Humanoid robots: Boston Dynamics and LG want to let Atlas see in the dark

The robotics company Boston Dynamics and LG Innotek, a subsidiary of the LG Group, have jointly agreed to improve the vision of the humanoid robot Atlas and to work together in the future, the companies announced in a statement. The South Korean manufacturer of electronic components is to develop an image sensor module that allows the robot to see well even in poor visibility conditions.

Seeing in the dark

In the future, the research teams at Boston Dynamics and LG Innotek are to work closely together to develop new vision-sensing systems. The modules will integrate various sensor components to enable the humanoid Atlas robot to better perceive its surroundings and recognize objects. The aim is for the image sensor module to work even in poor weather conditions and in dark environments, i.e., in poor visibility. Both companies have joined forces to ensure that the robot can perceive its environment and process image data as well as a human.

The necessary intelligence and software for using the image data and for controlling the robot will be developed and contributed by Boston Dynamics.

Presumably, Boston Dynamics also wants to bring a reliable partner on board for future robot components with this cooperation. This is because LG Innotek also has the necessary resources to manufacture other robot components.

Boston Dynamics and LG Innotek are keeping quiet about the time frame in which the vision sensing system is to be developed and completed.

Boston Dynamics' research collaborations with other companies are nothing new. In recent years, the robotics company has concluded agreements with the Toyota Research Institute, Google Deepmind and the Robotics and AI Institute (RAI), for example. With these partnerships, Boston Dynamics intends to accelerate the development of the Atlas robot by pooling broad research knowledge and applying it in practice.

(olb)