Taizhou-made tour guide robots enhance travel experience

Tourists use tour guide robots at a scenic spot. [Photo/Taizhou Daily]

During the May Day holiday, smart tour guide robots developed by Jiangsu Gomon Hibi Car Intelligent Robotics Technology in Taizhou offered visitors at more than 100 scenic spots across China a fresh and interactive travel experience.

A joint venture under Gomon New Energy, the company has stepped up efforts to expand into the smart tour companion robot sector this year. Mass production of its tour guide robots began in March, with monthly capacity now exceeding 200 units. Orders have already been booked through the end of the year.

Equipped with cutting-edge technologies, the company's robots feature real-time location tracking to ensure tourist safety, voice-interactive explanations of historical and cultural sites, and electronic fencing to define safe operating zones. Other functions such as smart mobility and data collection further enhance the visitor experience and improve scenic area management.

Not resting on its success, Gomon Hibi Car is actively collaborating with top universities, including Tsinghua University and Wuhan University, to boost research and development.

According to company general manager Xu Shundong, the next goals are to develop autonomous driving capabilities and build embodied robots that go beyond tour guidance to serve a wider range of functions. A driverless sightseeing vehicle is expected to hit the market by the end of this year.

A representative from Gomon New Energy noted that the company's next-generation smart factory is powering innovation. The tour guide robot has become a new growth driver and is projected to contribute 70 million yuan ($9.73 million) in added output this year. By 2030, the company aims to make Gomon Hibi Car a production base with an annual capacity of 50,000 smart guide robots, targeting annual revenue between 1.5 billion and 2 billion yuan.