JLR’s new ‘Rover’ is a robotic dog employed to protect brand’s EV facility

JLR has added an unlikely new member of staff to its Coventry electric vehicle development facility – a robotic dog called ‘Rover’.

Calling the brand’s electric vehicle build and test facility its new home, Rover has been designed to act as a guard dog ‘of critical importance’ to spot ‘potential operational issues’ to ensure that the facility delivers the new Range Rover Electric on time.

Created by Boston Dynamics, Rover has its own kennel at the plant where it returns to in order to top-up its 50-volt battery between shifts. JLR says that unlike a normal hound, Rover ‘doesn’t get distracted by loud sounds, unusual sights or smells’ and so makes the perfect guard dog for the high-tech site.

Gonzalo Ejarque-Rinaldini, PhD Automation and Robotics at JLR, said: “Enabling our engineers to work safer and smarter, collaborations such as this one with Boston Dynamics are key. Not only are they essential in realising our ambition to electrify our Range Rover, Defender, Discovery and Jaguar brands by 2030, they also have an important role to play in ensuring that the final vehicles that roll off the line have only the very best EV battery technology within them.”

It can use autonomous intelligence to open doors, climb stairs and even move through high-traffic areas. Its automated technology allows it to follow a range of pre-set routes, too, giving Rover the ability to patrol wide areas of the Coventry facility. With four legs and a robot arm, the high-tech mutt can even use its onboard sensors to ‘hear’ for potential gas leaks that humans wouldn’t be able to detect.

JLR has also stated that it is looking to build up its fleet of ‘robot quadrupeds’ across its entire operation. The brand is set to launch its new Range Rover Electric shortly, while Jaguar is poised to introduce its new electric four-door GT car which aims to deliver a range of up to 435 miles from a charge.