HPD Defends Purchase of $150,000 Dog-like Robot kitv.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kitv.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Updated 11/14/21, 12:45 p.m.
The Honolulu Police Department is defending its purchase of a semi-autonomous robot dog named SPOT using federal CARES Act funds.
HPD has spent close to $40 million in federal funds in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of that money was used for officer overtime pay and to purchase ATVs, trucks and personal protective equipment.
But $150,045 was also spent acquiring the SPOT from Boston Dynamics. The high tech robot wento to assist HPD s Provisional Outdoor Screening and Triage (POST) program for Oahu s homeless during the pandemic.
Officers with the POST program told the City Council s Public Safety committee Wednesday that the robot has helped with, among other things, security, disinfection and temperature checks. Acting Lieutenant Joseph O Neal says SPOT also limits face-to-face interaction with potential COVID-positive individuals.
• 5 hours ago Casey Harlow / HPR
The Honolulu Police Department is defending its purchase of a semi-autonomous robot dog named SPOT using federal CARES Act funds.
HPD has spent close to $40 million in federal funds in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of that money was used for officer overtime pay and to purchase ATVs, trucks and personal protective equipment.
But $150,045 was also spent acquiring the SPOT from Boston Dynamics. The high tech robot wento to assist HPD s Provisional Outdoor Screening and Triage (POST) program for Oahu s homeless during the pandemic.
Officers with the POST program told the City Council s Public Safety committee Wednesday that the robot has helped with, among other things, security, disinfection and temperature checks. Acting Lieutenant Joseph O Neal says SPOT also limits face-to-face interaction with potential COVID-positive individuals.