Robohub.org
 

Tabletop telepresence finding its niche


by
08 December 2015



share this:
Design-Studio_Robotic-Telepresence_Kubi

Tabletop telepresence devices began to pop up on the market about two years ago. Though its a small slice of the telepresence market, it’s differentiated enough from other categories to be mentioned in a separate post. Many telepresence users simply want the ability to pan and tilt around a room. While this solution doesn’t work well for places like museums, it’s perfect for classrooms, meetings, or get togethers where you don’t need much mobility.

The scene pictured above is taken from a hybrid course taught at Michigan State, where both online and local students can participate in a traditional classroom setting. By comparison, classes that are taught completely online are limited to group video chat. The hybrid class concept was tested with both tabletop telepresence, like the Kubi, as well as with full size devices like the Double. With the telepresence robots, students were no longer viewing the class from a wall mounted monitor, and they reported feeling more engaged in the class and participated more actively than previously. The research is ongoing but the tabletops seem to have received a better initial response. You can learn more about Michigan State’s research on integrating telepresence into classrooms in the following video:

So far there are three entrants in this category: Kubi by Revolve Robotics,  Pivot by WowWee, and the TableTop TeleMe from MantaRobot. All work with iOS and Android, while Kubi seems to be the only one that works with Windows.

Kubi is finding niches in ambulances for telemedicine, where mobility is restricted and a smaller footprint has an advantage. Another advantage of these tabletop models is power: since you’re not mobile, you can be plugged in continuously and not worry about needing downtime for recharging.

As with the full size tablet robots, you are still limited to the embedded camera on the tablet of your choosing. This is one area where I’d like to see some development to obtain more peripheral vision.

With products like Jibo and Amazon’s Echo showing up in our homes, I anticipate tabletop devices will become more prevalent. A stationary hands-free device that can pivot while you move around saves you from having to robot-proof your home; fixing door thresholds and moving stray cords can be a cumbersome chore at best, or a complete floor plan change of your home at worst.

Next up are telepresence toys, where we will scale down to fun size using a smart phone.

 



tags: ,


Michael Savoie Michael is the founder and Chief Robot Wizard at Frostbyte Technologies, a start-up aimed at developing autonomous outdoor mobile robots.
Michael Savoie Michael is the founder and Chief Robot Wizard at Frostbyte Technologies, a start-up aimed at developing autonomous outdoor mobile robots.





Related posts :



Congratulations to the #AAMAS2025 best paper, best demo, and distinguished dissertation award winners

  29 May 2025
Find out who won the awards presented at the International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems last week.

Congratulations to the #ICRA2025 best paper award winners

  27 May 2025
The winners and finalists in the different categories have been announced.

#ICRA2025 social media round-up

  23 May 2025
Find out what the participants got up to at the International Conference on Robotics & Automation.

Robot Talk Episode 122 – Bio-inspired flying robots, with Jane Pauline Ramos Ramirez

  23 May 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Jane Pauline Ramos Ramirez from Delft University of Technology about drones that can move on land and in the air.

Robot Talk Episode 121 – Adaptable robots for the home, with Lerrel Pinto

  16 May 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Lerrel Pinto from New York University about using machine learning to train robots to adapt to new environments.

What’s coming up at #ICRA2025?

  16 May 2025
Find out what's in store at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics & Automation, which will take place from 19-23 May.

Robot see, robot do: System learns after watching how-tos

  14 May 2025
Researchers have developed a new robotic framework that allows robots to learn tasks by watching a how-to video

AI-powered robots help tackle Europe’s growing e-waste problem

  12 May 2025
EU-funded researchers have developed adaptable robots that could transform the way we recycle electronic waste, benefiting both the environment and the economy.



 

Robohub is supported by:




Would you like to learn how to tell impactful stories about your robot or AI system?


scicomm
training the next generation of science communicators in robotics & AI


©2025.05 - Association for the Understanding of Artificial Intelligence


 












©2025.05 - Association for the Understanding of Artificial Intelligence