INSTITUTE OF HOTEL MANAGEMENT CATERING TECHNOLOGY &

APPLIED NUTRITION, HYDERABAD.

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Mr./Ms. CHANDANA and B VENKATA SAAKSHI students of final year B.sc in hospitality and hotel Administration during the year 2013-14 have completed the Research project work SATISFACTORILY.

Signature of the Guide, Signature of principal,

Date: _____________. Date: _____________.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I have taken efforts in this project. However, it would not have been possible without the kind support and help of any guidance from our guide and particular faculty. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all of them.

I am highly indebted to Mr. Rajesh for his guidance and constant supervision as well as for providing necessary information regarding the project & also for his support completing the project. I would like to express my gratitude towards my parents & my faculty for their kind co-operation and encouragement which help me in completion of this project.

My thanks and appreciations also go to my colleague in developing the project and people who have willingly helped me out with their abilities.

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INDEX

1. Introduction2. Objectives3. Research methodology4. Secondary data collection5. Research finding and analysis6. Conclusion7. Recommendation8. Bibliography

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INTRODUCTION

On August20th 2014 was the historical day for the hotel industry, the reason for this history was Starwood Hotels. On this day Starwood Introduces Robotic Butlers at Aloft Hotel in Cupertino, California.

Having a digital assistant safely housed in your iPhone isn't exactly revolutionary in 2014, but what about one that rolls up to your hotel room door with those extra towels you needed

Starwood, one of the world’s largest hotel companies, is rolling out two robotic “Botlrs” inexplicably named A.L.O. in their Cupertino aloft Hotel.

The robotic butlers, built by Savioke, are able to perform tasks in the front of the house and the back of the house, as well as navigate around guests and use elevators. For the most part, it seems that the Botlrs will be delivering amenities to guest rooms in lieu of actual humans, “freeing up existing talent’s time and allowing them to create a more personalized experience for guests.”

“This is currently a pilot at Aloft Cupertino and is under consideration, though not yet confirmed, to be implemented at Aloft Sunnyvale when it opens at the end of this year,” said Brian McGuiness of Aloft Hotels. “Based on the success of the pilot, we will look to roll out at our nearly 100 hotels around the world in 2015 and beyond.”

The Aloft Botlrs are currently “training”, and will officially go live in the hotels starting on August.

Starwood Hotels, which is funding the pilot, has an exclusive deal with Savioke through the end of the year. The robots' cost was not made available, but Cousins said they will become more affordable as

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certain supply costs come down. The business model will be leasing the robots and charging a service fee.

The below is the A.L.O named butler robot which is used in Starwood at Aloft Hotel in Cupertino, California

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OBJECTIVES

To explore about the robotics of future.

To explore about robotics in hotel industry.

To know about the effects to the employees and guests due to robots in hotels

To explore about their speed of work and in which conditions they can work

To know about guests satisfactions about the robotics in hotels

To explore about the charges and efforts put in manufacturing it

To know about the advantages and disadvantages of robotics in hotel

METHODOLOGY

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The methodology used to conduct the study has been very specific. Basically, the method chosen is aimed to fulfil the objectives of the study. According to the methodology adopted we will be taking certain measures, while conducting the study, and the measures are as follows:

To research work was carried out in three stages: Defining the objectives and the framework for the project. Collection of data.

Desk research: it involved collecting data from internet, N.I.N and books.

Secondary data Primary data is not mentioned as the robotics in hotels of India

is not introduced.

SECONDARY DATA COLLECTION

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FUTURE OF ROBOTICS IN HOTELS

What if you could check into a hotel, have your luggage carried to your room and order a coffee — all with help from a team of robots?

A new hotel at a theme park in Nagasaki, Japan, hopes to make that dream a reality. The Henn-na Hotel (whose name means "strange hotel") will be partially staffed by androids that work as reception attendants, robot waiters, cleaning staff and a cloakroom attendant.

This hotel operates under the motto “A commitment for evolution

They'll be able to engage in intelligent conversations with human guests.

The hotel will also employ four service and porter robots, and others engaged in menial tasks such as cleaning.

According to the park, the first phrase of the two-story hotel will open on July 17 with 72 rooms.

The second phrase will be completed in 2016 with an additional 72 rooms

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Developed by Japan's Osaka University and manufactured by the Japanese robotics company Kokoro, many of the "Actroid" robots resemble a young Japanese woman.

The bots will be able to speak Japanese, Chinese, Korean and English, make hand gestures, and pull off the somewhat creepy feat of mimicking eye movements.

The android-staffed hotel will be part of a theme park called Hues Ten Bosch, which is modelled after a typical Dutch town. Hotel guests will be able to access their rooms using facial recognition software instead of keys, if they choose.

Japan is renowned for being at the forefront of technology, and the country’s on-going love affair with robots has helped them maintain their position as world leaders in this industry.

In spite of this, it was still a little surprising to find out that Japanese scientists have progressed the field so much that a hotel is due to be opened this year (2015)in Nagasaki which will be half-staffed by robots.

Henn-na Hotel, which means either “strange” or “change” hotel, you pick the one that suits it best, will come to life in July this year.

The 72-room hotel will be staffed by 10 people alongside 10 robots, in case you miss interacting with people.

These so-called “actroids” are designed to be remarkably, and slightly creepily, human-like.

