Mr. Lu owns a cafe in the seaport city of Ningbo in China’s Zhejiang province and he has a radical idea. Perhaps inspired by the American teen sitcom “Sam and Cat” (Bots Cafe), he replaced the eatery’s human waiters/waitresses with autonomous robots.
These are the first robots to replace humans in Chinese restaurants to take orders and serve customers their food and beverage at the tables. Each of these robots costs about $9500 (6000 pound sterling), they are not cheap; however, Mr. Lu figured out that they will save him a fortune in the long run in terms of employee salaries. Backed by the manufacturers five years warranty, the robots are good to go for the whole day with four hours of charge.
The 3 feet 4 inches (1 meter) human shaped robots are equipped with optical sensors that enable them to make their way around throughout the restaurant. They carry food and beverage on trays; programmed with 40 different simple phrases in Mandarin, these robots greet customers and carry out simple conversation with them. They know exactly where to go, where to stop and when the food in the kitchen is ready to be served. “Enjoy your meal” is what they say as they serve their customers food.
The novelty of the restaurant’s high tech service is increasingly attracting customers. Some people like the robot waiters/waitresses so much that they want to buy one for their homes. They are less likely to make mistakes like humans make when they get tired from over work; however, they are not likely to through a smile at customers while they are being served.
0 comments:
Post a Comment