Makr Shakr

Last updated

Makr Shakr (pronounced Maker Shaker) is a producer of robotic bartenders and baristas based in Turin, Italy. The robots receive orders from customers via mobile devices, and leverage automation technologies to prepare different beverages.

Contents

Research and development

Development for Makr Shakr's robotic bartenders began at MIT Senseable City Lab led by professor Carlo Ratti, with the support of the Coca-Cola and Bacardi. It originated from the concept to leverage digital technologies to "explores the new dynamics of social creation and consumption". [1]

The prototype is equipped with the ability to perform motions essential to bartending like shaking, muddling and slicing. In addition, cocktail-making is "crowdsourced" through a mobile app inviting individual users to contribute their own recipes. [2] Its movement is modelled after the choreography by New York Theater Ballet's Marco Pelle. [3]

Makr Shakr was first introduced to the public through various international technology and design events. After a test run in April 2013 during the Milan Design Week, [4] three mechanical arms were deployed at the Google I/O Conference in San Francisco a month later. [5]

In 2014, Makr Shakr received design awards by Core 77 [6] and D&AD [7] for its concept and digital interface respectively.

Commercial launch

Makr Shakr was launched commercially as a start-up in 2017, with an assembly line set up in Turin, Italy. It partners with the German automative system manufacturer KUKA in producing the robotic bartenders. [8]

Operating at a rate of 60-90 seconds per drink, [9] the brand's various models are implemented in cities such as Amsterdam, Prague, London and Las Vegas. The Bionic Bar, produced by Makr Shakr, is installed in nine cruise ships of cruise line Royal Caribbean. [10] The company is set to debut in Changi Airport, Singapore, [11] Bali, Olympia, Wa [12] and Dallas in 2024.

The company's flagship robot Toni featured in the exhibition "AI: More Than Human" at the Barbican, London in 2019. [13]

Influence on restaurants and bars

As the COVID-19 pandemic drastically affected the food and beverage business, Makr Shakr was credited in media as one of the robotic devices that have offered solutions to alleviate the difficult situation faced by the industry, from reducing human contact and the possibility to spread the virus, [14] to providing relief for the shortage of manpower. [15]

In late 2019, the brand initiated the pilot of a stipend program in the US, in collaboration with SUNY Erie Community College, New York. With the sale of every robotic unit, the company offered parts of the proceeds to a selected individual whose livelihood had been affected by automation to acquire a new professional skill. The first stipend recipient was sponsored to study in the Brewery Science and Service Program. [10]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Automation</span> Use of various control systems for operating equipment

Automation describes a wide range of technologies that reduce human intervention in processes, mainly by predetermining decision criteria, subprocess relationships, and related actions, as well as embodying those predeterminations in machines. Automation has been achieved by various means including mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, electrical, electronic devices, and computers, usually in combination. Complicated systems, such as modern factories, airplanes, and ships typically use combinations of all of these techniques. The benefit of automation includes labor savings, reducing waste, savings in electricity costs, savings in material costs, and improvements to quality, accuracy, and precision.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lego Mindstorms</span> Hardware and software platform by Lego

Lego Mindstorms is a discontinued line of educational kits for building programmable robots based on Lego bricks. It was introduced on 1 September 1998 and discontinued on 31 December 2022.

KUKA is a German manufacturer of industrial robots and factory automation systems. In 2016, the company was acquired by the Chinese appliance manufacturer Midea Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ken Goldberg</span> American computer scientist

Kenneth Yigael Goldberg is an American artist, writer, inventor, and researcher in the field of robotics and automation. He is professor and chair of the industrial engineering and operations research department at the University of California, Berkeley, and holds the William S. Floyd Jr. Distinguished Chair in Engineering at Berkeley, with joint appointments in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences (EECS), Art Practice, and the School of Information. Goldberg also holds an appointment in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of California, San Francisco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bartending terminology</span> Terms used in drinking culture and bartending

Various unique terms are used in bartending.

<i>Tiki Bar TV</i> TV series

Tiki Bar TV is a video web series, or "vodcast". Each episode features a problem that is rectified by the episode's namesake cocktail, which is scribbled on a prescription pad by Dr. Tiki and "filled" by bartender Johnny Johnny who explains how to make the cocktail. Examples include the Suffering Bastard, Fog Cutter, Volcano Bowl, Boomerang, and Blue Hawaiian. The drinks did not always follow conventional recipes. Lala is the Tiki Bar's primary denizen who opens each episode with a dance. Most episodes also include a segment called "Tiki Mail," where mail from viewers or disgruntled neighbours is answered, and then ends with outtakes or the cast dancing. Originally shot in an apartment's tiki bar on a low budget, the humorous and heavily ad-libbed show was a creative outlet for its creators Jeff Macpherson and Kevin Gamble.

Robotics is the branch of technology that deals with the design, construction, operation, structural disposition, manufacture and application of robots. Robotics is related to the sciences of electronics, engineering, mechanics, and software. The word "robot" was introduced to the public by Czech writer Karel Čapek in his play R.U.R., published in 1920. The term "robotics" was coined by Isaac Asimov in his 1941 science fiction short-story "Liar!"

Roboexotica is an annual festival and conference where scientists, researchers, computer experts and artists from all over the world build cocktail robots and discuss technological innovation, futurology and science fiction. Roboexotica is also an ironic attempt to criticize techno-triumphalism and to dissect technological hypes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlo Ratti</span> Italian architect, engineer, inventor, educator and activist.