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Developed by Osaka University and manufactured by Kokoro, a branch of the company that licenses Hello Kitty, the humanoids bear the features and mannerisms of young Japanese women.

Alongside Japanese, these multilingual bots will be capable of conversing fluently in Chinese, Korean and English. Not only that, but they will also be able to make hand gestures and mimic various other human behaviours, such as breathing and blinking.

And just too really freak you out, they can even make eye contact and respond to both body language and tone of voice.

Three robots will man the hotel’s reception and, after checking you in, another industrial robot will deal with your luggage. These actroids are joined by numerous porters and service robots which carry out a variety of everyday tasks, such as making coffee, cleaning and delivering laundry.

Alongside this futuristic team, the hotel will have various other high-tech features, such as facial recognition in place of key cards. Guests will also be able to request additional amenities through a tablet computer provided by the hotel.

Aims and statements by STARWOODS management.

We'll make the most efficient hotel in the world," boasts Huis Ten Bosch president Hideo Sawada.

Sawada says he hopes robots will eventually run 90% of the property.

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"In the future, we're hoping to build 1,000 similar hotels around the world," says Sawada,

Other features will help make Henn-na the most futuristic low-cost hotel in the industry, according to the company.

Robot Finds, Washes, Folds the Laundry

“In the future, we’d like to have more than 90 percent of hotel services operated by robots,” Huis Ten Bosch company president Hideo Sawada told a news conference.

If you’re looking for a glimpse of the future of the hospitality industry, consider visiting Henn-na Hotel. But don’t worry; robots won’t be tucking you in at night. At least, not yet.

The Kokoro robots are modeled generally on the mannerism and appearance of young women in Japan.

For those who are seeking relief from change and strangeness the robot-receptionists and the maids and bellhops will be supplemented with human staff.

HOTELS OF THE FUTURE: ROBOTS AT THE RECEPTION AND INDIVIDUALIZED ROOMS

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According to the ITB World Travel Trends Report technological advances are expected to produce some far-reaching changes in the hotel trade over the next ten years: ‘Smart rooms’ will adjust their ambience to meet the individual profiles of their guests – Social networks will create “hotel families.

Mechanic master chef: Robots cook dumplings, noodles and wait tables at restaurant in China.

Twenty robots work at the Robot Restaurant in Harbin

They can deliver food, cook, usher and entertain diners

The popular restaurant opened in June last year

Service with a smile has turned sci-fi at this restaurant as diners are waited on and cooked for by robots

At Robot Restaurant 20 robots deliver food to the table, cook dumplings and noodles, usher diners and entertain them in Harbin, Heilongjiang province in China. 

When a diner walks in, an usher robot extends their mechanic arm to the side and says 'Earth person hello. Welcome to the Robot Restaurant

After diners have ordered, robots in the kitchen set to work cooking their meals

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Once the dish is prepared, a robot waiter, which runs along tracks on the floor, carries it from kitchen to table.

Prepared dishes are placed on a suspended conveyor belt and when the plate reaches the right table the mechanical arms lift it off and set it down.

As they eat, a singing robot entertains diners.

The restaurant has gained international fame and continues to grow in popularity since it opened in June last year.

FUNCTIONING

The future of hotel technology has arrived: robot butlers, digital concierges and apps that let you choose your own room are just the beginning.

If a guest is staying at the Aloft hotel in Cupertino, Calif. and asks for a comb or a late-night snack, the guest may be surprised at who -- or what -- brings it to the room.

If you plan to stay in Cupertino's high-tech Aloft Hotel in the near future, don't be surprised if you open your door to a 3-foot-tall robot carrying extra towels or breakfast. See, it's the Starwood property's new butler (officially called A.L.O. Botlr, which is short for "robot butler," of course) programmed to assist the hotel's concierge in catering to your requests.

When a guest calls the front desk asking for something -- let's say a bottle of water and a toothbrush -- employees load up the

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basket up top, the room number is programmed and ALO is on its way. Once it arrives, the guest can enter a rating on its touch screen

The room number will be programmed and it’s on its way to the programmed room.

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Using a combination of sonar wave technology, lasers and cameras, the "botlr" avoids obstacles, as well as humans. It can also communicate with the hotel's elevators using Wi-Fi

It reaches the room and gives an alert to the guest.

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Guest will pick their requirements.

And it asks the guest confirmation about their requirements

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The above mentioned is the functioning of robotic butler in Robotic Butlers at Aloft Hotel in Cupertino, California.

Now we will discuss about the world’s first robot staffed hotel to open in Japan.

For all the discussion of robots intruding on everyday life, a robot’s ability to perform anything beyond basic tasks is still very much the stuff of lab experiments.

Most robots are, in fact, either simple autonomous vacuum cleaners made by companies like iRobot or several types of lawn mowers and trimmers.

The International Federation of Robotics reported that 16,067 professional service robots were sold internationally in 2012, only 2 percent more than the 15,776 sold in 2011.

“The collaborative robot application, whether it’s in factories, hospitals or restaurants, has a big future,” said Jeff Bornstein, president of the Robotic Industries Association. “But it’s been very slow in terms of non factory applications to emerge. It’s still going to be a while.” 

Starwood uses the aloft hotel near the Apple campus as a test bed for the technology-oriented hotel chain’s newest gadgets and services. They experiment with things like easy ways to get digital content from your smart phone and tablet onto your hotel room’s television screen. And, of course, you can unlock the door of your hotel room with an app on your smart phone.

