News
Spot the Robotic Guide Debuts on ABC Kids’ Show Fizzy and Suds
Earlier this year, we were lucky enough to team up with Fizzy and Suds, an award-winning, inclusively made ABC Kids preschool series that seamlessly integrates disability and neurodiversity with inclusive play, to bring real-world accessibility to the screen.
The episode features eight-year-old Guide Dogs NSW/ACT Client, Sora, Guide Dog Arnie, and Spot the Robotic Guide, as they explore how technology can support people with low vision or blindness.
Guide Dogs provide vital mobility support for many people with low vision or blindness across Australia but they’re not suitable for everyone. Allergies or personal circumstances mean some Clients need alternative solutions. That’s where Spot comes in!
Developed by Professor Sarath Kodagoda, a Robotics and Mechatronics researcher, together with the University of Technology Sydney’s Robotics Team, Spot is part of a three-year project focused on broadening mobility options and enhancing social participation for people with low vision or blindness. This innovative project is delivered in partnership with Guide Dogs NSW/ACT and generously supported by our valued partner, the TPG Telecom Foundation, leveraging research funding through the ARC Linkage Program.
Spot uses advanced sensors and artificial intelligence to travel through new and complex environments with socially aware navigation, steering around obstacles. Previously, this was only achievable with a human guide. Spot also responds to verbal commands, moves from locations A to B indoors and outdoors, on stairs, and over rough terrain.
“While Spot explores new possibilities, the prototype is not intended to replace our world-class, highly trained Guide Dogs, who offer companionship and a unique bond with their Handlers, in addition to increased independence and mobility. Instead, Spot aims to complement existing options by exploring alternative mobility solutions for Clients to maximise their confidence and safety” said Jodi Martin, General Manager – Strategy and Innovation Transformation, Guide Dogs NSW/ACT.
Guide Dogs has supported this project through blindness and low vision technology, digital transformation, and accessibility expertise, as well as lived-experience feedback and testing, and providing access to blindness technologies, including our breeding and training facilities.
Thanks to the TPG Telecom Foundation for going above and beyond funding the initiative. Their engagement with the Robotic Guide Project and commitment to helping Guide Dogs support people with low vision or blindness has been warmly welcomed.
Don’t miss Spot and Sora’s episode on ABC Kids now.
To learn more about our collaborative work and other innovative partnerships, visit: Our current partners – Guide Dogs Australia.
