Introducing os hbot

Introducing OSHbot

July 1, 2015

Corey Pearson, Sr. Managing Consultant Retail

Press Release October 29, 2014

NEW YORK -- The robots are coming.

Lowe's is testing whether new bots on wheels can improve its customer service, like helping a shopper find a match for something as simple as a nail.

Four robots will be tested an Orchard Supply Hardware store owned by Lowe's in San Jose.

The robots dubbed OSHbots look like white columns with two large black screens on either side of them, and wheels to help them move.

They are equipped with 3D cameras so they can scan and identify items. And customers can research items they want to buy on their

screen. Then the robot can lead them to the aisle where an item is located.

"They're based on making a science fiction story a reality," said Kyle Nel, executive director of Lowe's Innovation Lab.

The robots will make their inaugural appearance in late November or early December at the OSH store at 377 Royal Ave. in San Jose, said Amanda Manna, a Lowe's spokeswoman. She said the San Jose location was chosen for several reasons: the store has already

served as a sort of laboratory where Lowe's, which bought OSH a little over a year ago, can test out new tech tools and systems to enrich

the customer experience; Lowe's has its innovation lab at Singularity University at the NASA Research Park at Moffett Field; and Silicon Valley is the perfect spot to test out robots in retail.

"We are constantly looking across the company for ways to try out new technologies,'' said Manna. "And since the local customer base is

already so tech-savvy, the community makes a great partner'' for the experiment.Advertisement

The robots also have a database of what inventory is in stock at the store, so they can let customers know if something is out of stock or

not. "People can come in with a random screw and say, 'Mr. Robot, I need more of these,' and if we do have it in the store, they can find it," Nel said.

The robots can speak in English and Spanish.

Lowe's started working with Fellow Robots, a technology company in Mountain View, in November to develop the robots. The cost of the

project is undisclosed.

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Source: Mercury News October 29, 2014

Prepared by Corey Pearson, Sr. Managing Consultant IBM July 1, 2015

Orchard Supply Hardware 377 Royal Ave, San Jose, CA

a subsidiary of Lowes operating on the West Coast.

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A recent new store opening in an

urban high traffic area of San Jose

My first impression is that OSHbot is

not replacing any humans… yet.


Meeting OSHbot

I inquired of the customer, is this your cart?

She responded “Yes, he seems to be having

trouble with it.” I asked whether she used

OSHbot, and she rolled her eyes and said no,

and abruptly took her cart and left.

Thinking OSHbot would respond to human

voice I introduced myself. No response. I

was facing his back, but there was a camera?

I went around to his

front side and he picked

up I was there and said

“Hello, I am OSHbot,

can I help you find

anything”.

Upon entering the store, I was greeted by

Francis, a 20ish year old male with

impeccable customer service skills. When

I responded to “how can I help you?” with

“I’m looking for OSHbot”, Francis asked

the store associates via his mobile device

whether anyone had seen OSHbot. With

no response he offered to help me find

him, which I chose to go alone. Before

letting me go, Francis declared, OSHbot

can find things but if you want to know

about products, find one of us as we can

help!

I found OSHbot, although in a precarious

situation. A customer had entered the

aisle and left her cart, proceeded around

OSHbot leaving him trapped. As I

approached OSHbot was nudging the cart.

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Finding Items

Before entering the aisle, I picked up an item

from the adjacent aisle to bring along as I had

heard you could bring an item show it to him

and he would find it. After showing him the

item and talking to him, I learned that he

doesn’t have visual recognition, and I must

press a button on the screen to speak with

him. I did, and read the description on the

label. He promptly located items from the

stocking section that most closely resembled

what I was looking for. Many had photos,

however in later instances, the items did not.

I chose my item from the screen and an aisle

directory appeared showing my location

along with where the item was located.

OSHbot then asked me if I would like him to

accompany me to the item. I pressed a

button on the screen to begin our journey.

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Journey to the item location

OSHbot couldn’t distinguish between Scotch

tape and Scotchbrite causing me to type in

the description on the screen. Note photos of

tape on the screen. Second photo shows the

aisle directory with the item description.

