/Patent Tracker
SamsungPatent applicationRobots & automationInterest 8/10

Samsung patents robot that turns toward people based on who is speaking

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Samsung describes a robot equipped with a camera and microphone that identifies people in its surroundings. It analyzes who is talking or interacting to determine a priority order, then uses a motor to rotate its body toward the most relevant person.

Why it mattersThis could make service robots feel more attentive by having them physically turn to face the person they are currently interacting with.

In the filing’s own words

A robot and a controlling method thereof are provided. The robot includes: a camera; a driver; at least one memory storing instructions; and at least one processor operatively connected to the at least one memory. The at least one processor may be configured to execute the instructions to: recognize at least one user located around the robot based on an image acquired through the camera; identify a first rotation angle and a first rotation direction of the robot based on a location of at least one target region in which the at least one user is located among a plurality of regions within a field angle of the camera and a first gaze order for the at least one target region; and control the driver to rotate the robot based on the first rotation angle and the first rotation direction.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A robot comprising: a camera; a microphone configured to receive a voice; at least one memory storing instructions; and at least one processor operatively connected to the camera, the microphone, and the at least one memory, and configured to execute the instructions to: recognize a plurality of people based on an image acquired through the camera, identify interaction information of the plurality of people based on the voice acquired through the microphone and the image, and determine a first gaze order of the plurality of people based on the identified interaction information of the plurality of people.

Facts

Company
Samsung (SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.)
Official title
ROBOT AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THEREOF
Publication number
US20260295854A1
Application number
19697178
Filed
Jun 3, 2026
Published
Oct 1, 2026
Inventors
4
Claims
20

Classified under

B25J 9/1697 Operations & transportB25J 11/0005 Operations & transportB25J 19/026 Operations & transport
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

More from Samsung in Robots & automation

Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.