Chinese robot displays its diversity in wide ranging applications

Helping out in the classroom
Sanbot is taking on the role of classroom assistant in elementary school in Netherlands. The robot recorded and stored the contents that teacher Stvan Turi taught and students could learn from the robot directly if they didn't catch all the classes, which shared responsibility of the face-to-face Q&A between teacher and students.

What's more, Sanbot is capable of facial recognition. After it programmed all the students' identification, it can help with check-in and check-out when the class begins and finishes. And the parents can easily know their kids' class condition via Q-Link mobile App, offering reassurance.

A personal shopper with a difference
The Hexi Shop of Nanjing Central Emporium, one large scale one station shopping centre located in the Nanjing Olympic Sports Center, hired a batch of intelligent robot staff to play the roles of consultant manager, almighty inquiring manager and smiling accompany assistant. As a resident assistant in Hexi shop, Sanbot provides consultant services for buyers to upgrade consumption experience.

Wang Meng, General Manager of Nanjing Central Emporium revealed that it was only a small initial test and he planned to introduce more Sanbot robots into other chain shops under the group to promote their retail businesses.

The traditional department store is faced with a necessary transformation towards the fusion with catering, theatres cinemas etc. Meng said: “Taking Hexi Shop as an example, we set the consumption upgrading programme including catering, fitness and fast consumption brands on the first floor, children’s entertainment on the third floor and the main central projects distributed on the fourth floor. Introducing intelligent robots is one of the significant measures of transformation. With the robots’ interesting interactions and practical retail business services such as electronic coupons, payment collection, membership card processing, etc. they leave an unforgettable impression and promote the customer stickiness."

Directing the traffic
The Sanbot robot is the first service robot which has worked in a Shenzhen metro station. On that day, Sanbot also offered services at the entrance of business coach of metro line 11. The robot reminded each passenger to swipe their card at the coach door and broadcast announcements. 

The working staff told the media, “Intelligent service robot can reduce staff’s workload. During the riding rush hours, the workloads are very heavy and we cannot pay attention to each passenger. With the robot, we are released from the monotonous work and can operate more complex work.”

Sanbot manufacturer QIHAN Technology told the metro manager that Sanbot’s robot integrated information broadcast, voice interaction, independent walking, automatic obstacle avoidance and security surveillance functions etc. According to the scenarios, Sanbot could offer safety knowledge promotional services, such as notices at entrance, escalator riding and notices in coach, etc. In this way, passengers could absorb the safety knowledge unconsciously.

With the AI technology going mature and robotic applications becoming popular, the functions of Sanbot will be optimised continuously. To combine the AI and transit service together is helpful to change metro stations from traditional human services to more intelligent and informationalised services.