So it was only natural that hotel executives were receptive when Savioke, a robotics start-up in Santa Clara, Calif., cold-called Starwood earlier this year with the proposal that the Aloft chain add a service robot to its array of “tech forward” gadgets and services.

Beyond having a butler’s “collar” painted on its chest, Botlr is not humanoid in appearance and it is not meant to appear male

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or female. Indeed, it looks a little bit like R2-D2 might appear if it had been put on a diet. Or perhaps like a miniaturized nuclear power plant’s cooling tower.

It would not generate a second glance if it were stationary in a hotel lobby. But on the move, it can reach speeds of up to four miles per hour. That’s about the pace of a brisk walk, and adequate for Botlr to hustle razors, toothbrushes, smart phone chargers, snacks and even the morning paper to any of the hotel’s 150 rooms in two to three minutes.

When the robot reaches the guest’s door, the system calls the room, alerting the guest to the delivery.

The robot, which has a camera and other sensors, can recognize that the room door has been opened and then lift the lid on the storage bin that holds the delivery. A flat panel display at the top of the robot is used for the guest to enter a “review” rather than giving a tip. In return for a positive review, the robot will do a small dance before it departs.

Perhaps the most impressive capability of the new robot is its ability to independently make its way to upper floors. When it reaches the elevator, it wirelessly sends a command for the door to open and then maneuvers into the elevator car, taking care to stay out of the way of any human passengers.

When it returns to the lobby, Botlr can plug itself into a recharging station while it awaits its next errand.

Savioke was founded last year by Steve Cousins, a former IBM and Xerox Park research manager who more recently was president and chief executive of Willow Garage, a Silicon Valley robotics laboratory founded in 2006 by Scott Hassan, who wrote Google’s first search engine.

Before entering into an agreement with Starwood to deploy delivery robots, Mr. Cousins said that Savioke was interested in a range of service industry applications like assisted living

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facilities and hotels. The company would not disclose how much the robots cost.

Like Mr. McGuiness, Mr. Cousins deflected questions that robots would displace jobs, and pointed out that the company’s motto was “Robots for humanity.”

“Over time we want to help all people, but especially people with disabilities,” he said. He added that he shared the perspective of economists who believe that while technology may destroy particular job types, over all the economy will continue to grow and new kinds of jobs will be created by high tech.

The number of jobs in the world, he argued, has grown since society began automating.

“If you really want to create a lot of jobs, just outlaw tractors,” he said. “The work force would have to go back on the farm, but nobody is willing to do that.”

As a hotel application, however, he said he saw the initial version of his simple delivery robot as freeing up the hotel desk clerk from having to run up to the room, giving the staff more time with the guests.

Botlr will have a Twitter hash tag, MeetBotlr, but Mr. Cousins said he did not expect robotics technology to advance quickly enough to permit the robot to mimic the obsequiousness of a human bellboy looking for a nice tip

TECHNICALLY HOW IT WORKS

BellBot - A Hotel Assistant System Using Mobile Robots

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Abstract There is a growing interest in applying intelligent technologies to assistant robots.

These robots should have a number of characteristics such as autonomy, easy reconfiguration; robust perception systems and they should be oriented towards close interaction with humans. In this paper we present an automatic hotel assistant system based on a series of mobile platforms that interact with guests and service personnel to help them in different tasks.

These tasks include bringing small items to customers, showing them different points of interest in the hotel, accompanying the guests to their rooms and providing them with general information. 

 Each robot can also autonomously handle some daily scheduled

tasks. Apart from user‐initiated and scheduled tasks, the robots can also perform tasks based on events triggered by the building’s automation system (BAS).

The robots and the BAS are connected to a central server via a local area network.   The system was developed with the Robotics Integrated Development Environment (RIDE) and was tested intensively in different environments.

Keywords Mobile Robots, Social Robots, Intelligent Building, Robot Control Architecture

Introduction For a long time, service robots have been a science fiction vision of the future.

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Those robots were mostly intended as humanoid assistants, capable of helping people in different ways with sophisticated communication systems.

The construction of that kind of versatile and robust robot is still far from reality. However, over the last few years a few successful examples of service robots have appeared on the market.

A couple of examples are the cleaning robot Roomba and the military robot PackBot. As technology evolves, these kinds of robots are expected to grow in number.

Some governments and companies are investing in service robot research as a response to an emerging aging population. Research has been mainly conducted on robots that provide support to humans in a variety of forms and fields. These forms of help include social interaction robots’ rehabilitation robotic, tour guide robots, delivery robots, and nurse robots.  

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The research presented here is oriented towards the construction of a hotel assistant system where robots would be able to execute tasks autonomously, such as guide guests to their rooms and other places in the hotel, provide hotel information to guests, or deliver small items to their rooms. Robots would need to be able to interact with some of the building’s elements, such as elevators or automatic doors.

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In the proposed system all the devices in the building are connected to the local network over Ethernet using the Modbus field bus.

A module in the central server controls all the actuators connected to Modbus according to the needs of the other modules and communicates changes in the sensors.

Tasks can be requested at any time and the system should be designed so that it assigns them to robots in an efficient way. 

In the proposed framework a process in the central server is tasked with allocating the resources needed for each task. 

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The above picture describes the system architecture and describes the main elements of the BAS

The connections between different elements in the BAS are shown in Figure 2. The starting point is the classical BAS.

