The Hanwha Eagles’ ballpark now has a designated section for fans who can’t make it. Three rows of seats are filled with robot bodies that all hold displays, which feature messages from people who aren’t in attendance.
A South Korean baseball team, The Hanwha Eagles has many diehard fans, however whether it be financial reasons or scheduling conflicts, not everyone can attend the games.
With that in mind, The Hanwha Eagles’ ballpark now has a designated section for fans that can’t make it. Three rows of seats are filled with robot bodies that all hold displays, which feature messages from people who aren’t in attendance.
The stadium deems the new additions as the "the world’s first cheering robots" or ‘fanbots’. Each robot features an LED screen for a face.
Human fans can upload a picture of themselves or type up a message. The ‘fanbots’ face will then display those photos or notes.
Thus far, about 90 thousand messages have been submitted. The robots are dressed in official baseball t-shirts, showcasing their support for the team.
They’ve been programmed to lead the way in cheering during the games too. For example the ‘fanbots’ will be the first to start a cheer or begin the ‘wave’ that will spread to humans in the stadium.
Eagles' pitcher Andrew Albers commented “I think the signs out there are a pretty good idea, gets the crowd into it and really helps them get involved.”