I am quite sure that for many of us who happen to work in a traditional office setup can so identify with the following, our computers are connected to a network printer, so each time that we hit the Print button on our respective computers, we will have to wait for a while and then walk over to the printer in order to pick up whatever has been printed. How about letting someone send over the printed documents to you? That would be the role of your personal assistant at the moment if you happen to wear a managerial hat, but how about letting a robot do that for you? This is what Fuji Xerox has done, having worked on a new robotic printer which is capable of moving around to deliver documents to the person who printed it.
Fuji Xerox has developed a new robotic printer that can move around a lounge or office to bring documents to the person who printed them. The printer is designed to be used primarily in public places as a way to keep sensitive documents secure. Sensors on the machine prevent it from bumping into people on the way. However, some analysts argued that the idea was not cost effective when compared with other secure printing methods. Describing use of the printer in, for example, an airport business lounge, IDC analyst Maggie Tan told the BBC there are better methods already available. “The majority of these business lounges would have higher printing demand, especially from business travellers who always need to print urgently using a secured method. “There are several mobile printing solutions available today that users can submit the print job online through their mobile devices or laptops and they are given a secured password to collect their printouts.” Bryan Ma, also from IDC, complimented the ingenuity, if not the practicality of the device. “Sounds like something very unique to Japan. “One might even argue that it seems more like technology for technology’s sake.”
