The first thing to know about telepresence robots is that they are not like the humanoids you see in movies. They're not really designed for physical tasks; instead, they act as remote assistants. You might find them working alongside doctors and nurses to help with patient care or assisting teachers who want to teach virtual classes without having to travel anywhere. Telepresence robots can be programmed by their users so that they can do anything from direct traffic during emergencies to take attendance at school board meetings. But what does it mean when people say "telepresence?" It's just a fancy way of saying that these robots use video technology for interaction, but there's more than meets the eye! So how does this all work? The robot has a video camera and a screen at the front of its base. The user is situated in another room and can control their robot with an app (more on this below). They'll be able to see what the robot sees and take advantage of other neat features like sound effects or two-way communication. You might be surprised to find out that telepresence robots are designed for home use too! There are a bunch of companies that offer telepresence options for purchase. Which one should you pick? While there's no way we can tell you which option is best, we can give you some information about each company so you can make a decision. The major players in this space are iRobot and Double Robotics, although there are other options available from companies like Suitable Technologies and WheelBotics. Most of these telepresence robot use a system with two robotic legs to achieve a "dynamic" balancing effect; the robot moves around quickly, smoothly, and gracefully by repositioning its legs depending on where the user is moving them. WheelBotics offers its own unique take on telepresence robotics: they've created self-balancing wheels that allow you to move your robot just by shifting your bodyweight. You can lean left or right to get the robot going in that direction.boteyes.com The major downside to WheelBotics telepresence robots is that they can't travel more than a few feet from the user at any given time. Double Robotics has been in this space for several years, and it's done a lot of work to improve how long its battery lasts, how quickly it moves across a room, and many other factors. Double provides one of the most highly-rated app experiences right now; you have full control over your robot with just a few taps on your phone or tablet, which means you can go almost anywhere without being attached to cables!
However, $2,499 seems like quite an investment for what amounts to about an hour of access per day. Suitable Technologies has developed a telepresence robot that can travel long distances (the company says it's perfect for the office), allowing the user to go virtually anywhere. The Think Remote is smaller than most of its competitors, but it costs $14,950, so you may need to do some convincing to get your boss on board with this one.
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