Sensors and actuators positioned throughout the building are connected to the central unit that controls and monitors the edifice state.  

The classic BAS is connected to a computer (Central server) that registers all the events produced by the different sensors.

In our case, all these devices are connected via Modbus using the building’s local network (Ethernet). In our approach, a set of autonomous mobile robots are also connected to the central

server via Wi‐Fi, GPRS or 3G.

Guest and maintenance staff can monitor the system using two different graphic user interfaces (GUIs).  

Whilst robots are not performing any task, they should be connected to the charging stations located in a special room of the hotel. A typical task might start when one guest requests an item such as a soda can from the bar.

In this case the guest should use the guest GUI in his or her room which is connected to the central server.

. In the central server a task manager will assign a task to a robot or will queue the task if all the robots are busy.

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Once the task is assigned, the robot will plan a route to the bar, navigate to the bar and then order the soda from the bartender.

The order is also shown in the robot’s touch screen and the

robot’s belly‐box doors (Figure 3) will open. Once the bartender

sets the order in the belly‐box, he or she must confirm having done so on the screen;

Then the robot will close the doors. The next step is to navigate to the guest room, asks the guest to take the soda and open the

belly‐ box doors.

After the guest receives the soda, he or she should confirm this

on the touch screen and the robot will close the belly‐box doors.

Finally, if there are pending tasks, the robot will start a new one, otherwise, it will return to the battery charging station.

The robots we have designed a wheeled, friendly‐looking prototype. Using this design, we have built two units named Sacarino (Cartif Foundation and University of Valladolid) and BellBot (University of Vigo).

Both robots look alike and have similar sensor and actuator capabilities.   The Uncanny Valley theory [11] states that as a robot is made more humanlike in its appearance and motion, the emotional response from a human being towards the robot will become increasingly positive and empathic.

However, when the appearance is too close to that of humans but still obviously not human, there comes a point where the response quickly turns to that of strong repulsion.

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Conversely, as the appearance and motion continue to become less distinguishable from a human being, the emotional response becomes positive once more and empathy levels approach those

of human‐to‐ human interactions. 

BELLBOOT BASE

Some robot cists have criticized the theory and other researchers consider the uncanny Valley to be somewhat flawed.

Even though these androids might look like humans, their motions are, so far, quite different.

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Animated toy looking robots can be as expressive, or even more so, than androids and they are usually easier to control.

Since our main interest is expressivity, we decided to build a

robot with a simple toy‐like appearance.

The robot base shown in Figure 3 contains all the navigation devices: Two brushless Long way motors (80W/24V, 6.2N/m.

One for translation and the other for rotation. LiFePO4 26V/40Ah battery that provides power autonomy for 3 to 5 hours.

Bumpers. All the skin works as a bumper so that, if• the robot hits any obstacle, it will be detected. Sonar. It has a ring of 16 sonars whose measurements• work by using the obstacle

avoidance method (BCM) [18]. Hokuyo URG‐04LX laser. Information provided by• this laser is also used by the reactive control (BCM). Sick LMS100/10000 laser. The readings obtained by• this laser are for localization, obstacle avoidance, and map building purposes.

The robot body (Figure 4) includes most of the devices used for social interaction. Most of the on-board devices, including the motors, servos, sonar’s, bumpers and touch sensors, are connected to a CAN bus using the RoboCAN protocol [14]. The

control unit (mini‐ITX VIA EPIA EN1200) constitutes the master module in RoboCAN and the slave modules are control cards with a PIC microcontroller.

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The slave modules in this prototype are four control cards with corresponding PIC microcontrollers.

Module 1 is with a dsPIC30F4012. It includes a predictive PID controller to control the velocity of one of the motors.  

It also uses information from the encoder. This module includes a few bumpers and it publishes a CAN frame when a bumper is activated.

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Module 2 is with a dsPIC30F4012. It is very similar to module 1 and controls the velocity of the other motor.

Module 3 is with a PIC18F258 and controls half of the sonar sensors and some bumpers.  

Module 4 is a copy of module 3 with a PIC18F258 that controls the other half of the sonar sensors and some bumpers. 

Module 5 is with a dsPIC30F4011 and it controls all the servomotors of the body and sensors, including the touch sensors and other digital inputs.  

Besides the devices connected to RoboCAN, the robot includes: The Sick laser, connected to a RS232 port.

The Hokuyo laser, connected to a USB bus. The camera, located in one eye, connected to a PCI frame grabber, installed on the

mini‐ITX board. The speakers and microphone with

corresponding sockets on the mini‐ITX board.

Robot control architecture the on‐board mini‐ITX PC runs on Linux OS and we use a modular architecture developed with RIDE (Robotics Integrated Development Environment) to control the different robot devices, navigate the robot, connect

to   Wi‐Fi and perform the robot’s different tasks.

The structure of this modular control architecture. Even though the different modules are organized into four sets, they can be mapped using the three layer architecture popularized by Bonasso et al.  

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The hardware servers and control sets implement the functional layer while the RoboGraph dispatch implements the executive and planning layer.

Finally, it includes a set of processes with which it can interact

with users and connect to other processes for multi‐robot applications.

Certain navigation modules are imported from CARMEN such as localizes navigator and the Pioneer base hardware servers.

