In collaboration with Boston Dynamics, Ford has launched a new pilot programme- Fluffy, the robot dog. The brainchild of engineering firm Boston Dynamics, the ultra-efficient Fluffy had been leased to the auto company to help them with 3D laser imaging.

It can create fast and accurate 3D scans. It can also traverse rough terrain with unprecedented ease, yet is small enough to use indoors.

“We’re utilizing it to actually do laser scans of our facility. That image is then utilized by our engineers, to develop new vehicle programs, and it allows them to develop more accurate layouts of our facilities.,” Mark Goderis, Digital Engineering Manager at Ford’s Advanced Manufacturing Center, said in a statement.

Fluffy will be deployed at the Van Dyke Transmission Plant in Sterling Heights next month. As of now, it is trained by Paula Wiebelhaus, an employee of Ford who named the bot.

“Fluffy is an amazing manufacturing tool,” Weibelhaus said.

“Yes, it’s interesting and new, but Fluffy should really be valued for his work and tenacity. He can do so much more than dance and rollover. We want to push him to the limits in the manufacturing plant and see what value he has for the company,” she added.

3D imagining of one plant used to cost nearly $300,000. However, if this pilot works, Ford’s manufacturing team could scan all its plants for a fraction of the cost.