Guide dogs not fazed by self-driving robots

Interaction between robots moving through public spaces and guide dogs for the blind and visually impaired will need to be an element of future training for service animals, according to a research project being undertaken by Starship Technologies, which runs an autonomous delivery service using self-driving robots, and UK charity Guide Dogs. Over the past few months, a series of tests conducted in Milton Keynes – where the service was officially launched in November 2018 – have been exploring the impact of autonomous technology and working animals. In the UK, guide dogs undergo rigorous training that enables them to steer their human partner through their daily life and, crucially, public spaces. Among other things, they are trained to walk centrally along pavements, to avoid obstacles, to not turn corners unless told, to stop at kerbs and steps, to judge height and width, to navigate traffic, to guide their human partners across roads, and to find doors, crossings and places that are visited often. Because of the always-on nature of a working guide dog, interaction between the animals and sighted people is strongly discouraged.