Robot 'police' are used to shoo away homeless people

A security robot is shooing away homeless people from outside smart office buildings as it patrols the streets of San Francisco. The non-profit organisation that occupies the office block has been warned by officials they will be fined $1,000 (£750) a day if they continue to use the robot without a permit. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) say the security robot - dubbed K9 - was hired to deal with the growing amounts of crime related to homeless people on the sidewalks. The crime-fighting robots rely on cameras, Lidar, thermal-imaging to navigate the streets. Laser scanning can detect changes in an environment, while odour detectors can also detect other changes in the area and monitor air pollution.