Guide Dogs are Expensive and Scarce. Could Robots Do Their Job?

Few jobs look more ripe for robotization than those of the guide dogs used by blind and sight-impaired people. While the canny canines are great at helping their human owners navigate safely around people and obstacles in streets, buildings, and cities, the animals themselves are in extremely short supply, so few of those who need a guide dog actually get to own one. If their guidance task can be affordably and reliably automated, however, a clutch of robotics research labs around the world say many more people could get the help they need to lead more independent lives. There are several reasons for the dearth of guide dogs. First, each costs more than 50,000 to breed, raise, and train, according to the Guide Dog Foundation, a Smithtown, NY-based charity.