The Future of Service Robots

With the development and new technologies of service robots, the growth of these artificially intelligent bots progressed quickly over the past decade. From varying possible industrial applications to servicing roles, the market outlook for service robots seems to encompass a broad spectrum of tasks.

As humans see more the value of integrating service robots into day-to-day human life, it’s pivotal that we ask ourselves what exactly the future of these robots will be and how can it impact our world.

What is the Present Status and Future Trends of Service Robots?

In a report released by Fortune Business Insights, the valuation of the global service robots market in 2022 was valued at USD 16.35 billion with a projected growth from USD 19.08 in 2023. With the convergence of innovation and varying world drivers such as COVID-19 and its effects, the service robots market is forecasted to aggressively grow to USD 62.35 billion by 2030.

These numbers tell us that though plenty of humans and companies already seem to be using robots to complete tasks in the present day, we can expect that these machine-learning robots will continue to be embedded in our daily environment for years to come.

Although these bots offer plenty of benefits because of how versatile and useful they are, studies and cases point that service robot trends in the coming years will focus primarily on the industry of logistics, cleaning, and customer service.

Logistics

Seeing as how service robots can operate autonomously and perform assignments repeatedly — regardless if these are dangerous tasks in a risky environment, their use in the field of logistics is in high demand. Both the logistics and warehousing sectors will see a rise in employing service robots over the next decade as companies such as Agility Robotics continue to improve the mobility, technology, and programming of logistics robots.

With service robots now being equipped with autonomous navigation, opposable thumbs, and more, it is a no-brainer that we’ll start seeing them more in logistics sectors.

Cleaning

The cleaning and sanitation sector is the second largest category that employs service robots. A boom further pushed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of service robots in cleaning either by contact or non-contact-based occurred all over the world. The advantage of having cleaning robots sanitize a hazardous environment without any repercussions was a major benefit for many humans and customers concerning safety and health.

In that regard, the upgrade and creation of service robots that are equipped with more technologies beneficial in cleaning such as autonomous navigation, UV light, and germ detection are becoming a standard. Thus, contributing to the deployment of cleaning service robots in this sector.

Customer Service

With natural language processing capabilities and artificial intelligence technologies, robots in customer service are becoming a norm. The ability of customer service robots to engage in real time with customers and keep up with human interaction makes them a useful attraction to humans while helping create a productive environment among employees.

Some bots are designed to be mobile and are equipped to have autonomous navigation and automation so they may be able to move around and possibly guide someone to a destination or area. Some bots are meant to be stationary. In most cases, stationary robots are designed to give out directions and answer inquiries. Regardless if these service robots are mobile or non-mobile, they can take on the form of humanoid robots or non-humanoid robots.

Key trends in robotics technologies in terms of customer service robots vary from facial recognition software, having a touchscreen display, intuitive automation, perceiving emotions, and having the ability to form empathetic connections. Service robots in this industry are expected to be an automation of several jobs, labor savings, efficiency, and round-the-clock productivity.

Will Service Robots Replace Customer Service?

Although service robots have plenty of customer service capabilities, one shouldn’t be afraid of having these robots replacing humans entirely in this sector. Robots should be seen more as assistants to employees in the workplace, not replacements.

With robotics capabilities of consistently working on monotonous jobs, being placed in a rather risky environment with no repercussions, and understanding commands, robots can prevent employees in this sector from working on menial, taxing deliverables. On the upside, employees can then focus on new jobs that will require more critical thinking on their end.

Combining the advantages of employing both human workers and robots, you can get a workplace that is productive 24/7 while remaining efficient both in labor and savings.

What is the Demand for Service Robots?

Back in 2021, the International Federation of Robotics saw that more than 121,000 professional service robots were sold and from then a 37% year-over-year increase was happening. This tells us that the demand for service robots is at a sustained increase trend.

The demand is being felt across industries. This explains why we now have a wide array of robots to choose from — robot vacuums, delivery robots, and agricultural robots are just a few of the growing list of types and categories.

Final Note

The consistent development of robotic technology and societal drivers push the imminent growth of robots. The future of these robots is on an upward trajectory and specific sectors that we can expect to lead in this boom are logistics, cleaning, and servicing.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between industrial robots and service robots?

Industrial bots are designed to take on manufacturing jobs that do not necessarily require human-to-bot interaction. These bots are often employed in the “backend” and prevent workers from performing risky jobs. Service robots are designed to assist people in “softer” industries such as healthcare, hospitality, logistics, and others.

What artificial intelligence technologies does a service robot have?

To operate properly and autonomously, robots have artificial intelligence. AI technologies that most bots are using include computer vision, intelligent programming, and reinforced learning.