Makr Shakr uses three arms for drink-recipe collabs

(Phys.org) —We're told it's the wave of the future. Design, make, enjoy. Beyond home-based 3-D printers, there will be new machines and display screens and apps that will invite you to have day to day products just the way you want them. Digital buffets await and not surprisingly the time is now to contemplate robot bartender systems. Such a system is on display now, which can serve the cocktail of your latest twist of imagination. Makr Shakr is the name of the new system which goes on display at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco, starting Wednesday. The drink-making robotic system made its debut during Milan Design Week 2013, and is making a debut in its final configuration at the Google event. The system can make the cocktail you want with its three robotic arms, which mimic the actions of a bartender. Shaking a Martini and slicing lemon garnishes are part of its repertoire. A smartphone app allows users create their cocktail concoctions from scratch.

The concept is that users will be able to order up personalized cocktail recipes on demand through their smartphone application and transform them into crowd-sourced drink combinations.

You can thank the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's SENSEable City Lab for devoting thought and labor for this one. In fact, "robot bartender" is not the term that suits this project, but rather smartphone controlled mixologist—with three arms. The SENSEable City Lab is a research initiative at MIT. The lab is promoting its robotic bar system as "offering the crowd a taste of the third industrial revolution!"

The user can look at what other people suggest before sending in the recipe. Social networking and collaborations come into play where users can share their drink recipes and photos and come up with combos based on crowdsourcing. The MakrShakr experience is potentially "social, as far as drink-ordering goes, by way of the app.

The robot movements were modeled on the gestures of Roberto Bolle, a dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Movements were used as input for programming the Makr Shakr's gestures. The system is also designed to monitor the individual's alcohol consumption and blood alcohol levels.

All in all, the Makr Shakr concept appears to be a commerce-rich Noah's Ark for hungry vendors. As for the next "industrial revolution," that Ark would, at least in theory, be able to move confidently with Happy Hour and hospitality sectors to invite on board along with fruit-growers' associations. As for now, the project was completed in collaboration with the Coca-Cola company and Bacardi.