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/default-dronedj-related-guide.png?w=320&amp;quality=82&amp;strip=all&amp;ssl=1 320w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/default-dronedj-related-guide.png?w=640&amp;quality=82&amp;strip=all&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/default-dronedj-related-guide.png?w=1024&amp;quality=82&amp;strip=all&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/default-dronedj-related-guide.png?w=1500&amp;quality=82&amp;strip=all&amp;ssl=1 1500w\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"><br \/>\n\t<\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We occasionally explore ground-based drones, sometimes known as \u201cRovers.\u201d And one of the most sophisticated, commercially available products of its kind is Spot \u2013 the quadruped produced by robotics and AI leader Boston Dynamics.<\/p>\n<p><span id=\"more-61400\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve written a number of pieces recently about the growing evolution in autonomous drone operations that (obviously) incorporate some form of AI. But while our focus has been on machines that fly in the air, a growing number of ground-based drones are carrying out increasingly sophisticated tasks. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And this test? Well, it\u2019s pretty cool.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-spot\">Spot<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spot is a pretty special piece of technology. The ground-based drone\/robot is capable of adapting to terrain and can be dispatched on routine inspection missions using visual, LiDAR, or other sensors to capture the required data. But it can also do much more.<\/p>\n<p>\t<span class=\"outbrain-ad-label\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<script type=\"text\/plain\">\n\t\t\twindow.adSlotsConfig = window.adSlotsConfig || [];<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\tadSlotsConfig.push( {\n\t\t\t\tslotID: '\/1049447\/Outbrain',\n\t\t\t\tslotName: 'div-gpt-ad-outbrain-ad-61400',\n\t\t\t\tsizes: [300, 250],\n\t\t\t\tslotPosition: 'mid_article'\n\t\t\t} );\n\t\t<\/script><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because Spot is capable of understanding and adapting to its environment, it can also be sent out on autonomous missions that are more exploratory in nature. Say, for example, you wanted to map a cave. Spot is capable of figuring things out as it goes along, detecting objects of interest, all while sending back rich data to someone monitoring its control system. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cool, right?<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-mars\">Mars<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We know Elon Musk has his sights set on the Red Planet, but prior to space exploration, a lot of robotics testing takes place on earth. Some of these tests take place in what are referred to as analogue environments, meaning places where the conditions are somewhat similar to what you might find on another planet. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For example, there are tests that take routinely take place inside a vacuum. Or there are experiments where devices sample simulated lunar regolith, the fine material of dust, crushed rock, and other material that coats the surface of the moon.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image wp-block-image--obfuscated\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/default-dronedj-related-guide.png\" alt=\"Site default logo image\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But this test involves Spot\u2026and caves that will one day be explored on other planets.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-video\">Video<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s precisely what Boston Dynamics has been up to, testing Spot\u2019s ability to explore and map caves using its own brainpower. The company just released a fascinating video about the work, and it really does give you a sense of Spot\u2019s amazing capabilities:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed alignwide is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"post-youtube-video-1\" title=\"Search for Life: NASA JPL Explores Martian-Like Caves\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qTW-dbZr4U8?feature=oembed&amp;rel=0&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qTW-dbZr4U8?feature=oembed&amp;rel=0&amp;enablejsapi=1\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wow.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-we-ve-seen-this-before\">We\u2019ve seen this before\u2026<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes, we\u2019ve seen other scans from inside caves, but the autonomous nature of this exploration reminded us of a fantastic scene from the under-rated sci-fi flick Prometheus, directed by Ridley Scott. Here, two flying sensors are flicked into the air to map an entire corridor (spoiler alert: it\u2019s part of a spaceship). There\u2019s no audio with this clip, but it\u2019s still pretty cool.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed alignwide is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"post-youtube-video-2\" title=\"Prometheus tunnel mapping with drones\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yO-eduvo904?feature=oembed&amp;rel=0&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yO-eduvo904?feature=oembed&amp;rel=0&amp;enablejsapi=1\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-dronedj-s-take\">DroneDJ\u2019s Take:<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With drones\/robots like Spot, in conjunction with many of the other UAS now entering the market, this kind of technology is rapidly becoming less fiction and more science. We\u2019re not far away from the scene depicted above (except, of course, for those interstellar spaceships). <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Seriously: We\u2019re getting there.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"google-preferred-source-badge-dark\" src=\"https:\/\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/google-preferred-source-badge-dark.png\" alt=\"Add DroneDJ as a preferred source on Google\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"google-preferred-source-badge-light\" src=\"https:\/\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/themes\/ninetofive\/dist\/images\/google-preferred-source-badge-light.png\" alt=\"Add DroneDJ as a preferred source on Google\"><\/p>\n<p class=\"disclaimer-affiliate\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-69121\" src=\"https:\/\/dronedj.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/11\/DJI-MAvic-3-discount-1.jpeg\" alt=\"DJI FPV discount sale\"> You\u2019re reading DroneDJ \u2014 experts who break news about DJI and the wider drone ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow DroneDJ on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don\u2019t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We occasionally explore ground-based drones, sometimes known as \u201cRovers.\u201d And one of the most sophisticated, commercially available products of its kind is Spot \u2013 the quadruped produced by robotics and AI leader Boston Dynamics. We\u2019ve written a number of pieces recently about the growing evolution in autonomous drone operations that (obviously) incorporate some form of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22714","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22714"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22714"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22714\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}