Abu Dhabi: Underscoring its position as an innovator in the global live events industry, the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (Adnec) has announced that it will begin trials of a robot which can assist visitors to the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, providing them with information and guiding them to stands and key locations.
The pilot project featuring the 2011-Reem will take place during the upcoming International Defence Exhibition and Conference (Idex 2011).
In addition to greeting and guiding visitors, Reem has also been programmed to provide a personalised greeting to a number of VIPs who will be visiting the tenth anniversary edition of Idex which begins tomorrow.
Adnec is believed to be the first exhibition and live events venue to test such a robot. Commenting on the pilot project, Ali Saeed Bin Harmal Al Dhaheri, Adnec Managing Director, said: "We are delighted to be able to trial Reem during the forthcoming Idex 2011. Adnec is committed to providing visitors with state of the art facilities and first class customer service.
"It's important to think outside the box to remain at the top of a very competitive global industry; should Reem prove a success at Idex, we will expand the trial to cover other events staged at Adnec venues."
Reem is the latest robot prototype from PAL Robotics, a Royal Group conglomerate company based in Abu Dhabi.
Standing 1.65 metres tall, with a mobile base that enables the robot to move at 5 km/h, the advanced capabilities of Reem include a motorised head with vision, face tracking and recognition functions.
Great asset
The robot contains sensors and a multimedia touchscreen that can offer information in various formats, as well as the ability to speak to a helpdesk attendant via video conference.
Peter Abraam, Executive Director, Strategic Planning, Royal Group said: "Reem has been designed to assist people in places such as shopping malls, hotels, hospitals, museums and exhibition centres.
"I believe Reem could be a great asset to Adnec and will be enjoyed by the thousands of visitors who attend the many events held at the venue each year."
