Telepresence robots in a California store selling themselves

Submit a person face in the sale, as they say, it is almost high art, not every seller can demonstrate all the advantages of the product to a potential buyer. But why not order a product to sell itself? That's exactly what the owners of the Californian telepresence robot store decided. And, it seems, not lost.

So, in the Beam shop in Palo Alto, the robots themselves sell robots - there are no people in the store. Buyers enter the store, see robots, and those already welcome visitors with the voice of their owners. Yes, since these are telepresence robots, the sellers decided to work remotely, so that it was more convenient to work, and the buyer immediately understood the advantages of the device. In addition to the robots themselves, the store also sells other goods, again with the help of remote sellers and their mechanical assistants.
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The Beam Remote Presence System, which is one and a half meters high, is capable of traveling on a wheelbase, and comes with a charging station. This station is used when the robot is not working.

In addition, the device is equipped with a 17-inch display. You can control the system using a keyboard, mouse or Xbox controller. The robot is able to move at a speed of about 3.5 kilometers per hour.

Salespeople, whose faces you see in the announcement photo, work with customers remotely, from their workplace at the laptop. And two wide-angle cameras mounted on the robot allow the seller to see everything that happens in the store. By the way, with the help of a similar technology, Edward Snowden spoke with journalists and ordinary listeners.

As for the price, it is quite high. The cost of the system is approximately 20 thousand US dollars, and the robot weighs more than 40 kilograms. Such a weight is, in essence, a defense mechanism: the average thief is simply not able to easily transfer such a colossus. In addition, there are other security features, including a GPS module and tracking software.

Robots of this type are designed to work in corporate meeting rooms, for the performance of remote participants. It is worth noting that a cheaper model will soon appear: Beam + for 1995 US dollars.

Via ieee