The world's first multitasking robot service station debuted at the fifth China International Import Expo (CIIE) in east China's Shanghai, providing guidance, security inspection, item recycling and other services for the global event.

Controlled by a smart system designed with 680 patents (over 70 percent of which are for inventions), the 46 robots can be dispatched in real time to perform numerous tasks in different scenarios, shuttling between the robot dock and exhibition areas.

Multitasking high-tech robots

By tapping intended destinations on the robot screen, visitors can be led to wherever they want to go in the exhibition hall.

The robots can also remind them of epidemic control protocols, such as wearing a mask during the daytime, and conduct security inspections at night. 

The smart robots are able to collect recycled items in the exhibition hall, demonstrating the zero-carbon idea of this year's expo.

"The robots can respond to anything even a discarded empty water bottle or a piece of paper," Cai Xiaowei, co-founder of Yogo Robot, a CIIE exhibitor, told China Media Group (CMG).

"When its box is full, the robot will come to the dock to replace a clean box. You can see that the interior [of this dock] is equipped with a vertical storage system, where a high precision mechanical arm replaces the full box with an empty and clean one to keep the robots working."

Robots with autonomous tech

The smart robot system is also designed with autonomous technology, which is set up with semantic recognition and a multi-sensor fusion algorithm. In this case, the 46 robots can maintain independent near-field communication among themselves.

In addition to ensuring crowd mobility and driving safety, the smart system can ensure group collaboration among dozens and even hundreds of robots.

Launched in 2018, the CIIE is the world's first import-themed national-level expo. It has become a key platform that facilitates international purchase, investment, people-to-people exchange, and open cooperation.

The event runs from November 5 to 10 in Shanghai. 

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