Lowe’s to Test Retail Service Robots
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ljhimages/iStock Editorial/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Lowe’s plans to test out a pair of “autonomous retail service robots” this holiday season in a hardware supply store in San Jose to study how robotics technology can benefit both customers and employees.
According to a Lowe’s press release, the robots will help customers navigate stores, direct them to specific products and provide real-time information regarding promotions and inventory. Called OSHbot, for the Orchard Supply Hardware store where they will be tested, it will be able to communicate in multiple languages.
The robots were developed through a partnership between Lowe’s Innovation Labs and Fellow Robots, a Silicon Valley technology company specializing in autonomous service robots.
Employees will also benefit from the OSHbot, Lowe’s says, noting that they will provide added support for customers, which allows employees “to focus on delivering project expertise.”
“Using science fiction prototyping, we explored solutions to improve customer experiences by helping customers quickly find the products and information they came in looking for,” said Kyle Nel, executive director of Lowe’s Innovation Labs. “As a result we developed autonomous retail service robot technology to be an intuitive tool customers can use to ask for help, in their preferred language, and expect a consistent experience.”
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