Sevensense Stories: Jelmoli

How Jelmoli is driving innovation for its customers' shopping experience

Robot Adero was initiated at the Autonomous Systems Lab of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich to fulfill a request from Jelmoli, the leading premium department store in Switzerland. The goal was to perform a proof of concept for offering their customers a completely new and revolutionary shopping experience at the Zurich Airport. Sevensense was a main partner of the project and supported it with its expert knowledge. Working side by side with a team of 11 ETH students and 4 students of the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK) the fully autonomous shopping companion Adero was successfully developed. www.jelmoli.ch

Business Challenge

Attracting the attention of travellers at airports is a major challenge for many businesses based in such locations. It is an environment where people are not primarily focused on shopping and where the unpredictable, unfamiliar setting usually creates rather stressful situations for consumers. This makes it difficult for a store to raise interest and provide customers - if at all - with a pleasant, relaxed shopping experience. Additionally, a lot of potential shopping time is skipped because people feel more comfortable going to the gate directly and then end up sitting there for quite some time. This situation gave Jelmoli the idea of being there for its customers during this time as well: With an autonomous delivery robot that could bring their products close to the gate. Sevensense, in collaboration with the 15 students, the Autonomous Systems Lab of ETH Zurich and the support of Zurich Airport, enabled a proof-of-concept for Jelmoli's challenge.

Sevensense Impact

Sevensense took over the complete supervision of the development of the autonomous delivery robot Adero and was thus able to contribute significantly to the project of 15 students of the ETH and ZHdK. With its advanced localization technology of Alphasense Position, which enables the robot to map its environment and locate itself within it at any time, Sevensense also made an essential input to Adero itself. Especially in large and complex environments such as an airport, it is certainly a big challenge for the robot to find its way during deliveries and avoid getting lost. With the integration of Alphasense Position, Sevensense was able to ensure that this was reliably accomplished. Finally, Adero was successfully tested for its airport deliveries on behalf of Jelmoli.

Business Implications

The successful Proof of Concept, Adero, paved the way for Jelmoli to enter the era of autonomous product delivery at airports. Not only does it enable Jelmoli to clearly stand out from other airport shops, but also to offer its customers a completely innovative shopping adventure. Especially with the opening of the largest commercial center in Switzerland, 'The Circle', which is connected to the Zurich airport, the project will become even more important in the future. It will be another welcome opportunity to use autonomous delivery robots like Adero to also link retail stores in 'The Circle' to the airport center and thus further expanding Jelmoli's business. The next generation of the delivery robot is already in development, so stay tuned for upcoming news!

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