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Panasonic's delivery robot will sling drinks and clear tables
Panasonic's relationship with robots is pretty well established at this point. Now the company is taking it one step further with the HOSPI(R) Autonomous Delivery Robot. From January 14th to the 18th, it'll inhabit the ANA Crowne Plaza Narita in Japan, delivering bottled drinks right from the fridge in its belly. Eww. It'll also be giving out bus directions according to a press release. Sounds a little bit less creepy than a robotic velociraptor checking you into a hotel, at least.
Hitachi boarding gate can sniff explosives on passes, keep the transport queues flowing (video)
Anyone who's hopped on a flight at a major airport, or even some land-based transit, knows the agonizing wait that certain agencies demand while they scan for explosives and check boarding passes. Hitachi is working with Nippon Signal and the University of Yamanachi to build a new boarding gate that hopefully kills those two security birds with one stone. As you're swiping your boarding pass (or smartphone), the machine also scans it for particle-sized traces of explosive materials and sends the all-clear or no-go in less than two seconds. If all goes well, the system could check up to 1,200 passengers every hour at a single gate -- a rate quick enough to prevent a logjam at even the busiest terminals. Our chief reservations surround its scope. Hitachi has earned enough trust to get trial installations at Narita International Airport and a Tokyo subway station this coming spring, but we have a hunch that some airport officials would demand a more thorough screening, no matter how much it's actually needed.
