Security guards – this robot wants your job

Electronic security firm, Advanced Security Group (ASG), has introduced a fully autonomous security robot that it says can fulfil the role of a human security guard in many situations.

The robot is equipped with closed circuit television cameras that stream images back to a centralised operator.

ASG has not indicated the source of its robot but it bears a remarkable resemblance to the Security Patrol Robot manufactured by Californian company SMP Robotics.

The company also produces a version equipped with solar panels and one with a bank of high-power loudspeakers, aka a  “long-range acoustic device”. It is claimed to “create sound pressure, at a considerable distance, equivalent to the pain threshold pressure for the human ear … [forcing] humans to leave the covered area.”

According to ASG CEO, Mike Marr, its robot security guard is faster, safer and more cost effective than the traditional security guard, can remove the need to put a human guard in to a dangerous situation and with pricing starting at $12.00 per hour can cut costs by 30-50 percent.

ASG says its robot can patrol continuously for up to 20 hours; autonomously following a patrol route, avoiding obstacles and notifying of any significant security events or changes. It will autonomously re-charge itself and continue patrols without human support. 

“The system is highly configurable and its inbuilt artificial intelligence allows it to learn and understand its environment/terrain and make decisions on routing and obstacle avoidance,” ASG says.

“The introduction of robots into a security system will allow the guard force to be optimised and only committed to incidents where the threat can be properly assessed. The robot can be used effectively indoors or outdoors and can patrol large areas very effectively. 

“Utilising the ground robots, provides a significant ‘presence’ to a site, and allows the surveillance to be completed without the gaps that are a limitation of fixed camera systems. 

Release of the robot follows the announcement by ASG sister company VigilAir — both companies are subsidiaries of TPT Group Holdings (NZ) — of its integrated security drone system in November 2017. The VigilAir system integrates drones with electronic security systems to deliver smarter outcomes to customers.

Robots tipped to replace 84 percent of security guards

Security guard is one of the roles most threatened by robots, according to website willrobotstakemyjob.com. It says 84 percent of security guard jobs will go, but has not put a time frame on this.

However some early robot security guards have been giving their kind some bad press by, literally, falling down on the job.

In July 2017, at a harbour development in Washington DC, Ars Technica reported “a Knightscope K5 security bot appears to have fallen down some stairs and drowned itself in a water feature.” That automaton’s untimely demise was very widely reported.