Tag: robots

Korean Restaurant Serves Food and Beverages Using Robots

Here is what is coming up next for the $15 minimum wage crowd, restaurant automation:

Customers wait for LG Electronics’ CLOi Chefbot to cook noodles at a VIPS restaurant in western Seoul, Nov. 22. / Courtesy of LG Electronics

The food and beverage industry here has seen an increasing use of robots to serve food and beverages and even complete basic tasks such as making noodles in less than a minute. 

Industry officials said Sunday that more robots will be used in restaurants with the development of robotic technologies and soaring demand to utilize robots for routine and repetitive tasks, replacing human employees.

LG Electronics said it has deployed a robot chef called the CLOi Chefbot to a Seoul branch of VIPS restaurant in cooperation with the family restaurant chain operator CJ Foodville.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

South Korea Plans to Build Animal Robots

I doubt the Kim regime is too concerned about fighting animal robots:

– South Korea will rev up efforts to develop military robots mimicking animals and other creatures to better brace for evolving future battlefields, the arms procurement agency said Sunday.
In its latest document that outlines blueprints for key defense technologies development, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) rolled out its plan to actively apply the so-called biomimetics to the military’s future weapons systems.
If it proceeds as planned, several kinds of biobots, which replicate humans and insects, are expected to be deployed as early as 2024, DAPA said, adding that robots mimicking birds, snakes and other marine species could be part of the country’s military forces afterwards.
“Biometric robots will be a game changer in future warfare, and related technologies are expected to bring about great ripple effects throughout the defense industry,” agency spokesman Park Jeong-eun said, adding that their roles will range from search and rescue operations to reconnaissance.

Yonhap

Is “Robot Prostitution” the Future for Korea?

I have a hard time seeing these sex robots causing a decrease in sex crimes and prostitution any time soon in South Korea, but some people think they will:

The head of Harmony, a sex robot / Courtesy of Realbotix

Sex robot “brothels” have emerged as a potentially lucrative business as sex doll manufacturers offer more sophisticated, individually tailored models, thanks to advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies.

With many shops that offer sex with these robots popping up in Europe and Canada, some technology pundits here are cautiously suggesting Korea may have to deal with this controversial issue in the near future.

Advocates say sex with robots can reduce the need for sex workers and help disabled people enjoy the same sexual pleasure as others do, in the privacy of their own room.

But opponents argue that sex robots cannot replace women and they will dehumanize the relationship between men and women.  (…………..)

Sex robots are banned from import to Korea. Under article 234 of the customs law, goods that disrupt the constitutional order, disturb public safety and order or corrupt morals shall not be exported or imported.

However, it is possible to purchase life-size sex dolls online here. Also, sex dolls made by local firms are available on the internet. While it is illegal to import or export sex dolls, there are no laws that forbid manufacturing and selling the dolls here.

While sex robots are still legally unavailable here, experts say possibilities are open for Korea to allow “robot prostitution.”

“The positive aspect of sex robots is that they will help decrease the number of women who sell sex illegally,” said Kang Dong-woo, director at the Korean Institute for Sexual and Couple’s Health (KISCH). The KISCH is a private clinic for sex counseling in Seoul.

“It is no secret that there are many men who use prostitution services. Prostitution is available everywhere here through the internet. In such circumstances, I think chances are open for the country to introduce robot prostitution in the near future as it can reduce sex crimes and illegal prostitution,” Kang said.   [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.

Incheon International Airport Introduces Robots to Help Travelers

It is going to be interesting to see how useful these robots will be for travelers in such a busy airport:

Picture of the Day: Robot Museum Opens in Seoul

Robot-themed museum opens in Seoul

A boy wearing a taekwondo uniform poses for a photo in front of a 13-meter figure of “Robot Taekwon V,” a robot from a popular animation of the same title, during a ceremony in Seoul on Oct. 14, 2015, for the opening of the robot animation-themed museum. “Robot Taekwon V,” the nation’s first science fiction-themed animation released in 1976, was very popular among teens and children. (Yonhap)