Testing Augmented Reality!

It’s not usual to see a dog wearing augmented
reality goggles, right? Well, that’s exactly what military canines are now planning to wear in the near future!

The US Military is experimenting with the new
technology, augmented reality goggles for dogs, aiming for a significant change as to how military canines will be deployed shortly. 

The modern militaries use dogs for many purposes,
from detecting explosives and sniffing out the targets to directing infantry
patrol in high-risk areas.  Normally,
officers command dogs by signaling and using hand gestures, but the latest techniques would need the handler to stay in the line of sight with the dog, conditioning the distance of how far the dog can stay from humans.

AR reality goggles, however, allow the military to
use dogs in distant areas without losing control over their canines. The
goggles have an embedded camera that records live footage, and a heads-up
display to command the dogs, all while staying remote. A dog can be commanded
to search a particular area, while their handlers remain undercover.

Source: The Verge

These AR goggles are nothing but a prototype designed by
Command Sight, a private company based in Seattle. The goggles development process
is being supervised by the US Army Research Laboratory. These goggles are
currently wired, but they are designed to be wireless in the future.

According to the Senior Scientist of the Army Research Laboratory, Stephen Lee, AI works distinctively for dogs as compared to humans. The idea will be used to provide cues and commands to dogs. Dogs won’t be able to interact with AI like humans. This latest technology will offer us a remarkable tool that will help in better communication with popular military working dogs. 

The AR goggles are inspired by an existing piece
of kit for military goggles: a pair of goggles known as Rex Specs. These
goggles have to be personalized according to the size of its wearer. The 3D
scans in AR goggles are used to ensure the perfect place to adjust HUD for
optimal viewing angles.

The researchers say it
will take at least two years to make the prototype wireless. And after then,
the company will gather feedback from the users and revise it for manufacturing.