Carlo Ratti is an Italian architect, engineer, educator and author. He is a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he directs the MIT Senseable City Lab, a research group that explores how new technologies are changing the way we understand, design and ultimately live in cities. Ratti is also a founding partner of the international design and innovation office CRA-Carlo Ratti Associati, which has offices in Turin, New York and London. He is also a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Architecture, Built Environment and Construction Engineering at the Politecnico di Milano and an Honorary Professor at TTPU Tashkent. Ratti was named one of the "50 most influential designers in America" by Fast Company and highlighted in Wired magazine's "Smart List: 50 people who will change the world".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MIT School of Architecture and Planning</span> Architecture school at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The MIT School of Architecture and Planning is one of the five schools of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1865 by William Robert Ware, the school offered the first architecture curriculum in the United States and was the first architecture program established within a university. MIT's Department of Architecture has consistently ranked among the top architecture/built environment schools in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloody Mary (cocktail)</span> Popular cocktail containing vodka and tomato juice

A Bloody Mary is a cocktail containing vodka, tomato juice, and other spices and flavorings including Worcestershire sauce, hot sauces, garlic, herbs, horseradish, celery, olives, pickled vegetables, salt, black pepper, lemon juice, lime juice and celery salt. Some versions of the drink, such as the "surf 'n turf" Bloody Mary, include shrimp and bacon as garnishes. In the United States, it is usually consumed in the morning or early afternoon, and is popular as a hangover cure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robotics</span> Design, construction, use, and application of robots

Robotics is the interdisciplinary study and practice of the design, construction, operation, and use of robots.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Agricultural machinery</span> Machinery used in farming or other agriculture

Agricultural machinery relates to the mechanical structures and devices used in farming or other agriculture. There are many types of such equipment, from hand tools and power tools to tractors and the farm implements that they tow or operate. Machinery is used in both organic and nonorganic farming. Especially since the advent of mechanised agriculture, agricultural machinery is an indispensable part of how the world is fed.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to robotics:

The MIT Senseable City Laboratory is a digital laboratory within MIT's City Design and Development group, within the Department of Urban Studies and Planning, which works in collaboration with the MIT Media Lab. The lab aims to investigate and anticipate how digital technologies are changing the way people live and their implications at the urban scale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comau</span> Italian multinational company

Comau is an Italian multinational company in the automation field based in Turin, Italy. It is a part of the automaker Stellantis. The company is present in 13 countries and employs 4,000 people.

An automated restaurant or robotic restaurant is a restaurant that uses robots to do tasks such as delivering food and drink to the tables and/or cooking the food.

<i>Race Against the Machine</i> 2011 non-fiction book by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee

Race Against the Machine is a non-fiction book from 2011 by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee about the interaction of digital technology, employment and organization. The full title of the book is: Race Against the Machine: How the Digital Revolution Is Accelerating Innovation, Driving Productivity, and Irreversibly Transforming Employment and the Economy.

<i>Quantum of the Seas</i> Quantum-class Cruise Ship

Quantum of the Seas is a Quantum-class cruise ship currently operated by Royal Caribbean International and is the lead ship of her class. At her time of delivery in 2014, Quantum of the Seas was the third largest cruise ship in the world by gross tonnage. She is currently deployed to serve the Alaskan and Australian cruise markets.

Vivian Chu is an American roboticist and entrepreneur, specializing in the field of human-robot interaction. She is Chief Technology Officer at Diligent Robotics, a company she co-founded in 2017 for creating autonomous, mobile, socially intelligent robots.

References

  1. ↑ "Robot bartender serves up crowd-sourced cocktails". BBC News. May 14, 2013.
  2. ↑ Garber, Megan (May 13, 2013). "These Friendly Robots Would Like to Mix You a Cocktail". The Atlantic.
  3. ↑ Starr, Michelle. "Robotic barman mixes a perfect cocktail". CNET.
  4. ↑ "Makr Shakr robotic bar by Carlo Ratti and MIT Senseable City Lab". Dezeen. April 21, 2013.
  5. ↑ Acey, Madeleine (May 16, 2013). "Robot bartender creates crowd-sourced cocktails". CNN Business.
  6. ↑ "Core77 Design Awards Spotlight: Makr Shakr, a Trio of Ballet-Dancing Robot Bartenders". Core77.
  7. ↑ "Makr Shakr | Pentagram Design NY | MIT Senseable City Lab and Carlo Ratti Associati, | D&AD Awards 2014 Pencil Winner | Digital Installations". D&AD.
  8. ↑ "A KUKA robot works as a bartender in Milan". KUKA AG.
  9. ↑ Kamping-Carder, Leigh. "Robots Are Ready to Shake (and Stir) Up Bars". The Wall Street Journal.
  10. 1 2 "The robots behind the bar that want to pull your next pint". BBC News. November 15, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Makr Shakr to be first Robotic Bartender at Singapore's Changi Airport". aasarchitecture. 28 February 2022.
  12. ↑ https://www.theolympian.com/news/local/article285744851.html
  13. ↑ "Man or machine? Robot bartender goes head-to-head with humans". CTVNews. August 17, 2019.
  14. ↑ "Goodbye to Bartenders: Robots Could Soon Make Your Drink". Bloomberg. August 13, 2020.
  15. ↑ Morrissey, Janet (October 19, 2021). "Desperate for Workers, Restaurants Turn to Robots". The New York Times.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.