"Robot Delivers Coffee to My Desk by Taking the Elevator"

Woowa Brothers Launch Pilot Service of Indoor Delivery Robot 'Dilly Tower'

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] Woowa Brothers announced on the 18th that they will conduct a pilot service of the indoor autonomous delivery robot 'Dilly Tower' at their headquarters in Bangi-dong, Songpa-gu, until the 29th. Dilly Tower is linked with elevators, allowing it to call the elevator by itself, get on and off, and deliver food or items to the customer using multiple pre-input routes. In October last year, Woowa Brothers placed Dilly Tower on the first floor of their headquarters building and conducted the first pilot service where riders only delivered food up to the first floor, and the robot made the final delivery to the customer.

The current pilot service is conducted by having Woowa Brothers employees order drinks or snacks from the in-house cafe located on the 18th floor, and Dilly Tower delivers them to offices and meeting rooms on each floor. Dilly Tower is linked with the cafe's order reception system, and the order details are displayed on the screen on top of the robot. The cafe staff only need to check the screen, place the ordered food into the robot's internal storage compartment, and press the start button. Dilly Tower moves autonomously to the floor where the customer is by interacting with automatic doors and elevators, and upon arrival, it notifies the customer via text message and phone call. The customer can easily open the storage compartment and receive the food by entering the last four digits of their mobile phone number on the robot's screen.

Dilly Tower has two separate storage compartments. For drinks, it can carry up to 12 cups at once, and if the order volume is large, it delivers in multiple rounds. Its movement speed is 1.2 meters per second, similar to a fast walking pace. It automatically slows down in narrow corridors or on uneven surfaces. The battery lasts for 6 hours on a full charge and automatically charges while waiting at the store. From the 11th to the 15th, the first five days after starting this pilot service, Dilly Tower received a total of 94 orders and delivered 255 drinks. There were no delivery failures due to mechanical errors.

Woowa Brothers expects that Dilly Tower, capable of moving within the building as well as between floors, will rapidly commercialize robot delivery services in offices, hotels, and apartment complexes. Especially with the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), social interest in contactless ordering and delivery has increased, leading to inquiries about the indoor delivery robot Dilly Tower from more than 30 places hoping to introduce robots.

Once Dilly Tower is commercialized, it is expected to greatly assist riders who deliver food or items. As more buildings place Dilly Tower on the first floor, the time riders spend entering buildings and using elevators decreases, allowing them to perform more deliveries. In fact, in China, the introduction of indoor delivery robots reduced the delivery time per order by 10 to 15 minutes, cutting the total delivery time by 30%.

Woowa Brothers plans to conduct pilot services in offices and hotels in the second half of the year following this pilot service and will advance the functionality and service methods of Dilly Tower for commercialization. Kim Yo-seop, Director of the Robot Business Division at Woowa Brothers, said, "For coffee shops, bakeries, and other stores located in large buildings such as offices and mixed-use complexes, which have only been able to sell food and beverages to customers who visit the store, Dilly Tower will create new demand. From the consumer's perspective, it will be possible to receive food or items conveniently and safely through contactless ordering and delivery."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.