Cleaning Robots Take Gold at Winter Olympics

The athletes at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics aren’t the only ones winning the hearts of fans all over the world. A fleet of 85 robots have also been a focal point of the games assisting visitors at the airport, serving drinks to attendees, swimming around in fish tanks, and keeping the venues clean.

The Olympic Cleaning Team

These autonomous cleaning robots have been the stars of the robotic lineup, getting a lot of attention as they roam the halls tidying up high-traffic facilities. Bearing a vague resemblance to a Star Wars droid, these LG robots use technology from LG HOM-BOTs and can clean around 3000 square feet per hour. They were designed to be able to navigate on their own, calculate the areas that need to be cleaned most often, and find the optimal route to continually maintain these spaces. They are also equipped with sensors to avoid collision with humans and other objects, while picking up trash along their routes. The robots were tested last summer at South Korea’s Incheon Airport and are now getting their time in the spotlight.

Photo from LG Newsroom