Chinese Police Introduces Autonomous Spherical Patrol Robot

By Spooky on December 9th, 2024 Category: News

Viral videos shared on Chinese social media show human law enforcement patrolling the streets alongside AI-powered spherical robots capable of detecting and stopping crime.

A couple of months ago, Chinese robotics company Logon Technology unveiled the RT-G  autonomous spherical robot, a “technological breakthrough” designed to assist and even replace humans in dangerous environments and situations. Capable of operating both on land and in water, the spherical robot can allegedly reach speeds of up to 35km/h and withstand impact damage of up to 4 tons. In a promotional video, the RT-G can be seen operating in water, rough terrain, and mud, but what really caught people’s attention was its urban use, that of a sort of patrol robot capable of identifying criminals and immobilizing them thanks to its suites of advanced AI-powered software. It all seemed like a marketing stunt, but less than two months since the clip went viral, RT-G robots have been spotted patrolling alongside human law enforcement.

When the RT-G robot was first showcased, online feedback was all over the place. Some praised it as a technological marvel that cemented China’s dominance in the field of practical robotics, while others fantasized about how the design could be used on the battlefield to take on conventional war machines. Critics either joked about its limited mobility, claiming that stairs and other obstacles would be insurmountable), or slammed it as a ripoff of the spherical “roundbot” prototype presented by a US manufacturer about a decade ago. They certainly looked very similar, their speeds were comparable, the only major difference being that the roundbot was remote-controlled because that was the standard 10 years ago.

According to Logon Technology’s presentation, the RT-G can tackle crime in a variety of ways. First, its AI-powered cameras can detect disturbances or abnormalities around them, while its facial recognition software can easily detect known criminals. Then, it either calls other robots or human law enforcement as backup or tackles the problem itself, chasing after suspects and immobilizing them either through collision or by firing a built-in netgun.

Although RT-G looked like a prototype of a futuristic robot, the spherical robot has been spotted on Chinese streets, patrolling alongside human law enforcement, just two months after it was unveiled. Whether it’s just a test, or the robot has become a permanent fixture is hard to tell at this point, but it is clear that China is going all out on AI-powered-robots these days.

Just last week we wrote about STAR1, another Chinese robot that had recently set a new speed record, becoming the world’s fastest robot.