Tuesday, 2 June 2015

Budgee

As a ‘busy bee’, when you are grocery shopping you would be constantly on your phone or answering calls while trying to push the cart and read the nutrition facts label on the products. How about a little robot that will make your grocery shopping a little bit more manageable?


             
         This adorable contraption is called Budgee, the robot that follows you around and carries your things.  Created by Five Elements Robotics, this robot has a mission, and that mission is to obediently follow you around while carrying your things to make your life a little bit lighter, in a sense.  This robot can carry up to 23kg which is perfectly fine for groceries as well as other uses. For example, you need to carry a huge stack of papers in the office; Budgee would be able to help you.  Budgee follows you around with a portable ultrasound device that can be kept in your pocket or clipped on your bag’s strap, it is relatively small therefore it is easy to carry it around.  It takes about 6 hours to charge it and can be use up to 4 to 6 hours, depending on your the usage.  Currently, the estimated price is 1,399 USD.
                Unfortunately, there is also a downside to Budgee; the reason is that it does not have an anti-theft or a locking mechanism. It is best to not place valuable belongings in Budgee such as purses, handbags, wallets and etc. But, there are plans to equip Budgee with locking mechanism which is still in the works. And, it is obvious that not every working class people are able to purchase this robot because robots like these does not come cheap.
                With a little saving up and plenty of contemplating whether this would be a good purchase, I would say it would be a good purchase. It may not be full of gadgets but it helps with little things that we humans are not capable of carrying 10 things at once. Unless, you are a juggler at a circus. Jokes aside, I would recommend this definitely.

Main website: 5elements Robotics



Reference: 
1) Budgee shows off his features. (2015). [video].
2) 5elementsrobotics, (2011). Home. [online] Available at: http://5elementsrobotics.com/ [Accessed 30 May 2015].