It’s a familiar morning scene. With moments to spare, the queue forming in front of an overworked barista requires a split-second decision: to wait for that much-needed coffee as seconds tick by, or risk missing your train.
Those fateful decisions may soon, however, be a thing of the past. Thanks to the ingenuity of a group of PhD students at Glasgow’s University of Strathclyde, barista reinforcements stand ready to serve.
So-called ‘cobots’, or collaborative robots, could soon be providing that extra arm, literally, to solve those time-critical near misses – whether it be a trip to the office, or a dash to the airport for sunnier climes.
The cobot was developed as a result of a pioneering project involving the university’s catering team, its Robotics & Autonomous Systems Research Group, and local coffee partners Matthew Algie. The group came together to research, design and test a new autonomous system that emulates human movements to create consistently high-quality coffee – in what is believed to be the first commercial deployment on a university campus in Scotland.
Joanne Martin, deputy head of catering and hospitality at Strathclyde, said: “The cobot has been designed to work alongside our fantastic team members, supporting rather than replacing them, and helping to improve all round service and operational efficiency.
“Our staff fully embrace this innovative technology, recognising the benefits it brings to their physical wellbeing by reducing repetitive, physically demanding tasks, while allowing them to focus on delivering excellent customer service.”
The project was inspired after Strathclyde’s catering management team spotted a robotic barista in operation during a study tour to Stanford University with professional catering body TUCO. Seeing the potential, they returned with the idea of collaborating with colleagues and students to create their own system to enhance customer service and support staff wellbeing. The cobot now operates in the University’s Technology and Innovation Centre.
With support from Systems Engineering Management Manager Sarah Buchanan, Professor Jörn Mehnen and Senior Lecturer Dr Erfu Yang from the Robotics and Autonomous Systems Group in DMEM supervised PhD researchers Mohamed Adlan Ait Ameur and Mohamed Khedr, who programmed a standard cobot to create the bespoke system. They also designed special 3D-printed accessories, including a custom ‘gripper’ fingers.
The system was tested, with input from Matthew Algie, to ensure the coffee met exacting quality standards.
Khedr said: “The joy of this project was its interactive nature. So often you design something or come up with a design solution that doesn’t become something tangible, so to see this become a reality is great. Already there’s a great buzz on campus about it.”
