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Robotics Businesses

The Next Time You Order Room Service, It May Come by Robot (nytimes.com) 93

Posted by msmash from the how-about-that dept.
Hotels across the country are rushing to introduce robots with the promise of enhancing the guest experience and increasing efficiency. From a report: The automated companions can do everything from make and pick up deliveries to help guests find their way around. Aloft Cupertino in the Silicon Valley (rates from $150) was the first hotel in the United States to debut Savioke's Relay robot in 2014. The three foot tall autonomous robot, nicknamed Botlr, weighs 90 pounds and makes deliveries throughout the hotel using multiple sensors, 3D cameras and Wi-Fi to operate the elevators. Marriott has since begun mobile robot service at four other Aloft properties. Other hotels are following suit. H Hotel Los Angeles's Relay robot, named Hannah, made 610 front desk deliveries and 42 room service deliveries, traveling a total of 50 miles, in the first three months since the hotel opened last October (rates from $249).
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The Next Time You Order Room Service, It May Come by Robot More

The Next Time You Order Room Service, It May Come by Robot

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  • *cough* I mean, y'know... as a geek...

  • vse bylo zhelto (Score:4, Funny)

    by PopeRatzo ( 965947 ) on Tuesday January 30, 2018 @03:05PM (#56034781) Journal

    Will the room-service robot also have big fake breasts and pee on my bed? Asking for a friend.

  • Thanks for telling Slashdotters that Cupertino is in the Silicon Valley. We had no idea.

    And it's really important to list the rate card for products and services we discuss here too. There aren't too many of us with "hotel staying" experience.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Jeremi ( 14640 )

      It wasn't easy to find something to complain about this time, was it? Still, you managed to do it. Chapeau!

    • Thanks for telling Slashdotters that Cupertino is in the Silicon Valley. We had no idea.

      That's for the dozen or so people who read the weekly Slashdot article which concerns Australia.

    • Still staying at hotels? It's so 20th century. We're all using airbnb.

  • I prefer human service myself (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 30, 2018 @03:08PM (#56034799)

    For myself I just prefer to keep people working by having people perform even mundane services like pizza delivery or room service. I just think you have people who do these jobs for extra money, or a high school age kid getting a first job for spending money. I get everything is going robot for everything, but have we really thought this out?

    • Re:I prefer human service myself (Score:4, Insightful)

      by CaptainDork ( 3678879 ) on Tuesday January 30, 2018 @03:45PM (#56035057)

      We have thought it out.

      The quickest way for business to avoid cost is to decrease the workforce.

      Wages, vacations, taxes, sick time, liabilities, 401(K), health benefits, sexual harassment ... poof ... all gone.

      Your take that these are entry-level jobs is antiquated.

      Heads of household are working several of these jobs to survive.

    • Automation is going to take away jobs. It is simply going to happen. This will be a big problem unless something happens.

      1. Tax the wealthiest people who already don't work, and have Universal Basic Income.
      2. Create a new Tax on robots to somewhat equalize the cost and incentivize the use of slow, unreliable, inefficient, poorly educated millennials. But then which rich people would that tax revenue go to?
      3. Start a nookular war with N. Korea, leading to the involvement of China, Russia, Iran, and o

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by unrtst ( 777550 )

      This thing did 40 room service deliveries in 3 months. That's less than one every other day. It'll need to do far better before it can replace anyone.

      It also did 610 front desk deliveries in that 3 months. That's still less than 7 a day.

      I really hope there wasn't a 24x7 dedicated position doing that pre-robot. That would be a horrible use of resources. Just tell the chef to deliver his own food, since it's only once every other day, and have housekeeping someone else pick up the 7 other deliveries a day. Th

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Kjella ( 173770 )

        Well, they said the robot covered 50+ miles and the preferred walking speed is around 3.1 mph so ~16 hours. If we also assume some time saved waiting for the elevator, for customers blocking the halls or to open the door, exchange courtesies etc. and that it takes no bathroom or smoke breaks I'd say a week's worth of human work saved. In three months, that's 1/12th of a position. Though I might be kind that I account no time for fixing problems, maintenance or repairs. If it managed to take the peaks or be

  • So, in other words, I should never use an elevator in a hotel that has these robots ever again, unless I want some hacker to send me hurtling to my death? Gotcha.

  • No Tips! (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Luthair ( 847766 ) on Tuesday January 30, 2018 @03:20PM (#56034895)
    Best part

  • I mean, I'm pretty sure they were an option back in the 80s... they just weren't worth the expense or trouble.

    • ... I'm pretty sure ...

      A search engine could clarify that for you.

  • I guess that's one way to solve gentrification (Score:3)

    by rsilvergun ( 571051 ) on Tuesday January 30, 2018 @03:23PM (#56034917)
    eliminate the need for low wage employees. You don't need affordable housing and public services for them if you don't need them in a 100 mile radius.

    Also, hadn't really thought just how rife for automation the Hotel industry is until now. Outside of the expensive ones where it's just for show I'll bet the only people on site in 10 years will be a few security guards to make sure nobody breaks in or sneaks too many of their friends into a room.
    • Comment removed based on user account deletion
      • That's well on it's way. You can have a two tiered menu. Cheap stuff made by machines and more expensive stuff that still needs a cook. That's the part of Automation folks always forget, you don't have to go all in. If you automate even 20% it has a huge impact on your bottom line (and a huge impact on layoffs....)

