The fourth generation of the Care-O-Bot is an economical solution for those who want a service robot.

“Customers can choose between a wide range of sensors,” Fraunhofer Institute’s Dr. Ulrich Reiser said. “You might choose to have color cameras in the front and a 3D TOF camera in the back, or several 3D-TOF cameras. The sensor ring is equipped with its own computation unit and receives power supply and Ethernet via standard connector, so you might have several sensor rings and exchange them for different applications.”

Its predecessor could serve you drinks, place emergency calls, take care of some medical needs, and set up videoconferences. However, the latest iteration of this robot is a lot more personable.

In addition to doing all the things its predecessor can do, the Care-O-Bot is also designed for commercial use so it can be used as a waiter, an information center, or to deliver objects to specific locations such as hotel rooms. The bot will now also interact with humans by communicating emotions through facial expressions on its touchscreen.

The Care-O-Bot 4 is also more mobile. It now has joints at the torso and neck that give 31 degrees of movement, as opposed to 20 degrees.

The Care-O-Bot 4 is scheduled to be available toward the last part of the year. It will initially only be available in Europe with plans to launch in the United States later. Pricing details will be made available closer to the time of launch.