Unlike CARMEN, however, motion control is divided into high‐level (strategic) planning and lower‐level (tactical) collision avoidance using the BCM method.

CARMEN integrates obstacles from the map into its workings and plans a new trajectory accordingly, in order to avoid

obstacles. Integrating all but the lowest‐level motor control into a single module can produce optimal plans.

However, due to the lack of precision in the localization system, the obstacle integration process can narrow some openings in the map. When the opening is only a little bit wider than the robot diameter, this difference can lead path planning to discard a possible path through that opening.

We observed this behaviour with CARMEN in our office environment on several occasions, when the robot had to go through very narrow doors and corridors. To avoid this problem, in our system, obstacles are not included in the map and are avoided using BCM.

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FINAL OUTPUT

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As for the tests in the hotel (below mentioned figure), for two months Sacarino has been working, mainly providing information to users and validating the performance of the dialogue system.

Its navigation activities are restricted to the floor level since the elevator automation ability was not put in place.

Sacarino is able to navigate and escort guests to different locations in the hotel upon request (restaurant, bar and meeting rooms).

The objective is to incorporate new functionalities to Sacarino and to validate them during the next year, according to two considerations: system robustness (analyzing maintenance cost) and users’ perception of the utility of the service.

Conclusions and discussion the application presented here shows the advantages of using mobile robots for certain routine, daily tasks in hotels.

The system uses the two‐level centralized communication system provided by RIDE. The first level communicates all the modules on-board using IPC.

The second level connects the different robots, users and the building control unit using JIPC. The division into two communication systems is intended to deal with different levels of communication requirements.

Robots can autonomously handle several tasks even if they are eventually disconnected from the central server. However, there are some critical moments when they need to be connected, for

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example, when they need to request access to the elevators that are controlled from the central server.  

The same RIDE programming tool based on Petri nets (RoboGraph) was used to implement the executive layer of each mobile robot and the executive layer of the global application.   

Power autonomy is achieved with the use of a recharging mechanism that includes a charging station, an on-board device

and a low‐level module (docker) that locates the station and docks the robot.  

This module is also in charge of monitoring the battery level and notifying the task manager when it reaches a critical level. When robots do not have a task assigned to them, they should be charging.

Most of the work in this research was focused on two topics: the first was to build the supervisory central system that integrates all the robots and the BAS and the second was to build robots with social interaction capabilities which could be integrated into this application.    

The second topic has been addressed before by several researchers, working on social interaction robots rehabilitation robotics tour guide robots delivery robots and nurse robots

However, most of these applications use only one robot and none of them provide mechanisms to integrate the robots with the building’s automation system (BAS). On the other hand, there are applications such as robot based integrated logistics systems which include a supervisory system.

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The purpose of this supervisory system is to assign missions to robots and to control devices in buildings such as doors and elevators. However, these robots do not have social interaction capabilities.  

In this research we integrate both topics using a centralized control system which is in charge of creating new missions according to users’ requests and scheduled tasks, assigning missions to robots, monitoring the execution of the missions and coordinating robot actions with the BAS.

The final design of the Robot which will be hired for world’s first robot staffed hotel to open in Japan.

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GUEST SATISFACTION

Fifty-six percent of respondents are interested in utilizing robotic room service.

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The most preferred robotic function is delivering items to rooms, cited by 51 percent of respondents.

Half of respondents age 25-34 are more likely to choose a hotel with a robot than without one.

Guest Excitement Level for Robot Services

One reason for the almost even split among these three opinion groups could be simple demographics: older individuals are generally less interested in using new technology than their younger counterparts.

However, according to Emmet Cole, an analyst at Robotics Business Review, the varied results could also be a reflection of the novelty of consumer robotics in general.

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“It's difficult to read too much into surveys on consumer robotics at this point in time, because the technology is so new and humans and robots are only really starting to interact with each other in recent years,” he explains.

Majority of Respondents Interested in Utilizing Robotic Services

Excitement about hotel robots may be split, but interest in using such technology isn’t: 56 percent of respondents reported some degree of interest in using these services, and 22 percent said they were “extremely interested” in doing so. Still, 44 percent of respondents reported no interest in using robotic services.

Guest Interest in Utilizing Robotic Services

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Exactly what people find unappealing about robots is a question for another survey, but research suggests that some may perceive robots to be potentially malevolent, or even dangerous coverage on spy drones and other similar technology may raise both safety and privacy concerns.

To contrast the image of an unfeeling or unsafe robot, Savioke Strategic Ambassador Izumi Yaskawa says the botlr was specifically designed to put those who interact with it at ease.

“We’re really conscious of the human interface with the robot, so many edges or sharpness on the robot’s exterior has been nullified…It’s a very gentle, round contour,” Yaskawa explains. “It interacts with little sounds and little movements, like a puppy or a child.”

As for privacy concerns, the botlr does not contain any cameras that could snap photos of guests, according to Tim Smith, a public relations representative for Savioke.

The robot does record which items are delivered and at what time, but no identifying information on the guest is ever requested.

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In addition, the appeal of certain consumer robots already on the market may help increase the adoption of service robots in hotels.

For example, the Roomba, an autonomous vacuuming robot made by iRobot, has a highly attached user base, with 80 percent of owners saying that they name their devices.

Likewise, PARO, a therapeutic robot resembling a stuffed animal seal, has shown to bring comfort to nursing home residents.

