Russian retail chain Dixy, part of the Magnit group, has run a pilot with computer vision developer Tevian in which a mobile robot checked price tags automatically, Magnit representatives told CNews.
The robot, originally designed for cleaning, was adapted to drive along the shelves and fitted with a camera module. It photographed the shelves as it moved, and computer vision software read the price tags and compared them with the store's product list, using fuzzy search to allow for abbreviations and spelling differences. The test took place in a Dixy store in St Petersburg.
Dixy plans further tests that cover more of the sales floor and more price tags, and will feed the data into its own analytics systems. The company says such robots could later check stock, recognise products and analyse shelf layouts.
