Robot,Dogs,Join,the,New,York,Fire,Department机器狗加入纽约市消防局

切尔西娅·罗丝·马修斯　乔虹/译

Inside a dimly1 lit tunnel along a stretch of simulated subway track， one of the New York Fire Departments new dogs showed off a few of its tricks. Lie down. Roll over. Stay.

灯光昏暗的隧道内，在一段模拟地铁轨道边上，纽约市消防局新来的两只狗之一表演了几个绝活儿：躺下、翻滚、定住不动。

But the most remarkable things that the two robotic dogs can do were mastered by real dogs long ago：
jogging across rugged terrain， hopping over small obstacles and helping keep their masters out of harms way.

但这两只机器狗能做到的两件最了不起的事，真的狗狗们早就会做了：在高低不平的地形上慢跑、跃过小障碍物、使主人免受伤害。

The department， which plans to deploy the robots in the months ahead， is the first fire agency in the country to purchase the 70-pound machines， which cost $75，000 each and are built and sold by Boston Dynamics， a robotics company.

纽约市消防局计划在未来几个月部署这些机器狗，这是美国首个购买此类机械的消防机构。这种机器狗每只重70磅，售价为7.5万美元，由机器人技术公司波士顿动力研制并销售。

The department plans to use the robots to aid in some of its most precarious search and rescue missions.

该部门计划用机器狗来协助执行一些极危险的搜寻和救援任务。

At the command of a human oper-ator， the device can provide vital information in the midst of a calamitous event. It has the ability to descend deep underground after a steam leak to collect images and data about dangerous debris. It can also be deployed moments after a building collapse to gauge structural2 integrity or measure the concentration of toxic， flammable gasses like carbon monoxide to better inform firefighters responding to the scene.

该设备遵循操作员指令，能够在灾难性事件中提供重要信息。它能在蒸汽泄漏后深入地下，收集有关危险残骸的图像和数据。建筑坍塌后，它能立即接受部署，评估结构完整性，或测定如一氧化碳等有毒、易燃气体的浓度，使抢险救援的消防员更好地了解现场情况。

“The real-life scenarios in which the robots， known as Spot， will be used are far different from Hollywood depictions in which humanoid or animalistic machines often inflict damage and invoke fear，” said Capt. Michael Leo from the Fire Departments robotics unit.

紐约市消防局机器人技术部的中队长迈克尔·利奥说：“好莱坞影片里常常出现人形或动物形机器人造成伤害、引发恐惧的场景，机器狗Spot将大展身手的现实情境跟好莱坞虚构的大不相同。”

“Our whole mission is a lifesaving one，” he added.

“我们的全部使命是挽救生命。”他补充道。

“In the Bronx， where 17 people were killed in an apartment fire earlier last year， using the robots to enter hazardous conditions could save the lives of firefighters and others，” Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson said.

“在布朗克斯区，有17人丧生于去年早些时候的一场公寓火灾。如果用机器人进入那样的危险环境，就能拯救消防员和其他人的生命。”区长瓦妮莎·L.吉布森说。

A Fire Department spokesman said the robots would only collect data on hazardous materials situations and added that department compliance officers had been trained on confidentiality rules.

消防局的一位发言人称，机器人将仅用于收集危险物质情况的数据，并补充说，部门的合规主管已就保密条约进行了培训。

Boston Dynamics said it first made its Spot robots commercially available for lease in 2019， and began selling them in 2020.

波士顿动力公司表示，他们于2019年首次将Spot机器狗用于商务租赁，并于2020年开始发售。

Spot made a guest appearance in February 2022 on The Tonight Show3， and recently had a cameo role in the first episode of The Book of Boba Fett4， as a docile， sheeplike animal. The Fire Department also has plans to show the dog to school STEM5 programs across the city.

Spot机器狗于2022年2月做客《今夜秀》，最近还在电视剧《波巴·费特之书》第一集里客串了一个角色，饰演一只温顺听话的动物。该部门还打算在全市学校的STEM课程中展示这种机器狗。

But concerns about privacy， surveillance and cybersecurity doomed the robots earlier rollout6 in New York.

然而，对隐私、监视和网络安全的担忧注定了机器狗早些时候纽约首秀的失败命运。

The robots first came under scrutiny when the Police Department， responding to a home invasion， sent the dog in to determine whether anyone was still inside an apartment. More criticism followed after the robot was seen out with officers in the lobby of a public housing7 building in Manhattan.

