Most robots have not generally been equipped for the task of folding clothes. But an international group of researchers say their new method could change that -- or at least speed up the process. Their robot is seen here in multiple exposures. Most robots have not generally been equipped for the task of folding clothes. But an international group of researchers say their new method could change that -- or at least speed up the process.

The promising thing about laundry-folding robots is that they target a job that everybody does frequently, and nobody really likes. But to be successful in robotics, especially in consumer robotics, you have to be both affordable and reliable, and robots are, still, generally awful at those things. Laundroid, a robotic system that could ingest wads of laundry and somehow spit out neatly folded clothes, put on a few demos at CES over the past few years, but the Japanese company behind it just announced bankruptcy--probably because the robot didn't work all the time, and would likely have been absurdly expensive. Laundroid may not have been a success, but does that mean that other laundry-folding robots, most notably Foldimate, are doomed as well? The original Laundroid concept was to combine washing clothes, drying clothes, ironing clothes, and folding clothes into one single (magical?)

When Seven Dreamers Laboratories Inc. unveiled its prototype laundry-folding robot in 2015, it generated a buzz, with people saying they couldn't wait to buy one if it ever went to market. But the AI-based tidying device dubbed Laundroid is apparently coming to an end before its commercial debut, as the Tokyo-based developer filed for bankruptcy Tuesday with the Tokyo District Court, citing insufficient funds to continue operations. A spokesperson for Seven Dreamers, a contest-winning startup that had received over ¥10 billion in funding, said development of robot is over for now. According to Teikoku Databank Ltd., a credit research company, Seven Dreamers Laboratories had accumulated ¥2.2 billion in debt as it struggled to ship the robot and invested heavily in research and development. After postponing its initial sales goal in fiscal 2017, it had to push back its goal for fiscal 2018, too.

This isn't the first time we've seen a laundry-folding robot. In fact, the last time we saw one, it turned out to be a faked demo. So when we saw that the company Foldimate had turned up again to this year's CES, we were suspicious. This time, though, the startup came with a working prototype in tow. For those of you who read the words "laundry-folding robot" and were expecting a set of nimble, anthropomorphic hands, you're in for a disappointment.

Who wouldn't welcome a helping hand to tackle chores like laundry? So it may be exciting to learn that laundry-folding robots already exist. The best-known version is the Japanese clothes-folding machine the Laundroid. Another one has recently been invented, too, with software designed by the University of California, Berkeley and hardware by Rethink Robotics. But don't get too excited.

A Tokyo-based venture firm has started accepting orders for a laundry-folding robot to be priced at around ¥2 million. Seven Dreamers Laboratories Inc. said the refrigerator-size robot named "Laundroid" uses image analysis and artificial intelligence to recognizes the shape and type of clothing and then folds clothes with its built-in arms accordingly. The model is 2.2 meters high, 87 cm high and 63 cm in depth. Its surface includes tempered glass on the front and wooden panels on the sides, giving it the appearance of a piece of furniture. All users have to do is throw dry clothes into a opened drawer in the lowest part of the machine and the robot will do the rest.

It's been awhile since we've heard about Laundroid, the laundry folding robot that will make lazy people swoon. Now, parent company Seven Dreamers has announced a new partnership that could make your laundry-related life even easier. Seven Dreamers is partnering with Cerevo, a company that focuses on IoT and connected devices in Japan and across the world, to bring voice control technology to Laundroid. But there's a catch: As of the announcement date, it won't work with Alexa, Siri, Google Assistant or any other widely used voice control service. Instead, Laundroid will only work with Cerevo's Lumigent, a desk lamp that responds to voice control.

A product from Japan created quite the stir at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and CEATEC JAPAN in Tokyo this year. The "harmony" of clothing analysis, artificial intelligence (AI), and robotics blend together to produce a "fully automatic clothes folding machine." Japan technological alliance "seven dreamers laboratories' is the developer. The product details have been released in various places, so I won't get into that, but as the name says, "It's a robot that folds clothes. No further explanation is needed." The company announced a partnership with Panasonic (TSE:6752) and Daiwa House (TSE:1925) last year, and together established the joint venture Seven Dreamers Laundroid with plans to begin sales by reservation for their first machine "Laundroid 1" in March of 2017. The developer, Seven Dreamers, announced on November 14th the securement of 6 billion yen (around $60 million US) in funds from SBI Investment, in addition to Panasonic and Daiwa House. The shareholding ratios and payment date remain undisclosed. The concept began in 2005, and with the realization of "folding" from 2013, Laundroid was born. I heard from Seven Dreamers CEO Shin Sakane about the road it took to get here. I came today with the idea of asking straight out, "What happened to make robots fold the laundry?" Well, to be straight, "It's now possible to recognize clothes using artificial intelligence," is maybe the simplest answer I can give. Let's go through the process. How did the idea first come to you? Before that, first permit me to talk a little about what criteria the Seven Dreamers esteem. For us, there are three criterion for "Things that have not been realized yet but could change our lives, and also enrich them." The technological hurdles are high and our policy is to clear them. You've made something that sets high hurdles. Since first coming up with the idea, I was thinking about different markets to satisfy all the criteria. Looking around we see many products targeted at men. Starting now and into the future, 'women', 'the elderly', and'children' are the keywords that will become important. After thinking, the idea that maybe the answer lies within the home came to me and, while I don't usually talk with my wife about work, I casually mentioned it to her. What do you wish you had? She came back just as fast, "Of course, it has to be a machine that folds the laundry.