Service Robotics all industrialized countries work

NAO from Aldebaran Robotics humanoid robot has a star. Is it because it has never been reluctant to follow a few dance steps in its demonstrations Not only. He is shown at the Shanghai International exhibition and the Robot Cup of Singapore. This platform is certainly quite remote in its design and its design of Jazz, the robot of the start-up Gostai. He specializes in Telepresence or trade promotion operations. These two machines but have one thing in common: they are born on French territory.

Service Robotics, all industrialized countries work. The Japan was established as early as 2000, a development Robotics on ten-year plan at the end of which the archipelago assessed the market to some 3,000 billion yen (28 billion euros) and 72.000 key jobs. The Korea of Southern effort also is the latent impact measurement. The market should be in 2018 $ 85.5 billion against 3.2 billion ten years earlier.

According to Korean calculations, service robots will represent 85 of the total market by this date. What explained the current priorities of Seoul for the robots fire fighters, teachers or aide-soignants. To save time, the Korea research cooperation with the United States, the Japan or the Germany. The France does not appear in the leading pack, where the United States are the world leaders with 40, followed by the Japan (30) and Korea (15).

One-time success

Martin, the French have yet not be ashamed. Already because the hexagonal robotics research is rather rich: it is the year year of 7 of global publications, place average of the France in other sectors is around 4. Then, because, punctually, French firms register some successes. The command of 30 copies of Nao by a prestigious Japanese University is one of the most recent examples. The problem is rather the heterogeneity of the sector.

"Today, the term"service robot"is also generic that the word"computer"in the 1990s," explains Bruno Bonnell, Chairman of Robopolis, a company specialized in the commercialization of robots and President of Syrobo, the Professional Union. Author of the book "Viva the robolution", he believes hard as iron in the development of this robotic string. It currently has one hundred companies for 2,000 to 3,000 jobs and displays a turnover of EUR 30 million, a dust from the EUR 1 billion in the world. As in Asian countries, the ultimate goal of the French roboticiens, they are neither housework or even remote monitoring or education, is the assistance to persons (children or 4eâge). "Robots for assistance are actually the main engine of this market," esteem, on the other hand, Bruno Maisonnier, President and founder of Aldebaran Robotics.

Step of homogeneous approach

In the challengers position, the French certainly have more to lose by selling on time to competitors more advanced in their search some of the technologies that the latter did not. The danger is real. "The Europeans, on the pretext of responding to specific requests, risk term is firing a bullet in the foot", warns an expert.

The speech is more alarmist on Cape Robotics, Member of the Parisian competitiveness pole Cap Digital, to be used to federate the die. "Fault of capitalization around emerging actors, are other countries which benefit from our expertise and benefit for their advances in technology," explains Cape Robotics officials.

Today is straight: "basic bricks exist, but they are scattered," notes the pattern of Aldebaran. also President of Cap robotics. Some projects, like Romeo, help to federate the actors. From the top of its 1.35 metre, this new robot appears as the big brother of Nao, which he will receive the applications. But that is not a homogeneous approach. If the question of financing could be partly resolved by the large debt, other difficulties occur as soon as it is European cooperation. "Contacts are still low," said Bruno Bonnell, even if poles are launched in the direction of the Germany and the Italy.

The part is played and the delay in service Robotics is more marked even in industrial robots. "A chasm separates US from the Germany," note the Symop (Union of enterprises of production technologies). In 2009, the France had 85 robots installed for 10,000 and 139 employees against 240 for the Germany for the Italy that the Japan displays 357 units and the Korea of the 228 South. But "the number of jobs created goes hand in hand with that of installed robots", argues Vincent Schramm, Director General of the Symop.