i3 - March/April 2019 - 45

By Bobby Baumler

BY T H E N U M B E RS

CES 2019 Showcases
Home Health Robotics

nce only an abstract technology featured in science-fiction novels and movies, robots have become a reality in
homes and offer ever-expanding tangible benefits to consumers. At CES 2019, established tech companies and startups
alike offered a glimpse into the next generation of home robotics.
With a goal toward improving lives and granting independence
to seniors and individuals with limited mobility, the display of
companionship and health-focused robots seek to expand the
potential for consumer robotics.
To date, the home robotics market is
largely focused on assisting consumers
with completing chores, namely robotic
vacuums, mops, window cleaners and
lawn mowers. Undoubtedly, automated
cleaning robots are popular with consumers as they complete tasks most
dread. Leading manufacturers including Ecovacs, iRobot, LG and Samsung
have implemented dramatic improvements in cleaning performance and
convenience with the ability to map
your home and be activated via a
smartphone app or smart speaker, leading to record shipments.
CTA expects nearly 3.4 million home
robots to ship this year, representing
$988 million in wholesale revenue. CTA
forecasts the U.S. home robotics market
will exceed $1.4 billion (wholesale)
annually by 2022 when 4.5 million
devices will ship. Since 2017, annual
shipments of home robots have climbed
60 percent on a unit basis.

isolation for the elderly and individuals with limited mobility. This development is only made possible by
recent advancements in machine
learning, sensors, data connectivity
Sony's companion
robotic dog, AIBO, drew
crowds at CES 2019.

Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images

Robots Everywhere

The future of robotics was omnipresent at CES 2019 with the latest in
companion, health and customer service robotics on display from exhibitors including Honda, LG, Samsung,
Sony, SoftBank, Toyota and Ubtech.
Specifically, several exhibitors highlighted the capabilities of companion
robots that will address the challenge
of managing care and limiting social
C TA . t e c h / i 3

A LOOK AT THE STATS:

60 %

increase in annual
shipments since 2017

Source: CTA Market Research

$ BILLION

Wholesale revenues
approach $1 billion
($988 million) in
2019

Business

and other underlying technologies.
According to Johns Hopkins
Medicine, roughly 12 million people in
the U.S. require some form of home
health care, a figure expected to climb
as America's population grows older.
Further, a 2015 report featured in the
Journal of the American Medical
Association found that nearly two million elderly Medicare individuals rarely
or never leave their homes. Seeking to
address this need, several CES exhibitors demonstrated solutions including:
● Groove X's Lovot seeks to provide
social interaction as an emotional
attachment robot and is equipped with
dozens of sensors, including thermal
imaging. Lovot uses machine learning
to analyze the level of engagement it
receives from its owner and adjusts its
character accordingly.
● Samsung's Bot Care monitors a
patient's health with capabilities including being able to monitor medication
intake and sleep patterns, check
vital signs, allow for remote
check-ins with health providers
or family members and summon
medical services should an emergency be detected.
● Stanley Black & Decker's
Pria homecare companion
robot interacts with its user via
voice commands and maintains
the ability to automatically dispense up to 28 doses of medication and complete video calls
with medical providers and
family members.
● Torooc's Liku is a robot
intended to become a part of daily
life for its human user and contains
an integrated cognition system to
control its behavior and emotions.
The advent of companion and
health-based robots offer a
small preview of the future for
home robotics.
Longer-term,
technological
advancements will
improve the quality
home robot
of life and health of
shipments in 2019
the elderly and
homebound. ■

3.4 MILLION

MARCH/APRIL 2019

http://CTA.tech/i3

i3 - March/April 2019

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