Scheduled to open on July 17, 2015, the Henn-na Hotel will be staffed by several, humanoid robots that will do everything from checking in guests to cleaning rooms. Located within the Huis Ten Bosch amusement park in Nagasaki, Japan, the 72-room hotel will be priced around $60-a-night and ranging upward depending on room size and amenities. Detailed by CNN, services performed by the robotic staff include greeting guests, completing the check-in process, carrying bags to a guest’s room and general housekeeping duties.
Interestingly, the robot staff will be able to respond to the guest’s body language as well as make eye contact. The robots can also converse in English, Japanese, Chinese and Korean, dpending on the language needs of the guest.
The faces of the robots attempt to mimic humans by blinking eyelids, simulate breathing through the nose and mouth as well as adjust the tone of the voice based off the tone of the guest.
Of course, the 10 robots at the hotel will also be helped by a small staff of regular humans. Speaking about implementing this technology on a wider scale going forward, Huis Ten Bosch company President Hideo Sawada said “In the future, we’d like to have more than 90 percent of hotel services operated by robots…We will make the most efficient hotel in the world.” Utilizing a robot staff will cut down on labor costs significantly as well as employee absences.
Beyond the robotic staff, there are other high-tech features within the actual hotel rooms. For instance, guests will be able to access their rooms using facial recognition technology rather than having to carry around a traditional key card. Tablets are provided within the room for guests to request amenities, likely a simpler process than traditional television menus or phone calls. Finally, the temperature within the room will automatically be adjusted by a radiation panel that detects body heat.
