Robot Dogs: Guardians of Industrial Plant Safety in the Age of AI

For several years now, we have not been able to understand the world without robots. But, as of last year, there is a new trend: robot dogs, which were the sensation at the penultimate edition of the Mobile World Congress, which had dozens of them roaming everywhere.

These curious specimens offer multiple advantages. For example, in the field of surveillance, their service is incomparable, operating 24 hours a day, every day. As they do not require breaks, hours of sleep, or shift changes, continuous monitoring of sites under their care is guaranteed. Even better, these computerized guards can enter spaces that could be difficult to reach or dangerous for humans, covering the most sensitive areas in buildings and spaces of all kinds, including university campuses, borderlands, and, of coure, industrial facilities. 

In the day-to-day life of industrial plants, various activities carry considerable risk. There are high temperatures, and there may be chemical reactions or electrical fires, for example. In an environment with a high level of potential hazards, ensuring both personnel safety and operational reliability is crucial. Equipped with integrated artificial intelligence and being able to analyze patterns and trends, robot dogs can predict events that could result in complications, such as identifying a container about to fall, amog many other possibilities that are just as dangerous, or even more so. 

With their advanced cameras and sensors, robot dogs provide real-time data, allowing security teams to respond quickly to potential threats. With a robotic version of man's best friend, industrial companies can improve the safety of their personnel overseeing maintenance work. Can you imagine the savings this represents for the commercial and industrial sectors? Without a doubt, this represents a watershed for organizations.

Thus, it should come as no surprise that the global market for robot dogs equipped with artificial intelligence, which at the end of 2024 was estimated to be worth US$1.34 billion, is expected to grow to US$2.66 billion by 2034. This  means a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.3% in the period, according to Polaris Market Research. 

‘ANYmal:’ Joint Achievement Benefits Industrial Sector 

The sheer size of industrial facilities (some of them spread over several square kilometers) creates its own additional challenges. For industrial plant operators, it is imperative to have the assurance of a robust and accurate view of the various systems operating simultaneously in such large complexes. This prompted us, at Siemens, to ask ourselves how we could transform and facilitate industrial maintenance through technology. The answer was the autonomous mobile robot (AMR).

It was all born from a joint effort between Siemens and ANYbotics. We realized that it was not necessary to reinvent the wheel; advances in AI have boosted the capabilities of mobile robots, making them more autonomous and collaborative, as well as smart enough to do much more than simple, repetitive tasks. 

The solution is “ANYmal,” a robot designed and built by ANYbotics, with Siemens employing COMOS Mobile Worker for the management and consolidation of data from ERP, engineering, and CMS systems of plants and facilities, and with the IT consulting firm Roboverse Reply as the link between both vendors – its platform integrates robotics and combines real-world data with virtual and augmented reality environments.

This tripartite venture created a specially designed version of ANYmal to ease the burden of maintenance and inspection in complex industrial environments. It collects accurate, high-quality data from hundreds of inspection points on its own; it is equipped with light detection and distance measurement (LiDAR) technologies, which creates accurate, high-resolution 3D models of facilities; and it easily navigates multiple stories, even without light, by integrating AI-powered mobility.

In addition to excellent vision, like its real-life counterpart, this robot dog can "hear" and "smell." Its acoustic sensors measure audible and inaudible frequencies up to 15,000Hz, while its infrared camera allows it to capture temperatures from a plant’s pumps and motors. 

By being able to detect, for example, a gas leak, ANYmal shows its great value in terms of energy cost and sustainability, because 30% of the gas in the industrial sector is usually lost due to leaks. However, there is much more that this robot dog is capable of. To begin with, it can be applied to repetitive tasks, such as automation of inspection tasks, which are usually boring. In this way, plant operators can focus on activities of greater value for the business. Additionally, because ANYmal can access all types of zones and operate under  various weather conditions, including explosive areas or outdoor spaces, whether in rain or snow, workers no longer need to put themselves in potentially dangerous situations. 

With each inspection, this autonomous mobile robot produces an enormous amount of data, which is where Roboverse Reply comes into play. Its platform integrates the captured data into an organization’s systems. Its technology allows the data captured by Siemens' COMOS Mobile Worker to be filtered so that the system displays only the data that is relevant to the business. 

Toward Less Reactive Maintenance, Higher Productivity

Both robots and related systems use AI to interpret the captured data, so that facility operators see key information about the plant that helps them take the next steps. This translates into the opportunity to move from reactive to predictive maintenance, by having a much deeper vision of the sites and processes in progress, as well as in incremental productivity, since there is an optimal overview of the real state of the plant or facility.

The beneficial part of each mission is that AMRs continue to expand their capabilities: The deep learning algorithms they integrate allow them to be more versatile and improve their flexibility, so that they can respond to the needs of the business. They are also more reliable when it comes to identifying, classifying, and detecting objects. 

Robot dogs reduce risks, optimize worker safety, and help promote sustainability in process industries. Without a doubt, they are marking a before and after regarding inspection work in industrial environments, and their results will only improve.

 1 “AI Robot dog market size, share, global analysis, 2025-2034”, Polaris Market Research.