#US Air Force tests ‘unstoppable’ robot dogs to defend bases

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Tech. Sgt. John Rodiguez provides security with a Ghost Robotics Vision 60 prototype at a simulated austere base.
Tech. Sgt. Cory D. Payne

The US Air Force has drafted creepy, faceless robot dogs to prepare for combat.

The futuristic four-legged friends were deployed to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada last week as part of a security exercise to scout for threats before soldiers are exposed to them, military officials said.

For one exercise, the pooches kept watch of the base as the forces rearmed and refueled on the ground.

“The dogs give us visuals of the area, all while keeping our defenders closer to the aircraft,” Sgt. Lee Boston said in a statement.

The robot hounds are just one part of the Advanced Battle Management System, which uses artificial intelligence to detect and counter threats.

Will Roper, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics, said soldiers will face “a dizzying array of information” to fight effectively on future battlefields, CNN reported.

“Valuing data as an essential war fighting resource, one no less vital than jet fuel or satellites, is the key to next-gen warfare,” Roper said.

Though most details are under wraps about the robot dogs, they are known as Vision 60 UGVs or “autonomous unmanned ground vehicles” by their maker, Ghost Robotics of Philadelphia.

“A core design principle for our legged robots is reduced mechanical complexity when compared to any other legged robots, and even traditional wheeled-tracked UGVs,” the company said, adding the devices are “unstoppable.”