Robot at the Hotel Schani Vienna

Hotel Schani Vienna is demonstrating its trendsetting role in innovative technologies yet again and will start using the “Care-O-bot 4”, created by Mojin Robotics, from the beginning of autumn 2018. In the next one and a half months this will turn a long-desired wish into reality for the hotel in cooperation with the FutureHotel research project of the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering IAO. As a result, visitors to Vienna will have an additional attraction to look forward to when at Hotel Schani Vienna by the end of September!

The initial idea of using a robot in the lobby of Hotel Schani Vienna came about during the hotel’s concept stage in 2013. Back then, there were already talks with Ulrich Reiser, who was still working for the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology and Automation IPA at that time. While the actual building of such a robot was far too expensive from a technological and financial perspective at that point, the product is finally ready-formarket. The “Care-O-bot 4” by Mojin Robotics has grown into a genuine service robot and has been used as “Paul” at Saturn shops in Berlin, Hamburg and Ingolstadt, as well as the Media Markt shop in Zurich since 2016. “The topic has never stopped fascinating us. Now, it’s time to take the next innovative step. We have found the best partners for this development,” said hotel owner Benedikt Komarek.

Hotel Schani intends to present a practical, industry-oriented solution together with the innovation network FutureHotel run by the Fraunhofer Institute for Technological Engineering IAO and the start-up Mojin Robotics, which is an off-shoot of the Fraunhofer IPA. The SchaniBot -- the name the hotel has affectionately given its robot -- can be marveled at in the hotel lobby from the end of September 2018 onwards. This is a real-life test of intelligent robotics in the hotel sector, designed to result in recommendations that can be given to the industry in the follow-up period. “Robots have been taking on tasks previously carried out by people in many sectors. However, they replace activities, not the people themselves. Their role will change especially in the service sector, such as in the hotel business,” said Vanessa Borkmann, project manager of FutureHotel at the Fraunhofer IAO.

It was important for Hotel Schani Vienna to find a robot for the hotel that can offer service functions to guests. The SchaniBot will be able to move through the room, address guests and be called over by them. However, it will not be a jack-of-all-trades, but learn and improve on a continuous basis – just like the hotel. “What is special about our robot is that it can move around safely in a busy environment. As a result, we can tap into physical services as well, something that was rather difficult to do up to now,” explained Ulrich Reiser, Managing Director of Mojin Robotics.

Guests and interested observers can look forward to a welcoming party for the SchaniBot in October.

Hotel Schani Vienna

Hotel Schani Vienna opened in 2015 and is the second hotel run by the Komarek family from Ottakring, Vienna. This hotel with Viennese charm is filled to the brim with innovations. Hotel Schani Vienna was one of the first hotels worldwide to introduce individual room selection, the smartphone room key and possibility to check in within seconds, as well as the coworking space integrated into the lobby. With its ideal location at the new Vienna Central Station, the hotel provides the perfect starting point for both business tourists and holiday makers alike. A total of 135 rooms, including 10 maisonettes, a multi-functional lobby and “Schani” restaurant garden with its “green oasis” in the middle of the city, await our visitors. Managing Director Benedikt Komarek has worked together with the Frauenhofer IAO Institute and well-renowned architect Gabriel Kacerovsky from Archisphere Vienna to continue the successful hotel tradition of the Komarek family with his own future-oriented project and new ideas: www.hotelschani.com