It is apparent that several companies are using artificial intelligence to make their robots smarter in an effort to push products that use robotics to a wider audience and customer base. Ideally, the primary motivation of these companies in releasing robotic products is improving the quality of life by making daily tasks less challenging.
LG is one of the players in this field with its Hub Robot, which is nanny that makes dance moves for children. In principle, LG is pushing this robot as a possible replacements for child care, with the aim of expanding the possibilities of a smart home where parents and guardians can make some free time to attend to other duties.
Functionally, the LG Hub Robot is powered by Amazon Alexa, meaning it takes voice commands and contextually responds to them. As a result, the robot interacts with children in a natural manner that is close to how you would converse with another person. The robot goes further in its quest to showcase ‘human’ behaviours by expressing emotions and sentiments on its screen.
“The Hub Robot not only reads stories, but also dances for young children,” says Moses Marji, LG East Africa Marketing Manager. “We have worked hard to create robots that interact with users in a highly natural way, and this is very important in child care,” he said.
Moreover, it can nod when answering questions (through voice operation), coupled with facial expressions on its display. With an built-in camera for facial recognition, it can recognize family members and greet them with a wide range of phrases.
The electronics giant has come up with Mini Robots that can be placed in other rooms within a household to augment the functionalities of the dancing nanny, but with the Hub being in charge of all the operations and controls.
All in all, LG’s Hub Robot is geared toward positioning itself as a one of the modern homes, as well as being a centerpiece of modern smart phones. At its announcement in CES 2017, the Hub Robot was rated as the top product of the entire event. We hope to see it make appearances in many homes and dazzle kids with stories and swirls.
