However, this robot in particular was inspired by a more futuristic idea: remote, VR holidays. Walker says the company was approached in the middle of last year by Japanese airline All Nippon Airways, which is developing its own "telepresence" wing. All Nippon asked for a demo machine to showcase their idea that, in the future, workers could go on holiday using just a VR headset and a robot placed far away, be it a mountain lake or a beach.
Walker doesn't anticipate that the current iteration of the robot and gloves will become a popular alternative to holidays. "It's a bit hard to get out of the office," he said.
However, he doesn't discount the idea that VR immersion in remote settings could one day become mainstream. "I'm still surprised by the amount of time people spend in 'World of Warcraft,' which is going on holiday in a fantasy world," he said.
The technology still has a very long way to go before it could give people any kind of enjoyable VR-enabled vacation, however.
The pads are good at mimicking pressure, but heat and texture are still beyond them — not to mention bulky VR headsets and robots trundling around tourist sites translating to a pretty jarring holiday experience.
But the industry applications seem far less distant now I've got my hands on the hardware.