Delivery Service Is Top-Preferred Robotic Function

Robots could potentially be created to perform a variety of hotel tasks. However, our survey indicates most respondents (51 percent) prefer a delivery robot.

As for the other half of respondents, their preferences are split: 26 percent prefer assistance with check-in/check out, 18 percent prefer being offered dining/activity options and 5 percent prefer room service meal delivery.

Preferred Service Performed by Robot

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It’s possible that respondents prefer automated item delivery and check-in/check-out because of a preference for self-service in general.

According to research conducted by the Harvard Business Review, most customers prefer self-service over interacting with an employee; a finding supported by the ever-increasing rise of self-checkout kiosks in stores, airports and hotels.

In fact, the Aloft Cupertino adopted automatic guest check-in/check-out machines (the second most-preferred robot service) long before the botlr.

Conveniently, what respondents prefer robots to be used for aligns with what they’re most capable of doing. According to Smith, current technology limits most robots to performing repetitive tasks in predictable environments, such as hotel delivery.

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However, even if most people wanted a robot that delivered room service meals, it’s unlikely that a robot could do the job as well as a person.

For example, an employee can intuitively understand a complaint that food is cold, or offer a personal recommendation for their favourite local restaurant. Robots, at least for now, cannot.

Robots can only do a couple of things really well … we want to nail delivery,” Yaskawa explains.

Interest in Robotic Hotel Service Varies Significantly by Age Group

Drilling deeper into guests’ interest in using robotic hotel services, we found that interest level varies significantly by age.

Younger demographics report the most interest, with approximately one-third of respondents age 18-24 and 25-34 reporting an interest in using robotic hotel services.

For each of the older age groups in the survey, however, including age 45-54, 55-64 and 65 and up, interest level peaked in the single digits.

Guest Interest in Utilizing Robot Services by Age

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This data suggests that hotels with a younger target clientele could help attract new guests by offering robotic services. According to Yaskawa, the mid-range hotel market, a popular choice with younger travellers, is exactly what Savioke had in mind when designing SaviOne.

“In high end hotels, the guests want to have people waiting on you,” he explains. “SaviOne fits better with the business model of mid-range hotels, so that’s the kind of location that we’re looking for.”

Appealing to the younger consumer played a major part in deciding to debut the botlr at Aloft Cupertino, says Brian McGuiness, the global brand leader for Starwood Specialty Select Brands.

Created by Starwood in 2005, the aloft hotel brand was created with the younger, digital-savvy business traveller in mind.

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McGuiness also notes that guests at the Cupertino location, which is based in the heart of Silicon Valley, are especially receptive to new technology.

“Our guests are always seeking the latest in technological advances and hospitality trends, so we’re thrilled to have them experience the botlr first-hand,” he says.

Millennial Most Likely to Choose Hotels With Robotic Service

Next, we wanted to learn how guests’ interest in robotic services would impact the decision of which hotel to choose. We found that the 18-24 and 25-34 age groups, often collectively referred to as millennial, reported the highest likelihood of choosing a hotel with robotic service, with 27 percent of 18-24 year olds and 50 percent of 25-34 year olds indicating this technology would affect their decision.

For the other age groups in our sample, a hotel with a robot largely had either no effect, or even a negative effect on hotel selection

Likelihood of Choosing Hotel with Robot by Age

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Millennial also reported feelings of excitement surrounding a hotel robot, with 28 percent of 18-24 year olds and 27 percent of 25-34 year olds reporting that they found a hotel with a robot very exciting.

The data is nearly opposite for older ages, with 25 percent of 55-64 year olds and 32 percent of those 65 years or older reporting that hotels with robots as not exciting.

Excitement Level for Hotel with Robot by Age

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Guest Excitement Level for Robot Services, by Gender

However, the slightly dampened excitement level of women in comparison to men may be due to the fact that women feel less comfortable with this technology than men.

Among respondents in our sample, 41 percent of women said they were comfortable with robot services, compared to 59 percent of men.

The reason for the split may be a matter of privacy concerns, with women being more concerned about potentially being photographed or recorded by a robot.

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Guests Comfort Level with Robot Services, by Gender

Technology with subtle recording capabilities, such as Google Glass, combined with highly publicized cases of women having personal photos posted online without permission have brought the issue of privacy and technology into the spotlight.

So, even though the botlr does not contain any video recording equipment or cameras, the perception that it could may influence comfort levels.

Technology Trends in the Hotel Industry – The self-service

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Introduction what in the Airline industry already is taken for granted is still not very well established in the Hotel industry.

Self-service and automation in hotels is far not that common as in other industries. Long queues on the hotel reception on peak times are still the norm.

But why is the hotel industry dragging behind? The aim of this trend study is to evaluate reasons for this phenomenon and to show the big picture of self service in the accommodation industry.

History The first Company to approach self-service in the hotel industry was NCR Corporation in the 1980s. Although this approach was still not about self-check-in but they introduced ATMs in the hospitality environment.

The NCR Corporation is still developing technological solutions for hotels, airlines and airports as well as car rental companies. Another big partner of the hotel industry concerning self-service solutions was IBM which provided in the early 21st century several big hotel chains with self-service check-in machines.

Present Situation In a world where tablet PC’s and smart phones are becoming almost indispensable and where there is an existing application for almost everything, the hotel industry still lags behind in matters of the introduction of automated self service facilities.

