Demand for Global Service Robotics Expected to Exceed 18 Million Units by 2020

The global service robotics market is expected to reach USD 15.69 billion by 2020, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. Government initiatives and investments supporting development of service robotics in countries such as Japan and U.S. is expected to favorably impact market growth.

Extensive use in defense and military applications, coupled with a projected steady demand from these domains is expected to drive the service robotics market over the forecast period.

Capability of service robots to offer sustainable medical provision without affecting quality of care has made healthcare a lucrative field for service robotics. Reluctance of substituting manual labor with service robots in traditional field operations is expected to pose a challenge to market growth.

Further key findings from the study suggest:

• Global service robotics demand was 4.1 million units in 2013 and is expected to exceed 18 million units by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 23.7% from 2014 to 2020.
• Personal robots led the market in terms of volume in 2013; professional robots generated greater revenue owing to their high unit cost as compared to that of their counterparts. Professional service robots accounted for over 70% of the global revenue in 2013.
• Military and defense robots dominated professional applications in terms of volume, accounting for over 40% of the total shipments in 2013, followed by medical robots. Medical robots contributed to majority of the market revenue in 2013 on account of higher unit cost as compared to defense robots. Among personal applications, household accounted for a higher market share as compared to entertainment, both in terms of volume and revenue.
• North America dominated the service robotics market in 2013, accounting for more than 35% of the overall market volume, followed by Asia Pacific and Europe. Japan and the U.S. constitute the key markets for service robots.
• The industry is characterized by a high degree of competition between industrial robot manufacturers and specialized service robot manufacturers. Fujisoft, GeckoSystems, Honda Motors, Intuitive Surgical, and iRobot are key companies manufacturing service robots. Apple, Amazon, and Google have also shown an inclination to enter the market by making significant investments.