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This story is part of THESE, where our editors will bring you the latest news and the hottest gadgets from fully virtual CES 2021.
The first all-digital CES has come and gone, and it was a very different event than we’ve had in the past. But it wasn’t just the format that was different; the technology was also different.
There has been a noticeable change in some of the products showcased by exhibitors – a move towards technology designed to help us live, work and stay safe throughout the Coronavirus pandemic. Among the technologies affected by this change, robotics has stood out as a category pushed in a new direction by the events of the past year.
We have seen many robots adorning the virtual living room with their presence. But rather than mere incremental improvements over previous efforts or novelty concept technology, we’ve seen robotics companies push their technology into new territories to meet our needs in this new normal by going where we don’t. cannot and doing things that we are not allowed to do.
This shift in the direction of robotics was part of a larger push by the consumer electronics industry to meet new needs that have emerged from the pandemic and continue during the lockdown. Among the hot items at the show was Razer Project Hazel smart N95 mask, an LG refrigerator with UV light transmitter for disinfecting, and a Kohler contactless toilet. With people trapped in their homes and unable to interact with others like they did, we need to find new ways of doing things to keep people safe while doing essential tasks.
For robot manufacturers, it’s already good in their wheelhouse. There was plenty of evidence at CES that many robot makers have been able to adapt their technology to meet the new needs created by COVID.
Old dogs, new tips
Reachy, a humanoid robot whose strengths are interacting with humans and manipulating objects, made an appearance at CES last year. But this year the robot was back with a new skill.
Pollen Robotics, the French company that makes Reachy, has made the robot compatible with a humanoid VR teleoperation application. The idea is that by wearing a vr helmet and using manual controllers, anyone can control Reachy remotely, allowing the robot to perform tasks from anywhere in the world.
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Telepresence bots aren’t new, but the past year has shown us just how useful they could be. For Reachy, which is open-source, there are endless possibilities to go where humans can’t right now and be a proxy for them.
UK-based Shadow Robots, a frequent exhibitor at CES, came to the show this year with the news that it has secured funding from Innovate UK to explore whether its Telerobot Tactile can be used in the manufacture of COVID vaccines for Pfizer.
Expert in building advanced robotic hands capable of mimicking a human hand in real time, Shadow Robots will soon begin to work their way through a checklist of tasks requiring high levels of dexterity and precision to see if the system can operate in a sterile environment to make vaccines cheaper, better, faster and easier.
It will perform tasks typically performed by humans, which must work by putting their hands in a sterile box with gloves attached, called an isolator, said Shadow chief executive Rich Walker. It is delicate work, with a lot of room for human error. But it is hoped that telepresence robots will give human workers more control and lead to greater efficiency in vaccine manufacturing.
Walker, who sells Shadow’s robots almost exclusively to professors and research institutes, appreciates the opportunity to bring the company’s expertise into another area. “It’s really nice to do something where you can really see that we have the opportunity to help people who solve real problems, real challenges, who have a difficult work environment,” he said. declared.
New robots to solve new problems
However, not all of the pandemic robots we saw at the show were just reused. A new category of robots has also emerged: droids designed specifically to keep our environments clean and safe.
LG and Ubtech, two companies that always bring new robots to CES, have unveiled robots that use ultraviolet (UV-C) light to disinfect high traffic and high traffic areas. The idea is that these could be used in hotel rooms, classrooms, restaurants and other heavily affected areas.
For Walker, who also sits on Innovate UK’s Advisory Board on Robotics and Autonomous Systems, this is an ideal job for a robot, as it requires a high level of precision – holding a UV scanner at a certain distance for a while – to be effective. It would be nearly impossible for a human to do and ensure that an entire room was thoroughly cleaned, he said. “Whereas having a robot do it, it’s absolutely consistent every time, totally flawless.”
LG’s CLOi robot is designed to be able to navigate around chairs and tables and irradiate the touchable surfaces of an entire room in 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the size.
LG’s UV-C robot.
LG
The robot is intended to provide “peace of mind” to people because they will not be exposed to harmful bacteria and germs, said Michael Kosla, vice president of LG Business Solutions USA. “A higher level of disinfection will become the new expectation of customers in the new contactless economy where we now all live, work, learn and play,” he added.
The proliferation of robot disinfectants at this year’s show came as no surprise to Ben Wood, senior analyst at CCS Insight. He said in an email that new roles for robots beyond manufacturing and warehousing have been coming for some time, and that in October, CCS predicted that the pandemic would accelerate their adoptions in d other contexts due to fears of the spread of infection.
“We predicted that robots would be deployed to undertake tasks such as sanitary monitoring and cleaning in hospitals, housekeeping in hotels and catering and payment in restaurants,” said Wood. “It certainly came to fruition and LG’s UV-C robot, shown at CES, is a good example.”
Welcome, saving robots
Watching the robots making their show debut this year, I felt there was more room for them in our lives than ever before.
In the past, when I wrote about companion robots to combat loneliness, it was largely for the elderly, people with dementia or disabilities, or those who are socially isolated. But these days we are all socially isolated.
An adorable and fluffy guinea pig robot that can respond to your touch and the sound of your voice might not have pleased you in the past, but it could be a welcome addition to your home right now, especially if you live alone. Moflin, made by Vanguard Industries in Japan, is such a robot.
And Samsung’s new robots are appealing for similar reasons. Being at home all the time seems to lead to an endless parade of dirty dishes, so wouldn’t it be great if you could count on a Handy Bot to load and unload your dishwasher for you while you work? Plus, with no bars open for happy hour, it would be nice if a robot served you a glass of wine at the end of the day, while you relax.
Likewise, Bot Care just might be the work-from-home colleague you really missed. The mobile personal assistant can come in for a conversation, reminding you to take a break and stretch, or it can go through your schedule with you, without you having to browse screens again in silence.
Meanwhile, Moxie, a cute office robot, can entertain your kids and help them learn, with dedicated content designed by educators and child development experts.
In the past, robots have always been a luxury, but CES 2021 showed us that maybe it is time to reassess. The world has changed and we have had no choice but to adapt – and why not let the robots take at least a little of the strain?
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