Given the current importance of physical distancing, it's understandable that both customers and staff at auto dealerships may be leery of getting too close to one another. That's why Hyundai has developed a new artificially intelligent customer service robot.
The 1,160-mm tall (3.8-ft), 80-kg (176-lb) robot is known as DAL-e, which stands for "Drive you, Assist you, Link with you-experience." It has two arms for gesturing, a pivoting head with animated video-screen eyes, and it moves across the floor using four motorized omnidirectional wheels.
Thanks to its built-in cameras and facial recognition capabilities, DAL-e is capable of spotting and approaching customers who enter the store. It then looks them in the face, and utilizes its language comprehension and speech synthesis systems to engage them in conversation. Customers can verbally ask questions about products or services, or they can utilize the robot's integrated touchscreen interface.
DAL-e will proceed to guide customers over to the relevant location, which could include a specific vehicle on the showroom floor. It can also direct their attention to video content which it wirelessly transmits to a large screen located within the dealership. And what's more, if it notices that a customer isn't wearing a mask as they enter the store, it will advise them to put one on.
A DAL-e robot entered use at a Hyundai showroom in Seoul this Monday (Jan. 25), as part of a pilot project. A wider rollout in other dealerships, including those of Hyundai-owned Kia, should follow.
Source: Hyundai Motor Group