Mitsubishi robot receptionist available for rent

Industrial Robot

ISSN: 0143-991X

Article publication date: 7 March 2008

72

Citation

(2008), "Mitsubishi robot receptionist available for rent", Industrial Robot, Vol. 35 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.2008.04935bab.006

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2008, Emerald Group Publishing Limited


Mitsubishi robot receptionist available for rent

Mitsubishi robot receptionist available for rent

Japan is continuing its push to create robot workers to deal with labor shortages due to an aging population. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd has announced that their mobile robot Wakamaru (Figure 3) will now be available to rent for places that require a receptionist “in need of a humanoid touch.” The mobile robot has an android upper body with two arms and an expressive head but it moves using a wheeled base. It can understand about 10,000 words, recognize faces and track people while avoiding obstacles in its path. Interestingly, Wakamaru localizes itself using a map of the ceiling and a camera looking at it just like CMU's museum tour guide Minerva which in the past I have referred to as the tipping point for robotics.

Figure 3 Wakamaru-A robot worker designed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd to deal with labor shortages in Japan caused by and ageing population

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