Land Rover Develops 3D-Printed Dog Paw To Scratch-Test Its Paint

The robotic dog paw helps Jaguar Land Rover assess the abrasion resistance of its paintwork on an SUV’s rear bumper.

Yogi, the labrador, has one job at Jaguar Land Rover – to jump in and out of the boot.

Photo: Jaguar Land Rover

Scratches to the paintwork of your SUV can be a problem if you are the kind who likes to take your pets for a drive. Dogs jumping in and out of cars or SUVs invariably end up scuffing the paintwork, be it door sills or in the case of SUVs, the rear bumper lip.

Well, Jaguar Land Rover claims that it tests the durability of its paintwork against such use by pets with a little help from a labrador named Yogi. However, getting Yogi to do such a mundane task as getting in and out of an SUV repeatedly would be tiresome.

So, the company enlisted Yogi’s help to develop a 3D-printed robotic dog paw to assist its engineers in assessing the durability of its cars, specifically the new Land Rover Defender.

The 3D-printed robotic dog paw that helps Jaguar Land Rover test its paint for abrasion resistance.Photo: Jaguar Land Rover

The ‘RoboYogi’ paw was used to test the Land Rover Defender’s rear bumper’s ability to withstand a dog’s claws scraping the paint before and after dog walks. JLR claims results show it can withstand more than a decade of use by dogs.

The Land Rover Defender has an aluminum scuff plate that covers the lip of the rear bumper, which can take quite a beating.

Dogs getting in and out of SUVs can scuff the paintwork over time.Photo: Jaguar Land Rover

Yogi, the Labrador, is a resident at the National Guide Dog Breeding Centre in the UK. He was tasked with jumping in and out of the Land Rover Defender’s boot, with every step recorded by pressure-mapping technology.

The data allowed the team to benchmark this real-world outdoor scenario against ‘RoboYogi’; from how a mid-sized dog clambers in and out, to the pressure applied by the claws and the pads on its feet.

Nine-year-old Yogi’s paw was then used to model and 3D-print a spring-loaded replica, allowing the claws to follow contours and apply pressure evenly across the bumper. Spring-loaded claws also proved a cost-effective solution as they are easily replaceable and of course, it spares the actual dog from the tiresome work.

The life-like paw is now used by Jaguar Land Rover to complete a standard 5,000 cycle abrasion test. The ‘RoboYogi’ paw scratches the panel at random ten times followed by a linear scratch to one side, before repeating the process.