Los Gatos, California, now has a restaurant that uses robotic precision to transform fast food operations. The ABB Robotics and BurgerBots collaboration introduced a compact automated burger system that prepares meals in 27 seconds. The innovation combines ABB’s IRB 360 FlexPicker and YuMi collaborative robot to produce custom meals quickly while maintaining high hygiene standards.
The system starts by placing a cooked burger patty into a bun box before the conveyor transports it with its QR code tag. The FlexPicker robot selects toppings such as onions, lettuce, and tomatoes using the provided data to perform high-speed additions. The YuMi robot completes the burger assembly process after the FlexPicker robot finishes its work. A connected inventory tracking system delivers immediate ingredient updates to enhance kitchen operational efficiency.
The robotic cell represents a major advancement in food automation by uniting rapid processing with precise execution and sanitary operation. ABB Robotics Division head Marc Segura states that the project demonstrates how automation can successfully expand into non-industrial environments. A recent industry survey shows that 89% of hospitality managers and 73% of workers endorse robot implementation because they believe it will make operations safer and eliminate repetitive work.
Elizabeth Truong from BurgerBots predicts that robotic automation will become a necessary component in restaurant operations. She predicted that robotic automation would become standard in most restaurants within the next five years. The main objective is to achieve better operational efficiency while improving both consistency and cost visibility.
The hospitality industry’s ongoing labor shortage and cost increases make automation a likely standard practice in the near future. BurgerBots establishes a new benchmark by demonstrating that robots excel at preparing burgers while operating at superior speed and intelligence.
