The Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart will start a nationwide rollout of robots that restock drinks shelves in January, NHK reported on 12 November. The robots are based on the TX SCARA, developed by the Tokyo robot company Telexistence.
FamilyMart first put a TX SCARA into one of its Tokyo stores in 2021, and in August 2022 announced plans to bring it to 300 stores. The robot works in the cold area behind the shelves, checks which drinks have sold and fills the gaps. It is designed to run 24 hours a day and restock about 1,000 drinks a day, and a remote worker wearing a VR headset can take over when a bottle falls over or a product is put in the wrong place.
The robots have been offered as a service with a fee. What the nationwide rollout will cost FamilyMart and its franchise owners has not been made public.
Background
TX SCARA
Shelf-restocking robot
A robot that refills drink shelves from the cold storage area behind them.
