It is undoubtedly that pets play a crucial role in humans’ life. At an early age, people used to domesticate wolves, then cats and many other different species throughout history. According to The European Pet Food Industry (FEDIAF), approximately 80 million households in European Union owning at least one pet animal (e.g., dogs, cats, birds, small mammal, aquaria, and reptile) in 2018. Today, owners consider their pets a family member. They even buy toys, quality food, or clothes, and save a spot or a room for their pets to stay, leading to the dramatic growth of the pet industry in many countries. For instance, a figure provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the industry uplifted to $66.75 billion, while according to EuroDev, the European pet industry was $35.5 billion in 2017. However, with advances in technology, pets have taken other forms providing various positive impacts on people’s mental health.
One of the classic examples is the Robotic Dog. The first version was invented in 1999 named the AIBO, which can track a ball and kick it across the room, sing a robotic song, and perform some tricks such as shaking hands and sleeping. Unfortunately, its production was ceased in 2006 after three editions. Yet, the totally new edition of AIBO was released in November 2017 and upgraded on 11 January 2018 by Sony, receiving a positive response all around the world. Unbelievably, many AIBO owners treat it like a real dog, rather than a machinery thing only. Apparently, advanced technology built in AIBO can create an emotional bond with its owners. AIBO nowadays is outfitted with artificial intelligence and facial-recognition technology, which support it to develop its own personality over time and react differently based on its relationship with that person. Moreover, its experiences can be kept as a memory, photos are taken with its cameras, and new tricks are able to be downloaded from the cloud. Robotic pets not only bring fresh emotions that you cannot find in real animals, but also make changes for the elderly, disabled, and anyone having restrictions or health issues preventing them from owning a pet.
Besides AIBO, there are plenty of distinctive innovations in this field. Therapeutic robots are machines specifically used for emotional support, which can also be trained and certified as a psychiatric service animal (e.g., PARO – an advanced interactive therapeutic seal designed for patients with Dementia, Alzheimer’s, and other cognition disorders, Aflac Duck for children coping with chemotherapy, etc.). On the other hand, there are also other robotic companions with simpler missions of just making their owners smile such as LOVOT – a Japanese robot (with an appearance different from any real animals) designed to become a life companion. You can even turn your tree into a pet with “Lua” – a “Tamagotchi-like” planter. It can show 15 different emotions based on the measurements of soil moisture, the amount of light, and the temperature. Planting a tree is now more interesting and emotional than ever before. Furbies Owl, Yuma Neko Cat, and Qooba pillow with a tail are other popular products gaining enormous love from consumers.
“Lua” Planter
The proliferation of consumer preferences in robotic companions has emerged a question that “Will robot pets replace real dogs and cats?”. Although the real answer still awaits a longer time to find out, there is actually a rapidly increasing demand for robotic pets nowadays, especially when taking care of a pet costs a rising expenditure and time. Meanwhile, robotic pets are able to provide the same emotional benefits as real pets are. The replacement effect is not going to happen any time soon, yet it’s no doubt that the threats are real.
References:
http://www.fediaf.org/who-we-are/european-statistics.html
https://www.eurodev.com/infographic-european-pet-product-market/
https://www.cnet.com/features/loving-a-robot-dog-is-about-so-much-more-than-not-cleaning-up-poop/
https://interestingengineering.com/7-of-the-cutest-robot-pets-youll-ever-meet
https://www.analyticsinsight.net/can-robotic-pets-replace-the-real-ones/
If possible, I really want to have a Baymax in small size as a robotic pet.,HaHa.