4-foot-tall robot that can read gestures turned into tourism guide

Students from Bremerhaven University of Applied Sciences in Germany developed a humanoid robot named Pepper as part of their “PepperMINT” project to assist tourists. Standing four feet tall with expressive eyes, Pepper was programmed to answer questions, read gestures and facial expressions, and interact naturally with visitors. The robot is designed to guide tourists at Bremerhaven’s cruise terminal by providing directions to the city center, assisting with shore check-ins, and offering preplanned city routes accessible via QR codes displayed on its screen. Pepper’s responses are controlled by detailed system prompts that define its personality and knowledge scope, focusing on Bremerhaven-related topics with a friendly yet firm tone. The project involved integrating Pepper’s older operating system with modern software, demonstrating significant technical skill and creativity by the students. Unlike static information kiosks, Pepper can navigate predefined waypoints and respond to voice commands while maintaining safe distances from people and obstacles. However, the 10-year-old robot model has limitations, such as difficulty handling multiple