Foremost Bigger hotel chains like Hilton and Novotel, which belongs to the Accor group, have introduced (foremost in their business hotels) new technologies to substitute long queues at the reception desks.

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They provide self-check-in machines in their lobby’s as well as possibilities to check in online and wireless with smart phone 4. How it works the new technology allows guests to check in via their mobile device already before the arrival.

Once in the hotel, he can pick up his room key from a machine which recognizes the reservation and the check-in for example through a printed or mobile barcode. 5. Advantages The advantages of a self-check system are obvious:

The reduction of the queues in front of the reception desks helps on the one hand staff to handle more important tasks like the assistance to customers with problems and special wishes.

On the other hand it enables customers to affect the check-in themselves immediately which saves time. Foremost for Business clients, a self-service possibility makes a hotel attractive.

On the long term, a self-check system leads trough more efficiency to cost reductions for staff. 6. Disadvantages For some customers, personal assistance is still of high importance and part of the experience.

Although not all the personal assistance can be replaced by machines, through the self-service a big part of this assistance falls apart. Another disadvantage is the fact that a system like this is a big investment and to implement one, a hotel needs not only a lot of funds for the hard- and software itself, but also for the recruitment of the staff to help customers with the new technology.

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Last but not least: Not all customers have the ability to conduct a self-check in, thinking in elderly people for example which may lack the know-how.

Conclusion providing a self-service possibility to the clients helps a hotel or hotel chain without doubt to position itself as happening and modern. It provides great advantages for clients which do not have a lot of time (e.g. business clients) or which particularly like using new technology.

With the advancing technologies, customers also develop different expectations and wishes. Thus, the hotel industry is well advised to keep up with those new technological possibilities.

Nevertheless, it would be dangerous to focus only on self-service, because personal service has a big tradition in the hotel industry and a lot of customers would not want to miss out on it (more or less, depending on the target group).

This could be the reason why the establishment process in the hotel industry is such a long haul.

In my opinion, the key to success is to find the right balance between self-service and personal assistance, also considering, that self-service in the hotel industry still has a long way to go until it is as well established and known by clients as for example in the airline/airport industry.

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Vision of a robot butler

ABSTRACT In this paper Care-O-bot® 3 is introduced, which is designed as a prototype for a household robot. In contrast to merely technology driven service robot developments, many considerations on embodiment were conducted.

In particular, Care-O-bot® 3 excels in its user-interaction oriented design. Nevertheless, it is equipped with leading edge technology, which is highly integrated into a very compact form. This convergence of design and technology accounts for the idea of Care-O-bot® 3 being a product vision for a robot butler.

Keywords Domestic robot design, convergence of design and technology, robot butler. 1. INTRODUCTION In the last decades a lot of robotic platforms have evolved, most of which have one thing in common: they are purely technology driven development platforms with little emphasis on end user related issues like design or usability.

The target of the service robot introduced in this paper, Care-O-bot® 3, is to develop an overall concept suitable as a product vision, combining technological aspects with a compact and user friendly design.

Therefore, this article introduces user studies about an appropriate appearance for a robot helper in people’s homes. Furthermore, the two paradigms of anthropomorphism and techno Orphism are presented and the advantages and disadvantages discussed with respect to their suitability for a domestic robot design. Finally, the design of Care-O-bot® 3 is

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presented and how it was influenced and inspired by these considerations.

Finally a user interaction scenario was implemented to show the user interaction concept.

HOW SHOULD A ROBOT BUTLER LOOK LIKE? The classical field of human-computer interaction (HCI) is well established since many decades, while human-robot interaction (HRI) is a fairly new branch of HCI and has gained a lot of attention recently

Concerning a mobile service robot, additional aspects with respect to user acceptance and their expectations have to be considered. So, what are people’s views on the role of an intelligent service robot in their home? Different studies have been conducted to investigate people’s attitudes towards domestic robots.

Syrdal carried out a survey in order to examine adults’ attitudes towards an intelligent service robot.

Participants were 21-60 years old, while most of them were in the age of 21-30. Results show that most of the participants were positive towards the idea of an intelligent service robot and view it as a domestic machine or smart intelligent equipment that can be ‘controlled’, but is intelligent enough to perform typical household tasks.

On the other hand, Scopelliti investigated people’s representation of domestic robots across three different generations and found that while young people tend to have

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positive feelings towards domestic robots, elderly people were more frightened of the prospect of a robot in the home.

Studies within the European project COGNIRON assessed people’s attitudes towards robots via questionnaires following live human-robot interaction trials.

Responses from 28 adults (the majority in the age range 26-45) indicated that a large proportion of participants were in favour of a robot companion, but would prefer it to have a role of an assistant (79%), machine/appliance (71%) or servant (46%).

Few wanted a robot companion to be a ‘friend’. The majority of the participants wanted the robot to be able to do household tasks. Also, participants preferred a robot that is predictable, controllable, considerate and polite.

Humanlike communication was desired for a robot companion; however, human-like behaviour and appearance were less important.

These three studies, conducted in different European countries, agreed with respect to the desired role of a service robot in the home: an assistant able to carry out useful tasks, and not necessarily a ‘friend’ with human-like appearance.

These considerations led to the definition of a robot companion which must a) be able to perform a range of useful tasks or functions, and b) carry out these tasks or functions in a manner that is socially acceptable and comfortable for people it shares the environment with and/or it interacts with.