這些机器狗首次受到审查，是在一起入室抢劫案中，当时，警局出警人员放机器狗入室，以确认公寓内是否还有人。在人们看到机器狗跟警员们一起出现在曼哈顿一公共住宅楼的大厅后，更多批评接踵而至。

At the time， John Miller， the Police Departments deputy commissioner for intelligence and counterterrorism， said the department had terminated its lease early because the device became a target for critics who he said used the robot to fuel debate over race and surveillance.

当时，警局负责情报和反恐的副警监约翰·米勒说，由于该设备成为批评者攻击的目标，警局提前终止了租赁。他说这些批评者利用机器狗给有关种族和监视的辩论火上浇油。

For Professor Asaro， who is a faculty member at the New School， more education and outreach are key particularly when it comes to robotics and public safety.

对于任职于新学院的阿萨罗教授来说，更多的教育和外展服务是关键——在机器人科学和公共安全方面尤其如此。

“The rollout of Spot by the N.Y.P.D. was very poor， ” he said. “They didnt really explain to anybody what they had used it for; it just showed up. Therere also potentially good uses of robots by police—but you have to be very careful about keeping clear that its not weaponized， and that its not collecting surveillance.”

“纽约市警察局在Spot机器狗的推出方面做得很差。”他说，“他们没跟任何人真正解释他们用机器狗做了什么，就直接带着它出警。警察是有可能好好使用机器人的，但是必须很谨慎，要清楚地说明它没有配备武器，也不收集监视数据。”

“There are always concerns over robots capturing imagery of tragic scenes， and you do want to see strong control of that information once its collected，” he added. “Other than that， I dont really see any situations where the Fire Department could use this in a way that potentially hurts people. ”

“人们总是担心机器人会捕捉到悲惨场景的图像，一旦收集到这类数据，确实希望能进行有力控制。”他补充道，“除此之外，我认为消防局不会把这类信息用在其他任何可能伤人的场合。”

The Fire Department first turned its attention to ground robotics almost 10 years ago， when members began to explore how these devices could assist firefighters in the field.

大约10年前，纽约市消防局首次将注意力转向地面机器人，当时工作人员开始探索这类设备如何在救援现场协助消防员。

But older models had significant shortcomings. The department tried out several ground robots before purchasing a promising machine in 2014 called Super Droid. The bulky， red robot had caterpillar tracks that propelled it forward or backward on bands of tread like those found on military tanks， and could be used to detect some hazardous materials.

但老型号存在明显的缺点。试用了几部地面机器人后，消防局于2014年购入了一台颇有前景的机器，名为Super Droid。这台笨重的红色机器人装有履带，像军用坦克上的履带一样推动它前进或后退。该机器人可用于探测一些危险物质。

Operators， however， quickly discovered it was too cumbersome to perform some basic functions well， like maneuvering up steep stairs or over large piles of rubble. The agency soon began searching for a replacement. By the summer of 2020， when robotics became a stand alone unit within the department， the team already had its eyes on Spot.

然而，操作人员很快发现，这部机器太笨重了，不能很好地执行一些基本功能，如爬上陡峭的台阶，或是越过大堆碎石。消防局很快就开始寻找替代品。到了2020年夏季，纽约市消防局单独成立班组研究机器人应用，班组成员已将目光投向了Spot。

“Its superior in every capacity. This is the most reliable technology of its kind out there，” said Captain Leo as he stood in between the three now-retired Super Droid robots—clunky compared to Spots sleek8 yellow-and-black frame.

“它在各方面都很出色，采用的是同类中最可靠的技术。”利奥中队长说，这时他站在三台退役的Super Droid机器人之间。相较于有着黄黑相间框架、造型优美的Spot，这些老机器人显得很笨重。

While his unit often deploys drones in smoky conditions to capture aerial footage of a fire， Spot is designed to take on rarer， mostly non-fire related assignments like monitoring the air for an array of hazardous materials or traversing a subway tunnel where flying drones would stir up a swirl of dust， clouding its onboard cameras.

他的班组经常在烟雾弥漫的环境中部署无人机来拍摄火灾的空中画面，而Spot的设计目的是执行更罕见、大多与火灾无关的任务，例如：监测空气中是否存在大量有害物质；
或是穿梭于地铁隧道，在这里，飞行的无人机会扬起灰尘，使其所载摄像头蒙尘。

“Its like every piece of equipment we have，” he said. “We hope to never， ever have to use it. But when we need it， its important that we have the right thing.”

“它就像是我们拥有的每一件设备。”他说，“我们希望永远都用不上。但需要时，手边就有合用的东西，这很重要。”

（譯者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者）

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