Robotics

Robots Used In The Olympics

Robots Have A Very Special Role In The Olympics.

“SES Olympics” by TopRankMarketing is licensed under CC BY 2.0

By: Meg Lagera, Journalist

The Olympics is a spectacular event that happens every 4 years. Athletes from all over the world compete in the Summer and Winter Olympics, which makes it an exciting time. There’s another component of the Olympics that makes a huge impact, but doesn’t get the attention it deserves. Those components are the robots. From the mascots, to the food robots, to those who help transport people, there are many robots that help the athletes, staff, guests, and viewers at home have a spectacular Olympic experience. This article will point out some of the many.

Miraitowa and Someity:

Miraitowa and Someity are the two characters that were introduced as the mascots for the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics and Paralympics. Miraitowa is the blue character representing the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. Someity is the pink character representing the 2020 Tokyo Summer Paralympics. The characters have been built as robots to welcome athletes and guests to the Olympic venues. Miraitowa can move its legs, arms, and head on its own. It can also change its eyes to display different emotions, from regular eyes, to blinking, to heart eyes, to fire eyes, to even star eyes. Someity can’t move on its own, but it can do the same motions as Miraitowa with the assistance of a person controlling it. It also has cameras and facial recognition to make emotions based on the people’s emotions.

T-HR3:

T-HR3 is a tall humanoid robot that can mimic human movements. They are controlled by a person in a large chair wearing motion sensors. The robot’s limbs move as the controller moves its limbs. Just like the robot mascots Miraitowa and Someity, the T-HR3 is an entertainer who interacts with the guests at the Olympics.

T-TR1:

T-TR1 is a telepresence robot with large vertical screen and wheels, which displays life-sized human images. It makes people who aren’t able to physically be at the event have a chance to feel like they are actually present in the room.

FSR (Field Support Robot):

The FSR will be very useful in collecting large objects used in Olympic games. The FSR collects materials that were thrown by the athletes, such as javelins, hammers, and shot put balls. It will then return the materials to their designated location. It has autonomous-driving technology, cameras, and sensors to help guide its way and be aware of people and obstacles in its path. It will help collect large, heavy, objects quickly and keep things moving along smoothly.

APM (Accessible People Mover):

The APM is a golf cart looking electric vehicle that gives short-distance rides to transport people around the Olympic venues. It can carry up to 6 people at a time, including the driver. It has low floors and a ramp installed to give wheelchair users a smoother ride. It doesn’t have any doors to keep people relaxed during the summer, but it has rain curtains in the event of it raining. The APM is the way that people will be transported during the Olympics.

Food Robots:

The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics has many robots working with food to provide to the athletes and guests.

Robot Mixologist:

The robot mixologist is a large robotic arm that can prepare cocktails for people. It collects the glasses in which the drink will be contained, then sets them aside. It then takes a cocktail shaker, puts the ingredients inside, and shakes it up. Finally, it will pour the drink into the glass and strain it through. Human staff will be on board to put the final touches and serve it to the customer. The robot mixologist is essentially the robotic bartender for the Olympics.

Ice Cream Robot:

The ice cream robot is a large machine packed with cups, the ice cream dispenser, and a little robot in the middle that moves around the machine to assemble the ice cream. The person wanting the ice cream will scan a card, then the robot in the center of the machine gets to work. It will take a cup from the stack, rotate the cup under the ice cream dispenser, let the soft serve makes it way in the cup in the perfect swirl, then set the cup onto a conveyer belt and let it roll its way to the person wanting the ice cream.

Those are a two of the many food robots used in the Olympics.

In conclusion, robots make a tremendous impact on the Olympics. Of course, there are many more robots that were not mentioned that make an impact on the Olympics, and there are surely new ones to come.