Floor-cleaning robots just the start, says Vancouver company

A Vancouver company founded by three University of British Columbia graduates has developed a technology thattransformsconventional floor cleaning machines into self-driving robotswhichsuck up grime and polish the floors in two buildings on UBC's campus.

Eventually, its owners say they hope to make robots a part of everyday life.

"Today marks the beginning of a new future," said AnsonKung, co-founder of A&K Robotics on Friday at a news event at UBCto demonstrate the technology.

"A future where robots will become as commonplace as the phones in our pockets, a future where robots and people will work hand in hand to increase productivity, safety and most important of all, our quality of life."

Kung, 25, founded A&K Robotics in 2015with Matthew Anderson and Jessica Yip with the goal of expanding the robotics industry in Vancouver. They now employ more than 20 people and have sold the technology to UBC, the Vancouver International Airport and customers in the U.S. and Europe.

"We are trying to make the best technology and we are competing head on against big American companies that have a lot more resources, much bigger sales and marketing teams than us," said Yip, who graduated from UBC in 2014 with an English literature degree.

What separates A&K Robotics from other companies, according to Yip and Kung, is that their technology attaches to floor cleaning machines used by custodians and is easy to operate. It costs around $10,000 for the most basic technology A&K offers to attach to floor cleaners.

"It's super intuitive," said Yip. Even someone with an arts degree like her can learn to use it, she joked.The machines are programmed to move around a space on their own and avoid people and objects.

Watch one of the machines in action:

A&K Robotics floor cleaner now roaming UBC

6 years ago

Duration 0:39

School graduates launched the company in 2014 in the hopes of growing the robotics industry in Vancouver.

UBC Building Operations partnered with the company to help with thetrial for the technology with its custodian staff.Two of the robotic floor cleaners are already in use at UBC's Henry Angus and Life Sciences buildings, with five set to be in place by November.

Does it make jobs redundant?

As robots, self-driving cars and other artificial intelligence technologies continue to advance, there is a worrythey will make some jobs redundant.

A 2016 study from the Brookfield Institute for Innovation andEntrepreneurship at Toronto's Ryerson University estimated 42 per cent of the Canadian workforce is at high risk of being replaced by technology and computers.

• Robots rising: How far do we want them to go?

But A&K Robotics says itstechnology enhances theworkplace for humans. It allows custodians to focus on other tasks rather than pushingfloor cleaners for hours along hallways. Some machinesweighup to386 kilograms, according to UBC.

"It's a common misconception that robots take away jobs because in the custodial industry, custodians have a scope of work that's very big and they only have so much time," said Kung.

CUPElocal 116 says the school discussed the use of the robots with it and was told thattheir usewould not result in job losses or have an impact on hiring.

The president of the local, Dave Lance, says the union will keep talking with its members about their experiences as the additional robots are put in place.

Other applications

The company now plans to applythe technology toelectric wheelchairs to help people with disabilities get around.

Kung says the company hopes to attract local professionals who wishto stay in Vancouver.

"We have some of the smartest people in Vancouver in Canada and they work amazingly hard to make this happen, together we're here to change the world," he said.