New ‘RoboChef’ Serves up a Treat

A team of scientists from London have unveiled their invention of a robotic cook which they hope will go on sale to consumers in 2017, able to recreate dishes prepared by top chefs in the comfort and convenience of your own kitchen.

The robot uses two anthropomorphic robot hands with 24 joints and 20 motors, to make the dishes by mimicking the movements of a human chef, prerecorded using motion capture cameras and uploaded to the robot. The hands were developed over 18 years by the Shadow Robot Company, which also provides the technology to NASA.

The robot, which is being demonstrated on Tuesday at the Hannover Messe Industrial Trade Fair in Germany, is being trained by 2011 UK Masterchef award winner Tim Anderson, who explains that "currently, the robot cooks crab bisque based on my own recipe and movements. But the potential for more dishes is limitless." 

According to the developers, Moley Robotics, its robotic kitchen will come with a digital library of over 2,000 dishes, while top chefs and cooking enthusiasts alike will be able to use recorded 3D recipes to share their recipes with consumers.

The version for consumers is set have a price tag of around ₤10,000 [$14,700] but includes an oven, hob, dishwasher and sink, with which the robot will learn how to work.

"When not in use, the robotic arms retract from view, presenting a beautifully designed kitchen for home cooks to enjoy. When running in automated mode, built-in glass screens glide across the working area, making the kitchen 100% safe to operate around children, pets or with even with no one at home," say the developers, who add that as well as the built-in touch screen, the robot can also be controlled via a smartphone app.