Researchers at Binghamton University have come up with a robot dog that's AI powered, to help guide blind people.
The dog responds to commands, offers verbal guidance, and can literally help people find where they need to go.
One jump forward in AI that could really help a lot of people has just been shown off in the form of a robot guide dog.
Researchers at Binghamton University demonstrated the robot AI powered guide dog in a video, below. The university team said this robot dog is AI-enabled so it can physically and verbally guide the visually impaired to where they need to be.
Unlike current animal guide dogs, this robot can also talk, to share surroundings with the person, as they walk along. This could potentially enable a lot more freedom and independence – as well as spontaneity – to the visually impaired.
How does the robot guide dog work?
This robot is built using ChatGPT-4, meaning the dog can be conversational. This allows the robot to go beyond what animal guide dogs can offer their human friends.
All this means the robot can describe the trip before it begins, offering possible routes and even arrival times. Then, during the journey, the robot can give real-time spoken feedback about the environment and obstacles they encounter along the way.
The system was tested by seven legally blind participants who navigated a large multi-room office environment. The feedback was positive with the participants saying they preferred this combined approach to travel over current blind dog offerings.
If and when these AI powered guide dogs become available to the public has yet to be announced. But it could change the lives of many when they finally arrive.
