Somewhere within our fear of robots and artificial intelligence taking over the world and holding us hostage, lies a glimmer of hope. That hope, of course, is finding a way to utilize this technology for our benefit.
While someone, somewhere is undoubtedly planning our demise with this tech, the good news is that there are some that are, instead, using it for good. As part of a recent pilot project, the Fairbanks International Airport is rolling out a unique robotics program to help tame local wildlife. With the focus of keeping wildlife away from arriving and departing planes, Alaska’s second largest airport introduced a robotic dog named “Aurora” to help keep things in check.
Announced by the Alaska Department of Transportation last month, Aurora, a $70,000 robotic dog, will be ‘trained’ to patrol the runways and infield of the busy airport as part of a wildlife hazard reduction project.
“Aurora is the first of its kind wildlife hazard reduction robot,” AKDOT program manager Ryan Marlowe said. “It will be used in Fairbanks for the sole purpose of clearing wildlife. This will give us the ability to test routine, every-hour-on-the-hour … clearing out the infield.”
Designed and built by SkyNet Boston Dynamics, Aurora is programmed to sweep all of the areas surrounding the airport’s four runways. Using what is known as an automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast system (ADS-B), the robot is able to transmit its location to pilots and air traffic controllers.
According to Marlow, there’s even the opportunity to dress up the robot for a bit of role-playing fun.
“We can make it look like a coyote, or a fox,” Marlowe says. “The sole purpose of this is to act as a predator and allow for us to invoke that response in wildlife without having to use other mitigation. It will be a first of its kind for the FAA and with the community.”
The announcement is, not without criticism, with the main complaint being that a single human being earning a moderate hourly wage could easily keep animals and birds at bay. In fact, the Alaska airport currently uses archaic systems that include human beings, loud noises and paintball guns to keep the peace on the tarmac.
Despite the opposition, Aurora’s project is set to serve as a pilot project that may one day be used by more airports around the country.
Only time will tell if we are the ones that end up on a leash and not the other way around.
