Fujisawa City Government, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan and CIJ Introduce Smart Robot Ayuda

[2020/2/11] SYSCOM’s smart robot Ayuda is now marketed in Japan. After the efforts of SYSCOM’s Japanese partner CIJ, Ayuda entered Fujisawa City Hall in Kanagawa Prefecture for testing at the end of January. Ayuda guided the public to visit the Fujisawa City Hall through indoor autonomous mobile navigation and voice chats. Ayuda received considerable praise.

Japan’s most advanced robotics research city is Kanagawa Prefecture with Fujisawa City designated a “Special Pioneer District” for robotics. According to Tokyo Web, Japan Economic News and NHK News Network, facing the coexistence of robots and human beings, the Fujisawa Municipal Government has taken the lead by cooperating with the Japanese large-scale SI company CIJ for experiments of putting the smart robot Ayuda to work at the City Hall.

Ayuda, at 160 cm tall, was placed at the east entrance on the first floor of the City Hall. A simple tap on the chest tablet or by conversation with Ayuda, visitors are able to see the displayed map with voice instructions as Ayuda guides them to their destination.

When inquiring about the elevator location, the public can ask Ayuda, "Can you guide me to the location of the elevator?" Ayuda will start walking autonomously, leading people to the elevator, which is about 10 meters away. While moving toward the elevator, Ayuda alerts people to their surroundings: "Please note that I am taking guests to the elevator." A 70-year-old citizen said after Ayuda's guidance, "Ayuda took me to the elevator very kindly. It was convenient."

In addition, Ayuda’s face recognition function predicts the user's age, allowing people to pose for taking commemorative photos. Everyone thinks this feature is very interesting. A female over 30 years old said, “I played an age guessing game with Ayuda. Ayuda guessed that I am 32-years-old and guessed that my husband is 24-years-old. It is really fun to play."

"Ayuda makes people feel relaxed; we hope this helps them get closer to robots and make more use of them,” said Yuki Hara, Director of Industrial Labor Division in Fujisawa City.