Neura Robotics: Restrooms as a testing ground for learning infrastructure
A Swabian robotics company and a construction consulting firm are developing buildings that plan for robots from the outset, partly to save personnel.
In the future, real estate is to be designed and equipped with sensors in such a way that robots can find their place there.
(Image: Neura Robotics)
The German robot manufacturer Neura Robotics and the Stuttgart-based construction consulting company Drees & Sommer are working together to develop buildings that are robot-compatible in the future. Real estate of the future is therefore not only intended to house technology but to be designed in such a way that cognitive robots can find their place there from the outset.
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Architecture in harmony with modern technology
With this approach, building IT uses sensors to collect data on light, movement, temperature, and sounds. Robots access this data and adapt their behavior accordingly. Neura Robotics and Drees & Sommer are initially focusing on sanitary facilities. This is where high visitor numbers, hygiene requirements, and staff shortages converge. With the help of building data, robots will be able to better detect soiling, clean on demand, refill consumables, and report technical problems in the future.
The consulting company for construction, real estate, infrastructure, and industrial projects, Drees & Sommer, develops concepts for sensor technology, IT and operational networks, as well as digital twins of buildings. These models digitally represent the condition of a building.
Neura Robotics builds “cognitive robots” that not only perform fixed routines but also perceive their environment visually, audibly, and tactilely. The machines make independent decisions and learn from their deployments. The company develops essential components itself, including control systems, sensor technology, AI functions, and the Neuraverse software platform.
Robots against demographic change
David Reger, founder and CEO of Neura Robotics, wants to see his robots deployed where skilled workers are scarce or routine tasks are time-consuming, for example, in cleaning, maintenance, and simple repairs. Drees & Sommer, in turn, expects lower operating expenses for building operators from the partnership.
Both companies are thus responding to challenges in the construction and real estate sectors. Demographic change is exacerbating staff shortages; at the same time, expectations for hygiene, comfort, and efficiency are increasing. Beyond restrooms, the partners are already planning further fields of application.
(akr)
