The US Army is planning to use AR goggles developed specifically for dogs for military dog training.
Military dogs are being used for reconnaissance and rescue operations in areas with minefields or dangerous objects. However, there is a high possibility that the soldier who accompanied him would do something dangerous if he had an unfamiliar dog do this task.
The new technology, developed by Command Sight as a U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Headquarters project, will provide AR goggles for military dogs and provide visual cues to the goggles through a dog handler or see what the dog is seeing through a spectacled device. can
The U.S. Army has been developing training methods using the Microsoft HoloLens over the past few years. However, Command Site said that they thought about using HoloLens on dogs as it could be a means of bridging the communication gap between military dogs and humans. The military is already using Rex Specs goggles to protect dogs’ eyes. To this end, a device acting as a HUD was installed and information was displayed overlaid on the actual field of view. This allows you to check the dog’s location on a watch-type monitor or laptop and assign it to the location or object you want to inspect.
The company, with the help of some partners, built and started testing an early working prototype. It took the dog a week to get used to the goggles, another two weeks to train the dog to react to the location the laser pointer pointed to, and another week to train the dog to react to the point marks displayed on the AR screen like a pointer.
However, ultimately, the dog was able to move as intended, and the developer is considering the next steps to make the system smaller and more robust, and to act so that it can follow the instructions from the AR goggles without processing through wireless communication.
AR goggles for military dogs are not yet practical and not wireless. Currently, perception and behavior are being studied to enable effective use of this tool, and a product-level preparation period of about two years is planned. If this device is completed, the day may be near when military dogs with AR goggles will appear in operational areas or post-disaster sites. Related information can be found here.