Man's NEXT Best Friend

GHOST ROBOTICS

Q-UGV

Air Force Major Jordan Criss, the 325th Security Forces Squadron’s commander, said that the robot dogs would patrol a predetermined path and would be monitored by a non-commissioned officer throughout their patrol. “These dogs will be an extra set of eyes and ears while computing large amounts of data at strategic locations throughout Tyndall Air Force Base,” Criss said. “They will be a huge enhancement for our defenders and allow flexibility in the posting and response of our personnel.”

Criss added that the dogs would be able to patrol areas that “aren’t desirable for human beings and vehicles” and would even be able to be operated by personnel wearing virtual-reality headsets. “We will be able to see exactly what the robot dog is detecting through its mobile camera and sensor platform [and] if desired, we will also be able to issue verbal commands to a person or people through a radio attached to the dogs.” 

The Ghost Robotic v60 V5.1 is named after Razz. 

In September 2007, three Australian soldiers were hurt and a black Labrador called RAZZ was killed in two separate roadside bombings. Razz discovered a bomb with a sensitive trigger mechanism that detonated the explosive, killing the animal instantly. A handler was slightly wounded in the blast. EDD, Razz who was KIA on 1 September 2007 was awarded posthumously with her medals received by handler LCPL Craig Turnbull. “She was a wonderful dog. A top EDD that was very intelligent. She was a family member to me and I’ll never forget her.”