A robot dog has been called in by authorities to help preserve the ancient ruins of Pompeii.
Robo dog deployed to help preserve Pompeii
The four-year-old robot - who is made by American based Boston Dynamics and goes by the name of Spot - can wander around the ruins and inspect even the smallest of crevices as well as gather and record useful data.
Boston Dynamics said: “The aim is to “improve both the quality of monitoring of the existing areas, and to further our knowledge of the state of progress of the works in areas undergoing recovery or restoration, and thereby to manage the safety of the site, as well as that of workers.”
Unesco has already threatened Italian authorities, that if they do not improve in preserving the relics, it will be added to a long standing list of world heritage sites in danger.
Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the director of Pompeii archaeological park said: “Technological advances in the world of robotics, in the form of artificial intelligence and autonomous systems, have produced solutions and innovations typically associated with the industrial and manufacturing world, but which until now had not found an application within archaeological sites due to the heterogeneity of environmental conditions, and the size of the site.”
He added: “Often the safety conditions within the tunnels dug by grave robbers are extremely precarious, and so the use of a robot could signify a breakthrough that would allow us to proceed with greater speed and in total safety,”