From the humanoid to the autonomous vacuum cleaner, CES 2022 was an opportunity to discover new robots called to assist us in our connected homes. While not necessarily the most impressive, it is a new compatible assistance robot Alexa which caught our attention. Supported by Amazon in the program Alexa Fund, the Labrador Retriever indeed intends to make itself really useful to those who really need it ...
Labrador Retriever: an assistance robot
Named Retriever, it cannot be invented, the new robot of Labrador Systems is certainly less desirable than fun Amazon Astro unveiled last September, but it's probably much more useful, especially for the elderly or disabled.
"There is a significant part of our society that is underserved" explains Mike Dooley, CEO of the American startup. “When pain or other health issues start to interfere with your ability to move around or move things, even short distances can have a major impact on your independence, quality of life, and health. The Retriever is meant to physically help and address some of these issues […] "
With two platforms, this assistance robot makes it possible to carry loads of up to 11 kg from one point to another. He can, for example, recover a meal tray thanks to a robotic arm, carry a laundry basket, pick up a package on the doorstep, seize objects placed high up, or even bring medicines to its owner.
Packed with sensors, the Labrador Retriever performs a 3D mapping home and move around following routes predefined by the user. Even if it is equipped with a bumper and capable of going around people or obstacles, it is indeed necessary to indicate to it routes and stopping points in order to prevent it from jamming, falling down a staircase and faulting.
Navigation that may seem fairly basic these days, but which minimizes the risk of incidents and breakdowns, and therefore reduces maintenance needs, but which the company still plans to enhance with practical features such as a user tracking mode or a manual control via its application.
Voice command Alexa very convenient
Selected by Amazon as part of its program Alexa Fund which offers financial and technical support to startups working on its voice assistant, Labrador Systems has obviously already made its device fully controllable by voice using voice commands Alexa. A real plus that allows users to simply speak to their speaker Amazon Echo to call on the robot without having to use his mobile device and to pass his instructions to him from any room.