OSHbot turned and headed down the aisle

at a reasonable pace. As he neared the

end of the aisle, he was very cautious in

navigating around the corner. Upon

finding the perimeter clear, he proceeded

to the next aisle. The item I had chosen

was the 3rd item on the right hung on a peg

about 4 ft high. OSHbot passed the item

and stopped about 8-10 ft past the item

and declared we had arrived.

I had brought with me a sponge from the

section near where I met OSHbot as my

next test. I again activated the voice

prompt and spoke the description in.

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16 penny galvanized roofing nails and other illusive items

Francis was near the nail aisle and took note

as I spoke a voice command to help me find

potting soil. Francis interrupted and said

OSHbot can’t go outside. OSHbot responded

as well saying “:They told me that I am not

allowed to go outside.” which I thought was

clever.

I chose another item which is typically

stocked at Lowes, Appliances. OSHbot

searched and searched and came up with an

appliance bulb. Turned out they didn’t carry

Appliances, but OSHbot didn’t know that.

I set my sights on Ladders and OSHbot

brought me to the aisle and stopped near the

far end of the aisle this time declaring we had

arrived. I searched and found we had passed

the specific ladder request 10 feet behind us.

Anyone who has been shopping in a

hardware store knows that shopping for

nails can be one of the toughest items to

locate. I decided to put OSHbot to the test

by typing in nails and then choosing the

illusive 16 penny galvanized roofing nail.

We did our customary pleasantries and

OSHbot was off to the nail dept. As he

neared the end of the aisle, he

encountered an elderly woman whom he

saw as an obstacle. He kept inching along

causing her to back away as she remarked

“He didn’t even say excuse me!” we both

laughed, and I followed OSHbot to the end

of two very large aisle filled with nails,

screws and fasteners. He stopped in the

perimeter and declared we were there

which was underwhelming at best.

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What does OSHbot do when he is not helping anyone and

does he know what is in or out of stock?

I wondered if I left OSHbot for a few minutes

what he would do. Would he go back to the

front of the store, find a customer, take care

of a spill in aisle 9?

So I left OSHbot for 3 minutes and walked

out of the area. Upon returning I found him in

the exact same spot staring at the shelf.

Thinking I was done with my test I began to

check out the store in its entirety. A few

minutes later, I recalled the article stated

OSHbot knew the store inventory, and had to

check it out. I found an out of stock item,

Craftsman 4 piece pliers and went to find

OSHbot. Surprisingly, I found OSHbot by the

shovels. The screen showed someone had

used him for finding them.

OSHbot efficiently located the item

stocking section, displaying the aisle, and

after confirming I needed his help, OSHbot

took me to the pliers aisle, again stopping

no where near the item, but more

importantly, not knowing if the item was in

or out of stock.

This concluded my interactions with

OSHbot as I had satisfied my curiosity.

Francis shook my hand and thanked me

for shopping at Orchard Supply Hardware.

My compliments to all the store associates

who greeted me, engaged all with a

friendly, helpful attitude!

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OSHbot Summary

Opportunities:

•Voice activated vs. pushing a buttons

•Visual recognition vs. speech or typing

•Exact item location should be possible

through cross reference of plan o grams

•Item in-stock should be possible with on-

hand inventory tables

•Recognition of customers as something

other than an obstacle.

•Difficulty navigating in tight spaces, around

aisle stacks, carts, people etc.

•Ability to understand items that a customer

may expect to find which are not stocked.

Abilities:

•Able to navigate obstacles well.

•Knows store stocking sections and what

items are associated with those sections.

•Voice interaction works well when

activated.

•Item look-up is easy to navigate with

touch screen.

•Aisle directories are easily understood.

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In conclusion, I applaud Lowes for this out of the box idea which has future merits beyond

what it is doing today. When their vision for OSHbot is fulfilled I expect Lowes and those

retailers that adopt this technology will not only have a useful customer ally, but deliver a

point of differentiation with an element of fun that creates a word of mouth buzz resulting

in increased traffic and sales.


Appendix: Enlarged Photos

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Documents

Introducing os hbot