    • Also, hadn't really thought just how rife for automation the Hotel industry is until now. Outside of the expensive ones where it's just for show I'll bet the only people on site in 10 years will be a few security guards to make sure nobody breaks in or sneaks too many of their friends into a room.

      There's no reason whatsoever to have security guards on site all the time, unless you're in a neighborhood so bad that the building is literally likely to be attacked. Instead, you have a whole bunch of smart cameras that can actually identify things like a person coming through a window, or a crowd in a hallway. This is freely available open-source technology today, and you can do it with RasPis and USB cams.

  • Not Sure this Makes The World A Better Place (Score:5, Interesting)

    by forkfail ( 228161 ) on Tuesday January 30, 2018 @03:24PM (#56034919)

    There is something to be said for work. Most of us may grumble about it from time to time. But the fact of the matter is that having useful work to do and work responsibilities, whether it be writing software or washing dishes, flipping burgers or being a full time parent, really does, as the old saying goes, build character.

    Economically, I suspect that we'll probably wind up with some sort of BLS stipend, with laws limiting how much paid work one is allowed to do in those fields that aren't in one way or another automated out of existence. A few will find ways to game the system (as people always have) and rise to economic heights. People will still get fed, and there will still be roofs over heads.

    But what do people do, who have no work? To be sure, some will have talents for music and art and such that will keep them engaged and working. But I doubt that this will be true for the majority of the population. So, what happens when the majority no longer has responsibility, nor is engaged in learning the life lessons that come from it? That, I think, will lead to some real ugliness.

    • I agree and disagree.

      Having useful stuff to do - that's important. I think that when a person feels like what they're doing - whatever it is - matters, they will find some fulfillment.

      Having artificial responsibilities tied to a job? Not so much.

      I find no value in responsibilities tied to work that may or may not be meaningful in any real way. I find zero value in responsibilities tied to an arbitrary job for an arbitrary entity - they are pointless constraints on my time, energy and freedom.

      I do find value

      • I would like to think that you are correct.

        However, I simply don't believe that freed the necessity of work that human nature will change all that much.

        With this said, I still maintain that when people do things that they don't want to do to improve and support themselves, and more so when they do them to support others, that it really does build character. [1]

        And ironically, character is one of those things that can mitigate the cesspool that is human nature.

        [1] I would actually claim that character always

    • There is something to be said for work. Most of us may grumble about it from time to time. But the fact of the matter is that having useful work to do and work responsibilities, whether it be writing software or washing dishes, flipping burgers or being a full time parent, really does, as the old saying goes, build character.

      Couldn't agree with you more. Engaging the mind is also proven to be rather critical as we age as well.

      Economically, I suspect that we'll probably wind up with some sort of BLS stipend, with laws limiting how much paid work one is allowed to do in those fields that aren't in one way or another automated out of existence. A few will find ways to game the system (as people always have) and rise to economic heights. People will still get fed, and there will still be roofs over heads.

      BLS, UBI, or whatever label marketing will put on it will be nothing more than Welfare 2.0 for the unemployable masses. Economically this will spell disaster, as those living at the poverty level are not afforded the luxuries that keep the economic world spinning 'round. You can't even give away a smartphone when the masses can't even afford the service to run it on. Same goes for new cars, oversized h

    • GOOD NEWS!

      We'll all be girding our loins and packing up our shit to migrate to less hostile environments.

      Work is the presence of challenges that must be overcome.

      One of those challenges will be that the nomads will be encroaching on lands that are already occupied.

      War provides good jobs up and down the spectrum from aggression to defense.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by be951 ( 772934 )

      But what do people do, who have no work?

      Assuming we can figure out how to keep everyone fed, housed and cared for, which is still a very big question, probably people will do what they enjoy doing. Do people really need jobs, if all their needs are already being met? It seems we have a number of populations that who get along well enough without going to a job every day -- retirees, the idle rich, stay at home spouses (with or without kids), kids done with HS or college who are not quite ready to go out into the world (some of these can last a su

  • I predict this service will continue (Score:3)

    by Opportunist ( 166417 ) on Tuesday January 30, 2018 @03:31PM (#56034961)

    Well, at least 'til the first hacker conference is being held at the hotel. Then they'll probably shut down. Either the service or the hotel, depending on when they notice it...

    • Maybe the hackers will have the robots dropping the food on the floor. That would sure be a sight to see! Imagine how angry the customers would get when the robots do an oops and a delicious burger or steak lies waste to the posh carpeting.
      • I don't think that's how it works. The robot wouldn't carry the order in it's "hands", it would have the order locked inside, and open a door for the customer to access the food. Otherwise, people would be snatching food off the robot during the trip from the kitchen to the room.

  • 90 pounds sounds about right, but the room service I order, comes with high _heels_, not _wheels_, albeit it's also sometimes named Hannah.

  • The geek side of me wants to smile in delight until I realize that this has cost someone their job and livelihood. Suddenly, this is not so great anymore.

  • Dash and I sometimes hang out, usually in the elevator, when I stay at the Milpitas Crowne Plaza.

  • Actually, I would prefer a robot come to my door than an obnoxious human being.

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