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This creates the following challenge for the development of such a robot: we have to bridge the gap between functionality, which goes along with hard technological properties of e.g. an industrial robot, and social acceptance, which goes along with the comfortable design of e.g. an electronic pet.

ADVANTAGES& DISADVANTAGES

There are lot of advantages, they can work faster than people, mass production as a result will reduce time and costs, they can work under severe work conditions without getting sick or tired.

.There might be some dangerous steps in the procedure. The robot will and can take such risks

Advantages commonly attributed to automation include higher production rates and increased productivity, more efficient use of materials, better product quality, improved safety, shorter workweeks for labour, and reduced factory lead times

Higher output and increased productivity have been two of the biggest reasons in justifying the use of automation.

Despite the claims of high quality from good workmanship by humans, automated systems typically perform the manufacturing process with less variability than human workers, resulting in greater control and consistency of product quality. Also, increased process control makes more efficient use of materials, resulting in less scrap.

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The disadvantages are they require highly specialized people to design it and maintain it, any problem regardless if minor or major could make the machine abandoned and useless, also it could lead for an increase in unemployment, which may lead for crime increase.

If the robot made the wrong step, it cannot correct itself. 

It might cost a lot for its charges and stuff.

If the usage of robots increases in hotel industry human should be worried about their job.

Hotel management should be worried about guest satisfaction as the robots can’t convince the guest if something goes wrong with him.

Robot can’t give a smile which is mandatory in hotel industry. Humans are created because there are few things which have to be done by humans only not machines.

Yes I do agree there is a need of technology in today’s world, but it should not be like it will be harmful to humans.

At the end of the machines are operated by humans, humans are not operated by machines.

In hotel industry people will be coming from different places to stay in our hotel. Robots can’t understand the culture of those different people.

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FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

In a country with the largest population, shortage of manpower or skilled labour is not a short coming.

Employment is the necessity and for a growing and vibrant economy the introduction of robots would only result in the reduction in employment and increase in unemployment.

Robots do increase the output in production of the service needed but at the same time at what cost is it?

Also at the same time robots needs special care and maintenance, along with storage area.

If any kind of damage like the wear and tear occurs in the robot either the parts will have to be imported or the whole robot will have to be shipped back which will result in larger amount of losses.

The tools needed to run such kind of technology is not available in our country. The interaction of humans to machine is not comfortable as to the human to human communication.

The concept of robot in hotel industry is introduced only in California. In Japan it is about to introduce in mid of this year.

CONCLUSION

Our data indicates that millennial are currently the population segment most excited about hotel service robots.

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Thus, it seems that hotels catering to this demographic seem poised to benefit the most by adding robotic services.

This technology also provides opportunities for efficiency benefits, as staff can spend less time delivering items and more time interacting with guests in other capacities.

According to McGuiness, this was the primary objective in mind when deciding to introduce the botlr at Aloft Cupertino.

“This new technology enables our hotel associates to make more time for what they do best; provide exceptional and personalized service for each and every one of our guests,” he says.

In fact, the initial success of the botlr pilot program has Starwood looking to introduce a botlr at nearly 100 of its hotels around the world in 2015 and beyond.

As for other hotels interested in adding a botlr, Savioke is offering an early adopter program for select hotels starting in 2015.

To ensure consistent quality and controlling costs, quick-service restaurants or hotels have been in the forefront of automating their operations whenever possible.

using modern robotics technologies to improve operations in star hotels. Instead of applying robotics technology for direct labour replacement, robotics can augment workers’ cognitive capacity.

This alternative application of robotics technologies encompasses two key components: (1) robotic sensing for

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demand prediction and (2) robotic planning for production management of hotels.

The improvements possible with modern robotics technologies and the challenges of implementing it.

Unusual for quick-service, uses a fresh, cook-to-order concept, which resulted in backlogs during busy times. Saxby’s robotics application substantially reduced both service times and food waste.

. The system tracks customer arrivals, starts the cooking process as customers arrive, and then gives employees specific directions to expedite cooking and service, so that wait times have been reduced.

Industrial design to minimize failure rate.

Silent motion and operation to give the impression that the robot is “gliding on air”

 Automation include higher production rates and increased productivity, more efficient use of materials, better product quality, improved safety, shorter workweeks for labour, and reduced factory lead times. 

Recommendation

The purpose of the project is to recommend further improvements and promote the robotics in hotels. The robotics in hotels explores and promotes producing advanced technology in hotel housekeeping and services recommended as an improvements and promotion of robots.

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In addition, this report recommends further work to:

make sure that further materials will be required to manufacture and repair the robot

quantify the specialised people to handle it 

establish the optimal scale of production of robots by analysing market demand, human efforts, employment and set-up costs;

Introduce in India and get specialised persons for it as this technology not at all introduced in India and nobody is aware of it.

Bibliography

The collection of data are from the following websites:

http://www.computerworld.com/article/2895791/hotel- guests-open-the-door-to-a-robotic-butler.html

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http://www.livescience.com/49711-japanese-robot-hotel.html

http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/08/high-tech-robot-hotel- japan/

http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/13/starwood-introduces- robotic-butlers-at-aloft-hotel-in-palo-alto/

http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/13/starwood-introduces- robotic-butlers-at-aloft-hotel-in-palo-alto/

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/02/12/check-in- to-japan-s-creepy-robot-hotel.html

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