Robot Luggage That Follows You Around: Look Ma, No Hands!
Smart luggage just got a whole lot smarter. Thanks to a new innovation, you don’t even have to carry your baggage anymore, it will now roll itself. Israel-based company NUA Robotics has invented a robotic, self-propelled, hands-free suitcase that connects to your phone via Bluetooth and trails after you when you walk. It even avoids obstacles.
We’ve seen smart suitcases before, but this takes artificial baggage intelligence to a whole new level. As founder Alex Libman explains to Mashable in a video interview that travelers simply download the app, hit the ‘follow me’ button, and the luggage recognizes you and knows what to do.
According to Libman the prototype goes at a “slow-medium speed” for now, and they are still testing out all their options. “We will decide later on from safety reasons how fast it should go,” he said, “but we can make it go as fast as we want.”
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NUA Robotics’ hands-free suitcase connects to your phone and then follows you around. (Photo: NUA Robotics)
As for the style of the suitcase, it’s kind of retro-futuristic: boxy and heavy looking, with some Tron-like, bright blue detailing. Its functions follow the same theme: It serves the basic, old-school purpose of luggage (ie., carrying your stuff), but also has some modern features, such as being a charging station for you phone, tablet, or laptop.
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The suitcase is the company’s first product and is currently in prototype mode; visitors to NUA’s site can enter a raffle to win a free one. “We’re trying to make robotics a natural thing in every day life,” Libman said. What’s next, a robot that packs for you?
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