Robot rating on the Internet: Good or useless?

Everyone knows them on the Internet: Ratings. They are not without controversy, as they are suspected of either being bought or that critics are often not neutral: Either they want to share your happiness and are euphoric or they were grossly disappointed and want to "finish them off". As a result, average reviews (3 out of 5 stars) are less common. When our kids were young, I was also rated offline at times. Sometimes I was the "best dad in the world", then the "stupidest". Depending on the situation and the mood of the day. Fortunately, adults rate on Qviro.

Qviro calls itself "Tripadvisor for industrial technology".

In the course of the last financing round, Qviro, a Belgian online store, had been presented here. Subsequently, the team attracted attention through its presence at trade fairs. Now it is clear why Qviro has chosen the slogan "Tripadvisor...". On their website you can find reviews of various products. These are not hundreds of reviews, but the Universal UR e-Series is rated 13 times, after all. 4.7 stars out of 5 also sound credible. The wording is also credible. They indicate that the UR - as well as the other robots - has actually dealt with the product. There is also always criticism. Nevertheless, at least one aftertaste remains for me.

Interesting aside: In contrast to the German Unchained Robotics, Qviro gives sales prices only on request, i.e. after registration. However, Qviro does not want to sell either. The business model is to generate leads for manufacturers and partners.

Ratings can not be unproblematic

The first Teslas had high gap dimensions. For German friends of electromobility, this was unproblematic. For American customers, perhaps, anyway. This raises the first question: Are reviews from faraway countries, about whose quality habits we know nothing, helpful? On the other hand, the review of a Kinovo by a user from Kazakhstan conveys a high degree of expertisé. However, he probably uses it in research. This raises the question of whether statements from the university environment help practitioners in the company. University robots are rarely subjected to a tough endurance test. And a researcher has all the time in the world, while things move faster in the company. In addition, the qualifications of a freshly trained mechanical engineer at the university are probably better than those of an older employee in the company when it comes to robotics.

Rethink Robotics is obviously unfairly evaluated

The following photo shows a Baxter on the lower left. This is a Cobot that was taken off the market many years ago. So it is no longer available for purchase. In fact, it was not good, but it is a burden on the image of Rethink Robotics (United Robotics Group). Here you have to know that Rethink Robotics was first a US company and then after the insolvency was taken over by the German Hahn Group. The latter significantly redesigned the Sawyer (seen above right) after the takeover. I suspected that critics of the Sawyer were still using the US version. With this in mind, robot manufacturers should consider giving modified versions a new name right away. Franka Emika has done this recently.

Ratings are used by Qviro for tributes

Whoever generates data should also use it. Taking this into account, Qviro goes further and honors manufacturers or provides an overview (image at the top). In view of the still small database, this is certainly worthy of criticism, but it shows where the journey will go (screenshot of a LinkedIn post):

The video was probably recorded earlier, probably at the automatica:

Are we networking? LinkedIn

-> To the Cobot group on LinkedIn (Link)

In own business/advertising

The author of this blog is significantly involved in the AI/robotics project Opdra. He advises SMEs on robotics - up to 50% funding for consulting is possible. Constantly looking for interesting solutions, he has seen hundreds of applications. For this reason, his customers also include large companies that have know-how but do not know the entire market. You can find more about him here.