Robot bartender mixes drinks in 11 seconds
Bringing new meaning to BYOB, an Atlanta-based start-up will soon introduce Monsieur: a robotic, artificially intelligent bartender that is programmed to mix more than 7,000 cocktails. Drinks are ready in 11 seconds, and the entire thing fits in a suitcase.
"At a restaurant, waiting at a table for drinks, it took about two hours to get my drink," he tells CBS News. "And I learned that servers can't make drinks inside a restaurant. As an engineer, the first thing that came to mind was why don’t they just have a machine back there that the servers could use to make drinks?"
He put the idea on hold after an engineering professor told him it wasn't feasible. But as he steadily built a successful engineering career, the idea nagged at him. Two years ago, he decided to give it a go.
His design is incredibly easy to use. First, users select what types of drinks they want Monsieur to make. These lists are called party profiles. The dozens of options include a cigar bar, tiki lounge, ladies' night, Cinco de Mayo -- there is even a non-alcoholic party list.
Once you pick your party profile, the machine tells you which eight 1500 milliliter bottles to load into the back compartments. There is also a smaller version of the machine, which holds four 850 ml bottles.
Orders are placed via the built-in touch screen, or through a linked smartphone app. You can select your exact drink, or use two functions that select a drink for you.
Each drink is ready in 11 seconds, and there's no chance of a mess, because the robot will not pour if there isn't a cup in place to catch the cocktail. It can mix up to 150 drinks before supplies run out. (Unless everyone at the party orders the same thing, in which case it will run out sooner. When the bottles start to get low, the system can be programmed to automatically order refills.
Like a good bartender, this robot keeps track of what you order, and will start to make recommendations based on your tastes. You can adjust the strength of the drink, making it "lightweight" or "boss," and it will eventually adjust all of the recipes to match your preferences.
Monsieur also keeps a watchful eye on partygoers. If they order from their smartphones, the app tallies up drinks. It also asks for height and weight. Once a user has ordered enough drinks to raise their blood alcohol level above the legal limit for driving, the app will send a notification.
