K-9 meets Robo-dog

Honza, meet Scout. 

Technology met training last week when Honza, the Johnston Police Department’s new German Shepherd, met his robotic counterpart, Scout, at the Citizens Bank corporate campus. 

Honza arrived with his partner, K-9 patrol officer Eli McGuire-Kruege, while Scout seemingly showed up solo, even though he was actually being managed via remote control by Citizens security employees. Both ‘canines’ posed for pictures and were good examples of the way technology and training can help the public. 

At about 18 months old, Honza is trained as a narcotics search dog but will soon expand his skills when he and McGuire-Krege return to the Rhode Island K-9 Academy, where Honza will learn to also be a patrol dog. That training will include skills in search and rescue, apprehending offenders and tracking and recovering evidence. 

Scout has been on the job a little longer. Equipped with multiple day-night cameras and looking more like something for a lunar landing than a security dog, he has spent the last three years traversing the expansive corporate campus, which includes hiking trails and walking paths that are accessible to the public. He stands about knee high with a cylindrical body and four mechanical legs. 

Since he is battery-powered, Scout is environmentally friendly and emissions free. No cleanup is required when he takes shortcuts through landscaped garden beds or across neatly trimmed lawn areas on campus. 

Bert Oliveira, head of corporate security for Citizens, said the robo-dog is intended to help people stay safe on campus, with the video feeds from its cameras displayed to the security team around the clock. Scout’s ability to traverse uneven terrain makes it possible to see if there are security threats anywhere on campus, while also making sure workers and walkers are safe. Oliveira noted that Scout has even spotted one or two people having medical incidents in more remote areas, and security staff was able to see the live video and immediately call for help. 

Courtney Robinson, communications director for Citizens, said that the bank thought it would be fun and informative for the public to have Scout and Honza meet, given their shared dedication to public safety. “We have a great partnership with the Johnston Police Department,” Olivera said. “We work together well.” 

Honza, who’s been getting a warm welcome from the town since his arrival from the Czech Republic earlier this year, was a crowd pleaser at the corporate campus, where he was greeted with a basket of homemade dog biscuits and brought smiles to employees passing by. He was not fazed by Scout walking around him and instead was far more interested in his in his rubber ball – one of the training tools that is used as a reward him when he is on the job searching for narcotics and other illegal substances. 

“We are happy to be here,” said Johnston Police Capt. Joseph A. McGinn. “We’re happy to have Honza meet people in the community we serve.” 

Lean and still playful, Honza represents a long lineage of working-dog breeding, while Scout is a much newer “species.” Oliveira said he was made by Boston Dynamics in collaboration with Asylon, a robotics security company. At the time he was deployed at the Citizens campus, he was one of only a couple of robo-dogs in use in corporate settings in the country, he said. 

On its website, Boston Dynamics refers to its robotic dogs as “Spot” models. Scout got his name at Citizens after a naming contest among employees, Robinson said. In addition to providing security, she said, Scout also serves as an unofficial greeter on campus and is programed to be very well behaved – circumnavigating people and any other obstacles as well as occasionally bowing politely when addressed. 

Still, he lacks the furry appeal of Honza and sometimes startles people who are not prepared to see a quadruped robot traipsing around the Citizens grounds. “He does look very futuristic,” Oliveira said. “And not everyone embraces the technology.” 

Oliveira was diplomatic when asked about the effectiveness of the two canines and which he would choose. “Yes,” he replied with a wry smile. “They are both good dogs.”