Robot Buying Guide

Before You Buy a Delivery Robot: A Site Survey Checklist for Gulf Restaurants and Hotels

Facts last checked: 2026-10-14 · Not legal advice

Scope. A walk-through checklist for restaurant, café and hotel operators in the Gulf who are looking at an indoor delivery or serving robot. It is based on KEENON’s published deployment material and manual, our model pages and official Dubai building guidance where it applies. It does not tell you that any model suits your site; only an on-site test by the supplier can show that. We give no prices and no performance or staffing figures. Anything we could not confirm says not verified .

1. Start from the route, not the robot

Draw the routes the robot will actually drive: kitchen pass or service station to each table zone, or lobby to each lift and corridor in a hotel. Then survey those routes. KEENON’s deployment slides sum up the conditions it recommends in four groups: ceiling, wall, floor and aisle.[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] The sections below follow the same order, then add network, lifts, charging and peak hours.

2. Measurements to take (mapped to our model pages)

Measure on siteHowCompare with (model page field)What KEENON publishes
Narrowest point on every route, at chair-back height with chairs occupiedTape measure at peak seating, not with an empty roomMinimum passage widthDocs-centre slide: T8 55 cm, T9 70 cm, T9 Pro 70 cm, T10 58.5 cm, T11 49 cm[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] (our T10 page shows 59 cm from KEENON’s product page, see section 8)
Space to turn at the ends of aisles and at table zonesMeasure the clear circleNot a field on our pagesT9 manual: minimum turning diameter 0.8 m[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] (other models not verified )
Steepest ramp or slope on the routeInclinometer app or rise ÷ runSlope angleSlide: up to 5° for T8, T9, T9 Pro, T10, T11;[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] W3 page: 7°
Thresholds, floor joints, lift-door gapsHeight of every step or lipNot a field on our pagesT9 manual: do not use where the height difference is greater than 1 cm[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] (other models not verified )
Carpet pile, rugs, matsThicknessNot a field on our pagesT9 manual: no carpet thicker than 1 cm[source, retrieved 2026-10-14]
Ceiling height over the routeLaser measureNot a field on our pagesSlides: ceiling lower than 8 m recommended; above that, visual localisation is affected[source, retrieved 2026-10-14]
Heaviest tray load and dish sizeWeigh a full orderPayload / tray sizeSee each model page

The T9 manual’s 1 cm, turning-diameter and carpet figures are from a single document: KEENON’s T9 manual (August 2023 edition), which we read from a copy hosted by a European distributor. We did not find it on a KEENON domain.

3. Floors, walls, glass and light

KEENON’s slides recommend:[source, retrieved 2026-10-14]

  • Floor: flat and tidy, no steps or drop-offs, no ditches or bumps, gentle slopes only. The T9 manual adds: no wet floors, and do not deploy near stairs or escalators unless protection such as fences is added.[source, retrieved 2026-10-14]
  • Black or reflective floors can affect the robot’s anti-fall sensors; KEENON’s fix is to draw no-drop-off areas on the map. The T9 manual similarly warns that pure black (such as skirting), reflective (mirrors) or fully transparent (floor-to-ceiling windows, glass doors) objects below 30 cm can interfere with the sensors.[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] Note marble, polished stone, mirrored columns and glass partitions on your routes.
  • Walls: solid, non-reflective, non-transparent, with features the lidar can detect. Slides also say there must be large fixed reference objects (walls, large columns) within 40 m in front of the robot, or it can lose its position.
  • Ceilings: non-transparent, no strong light source, with detectable features. Atriums with glass roofs and no solid walls are listed as a risk scenario.
  • Direct strong light can reduce visual localisation accuracy during mapping; the fix given is repeated scanning of that path.
  • Moving furniture: KEENON advises not running delivery tasks where tables and chairs are moved frequently, and notes that changing plants can cause position loss.

4. Terraces and outdoor seating

Many Gulf restaurants and hotels have terraces. KEENON’s slides treat outdoor areas as risk scenarios:[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] lidar cannot identify glass walls; outdoor sunlight may cause the robot to run slowly or behave abnormally; hollow fences and bushes are hard to recognise; open terraces without walls, uneven ground or no guardrails are “not recommended”, with a referral to KEENON’s technical staff for evaluation. The T9 manual describes the working environment as “indoor dry environment with flat ground”, and operating conditions of 0–40 °C and 20–80% RH.[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] Whether any model is rated for Gulf summer terraces is not verified ; plan for indoor routes.

5. Network, lifts and doors

  • Wi-Fi: the T9 manual lists 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi radios (2412–2472 MHz).[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] Check that your 2.4 GHz network reaches every point on the route, including corners and lift lobbies, and ask the supplier what signal strength and network settings it needs: KEENON’s minimum coverage requirement is not verified . Radios also need Gulf type approval, see radio type approval.
  • Lifts (hotels): KEENON says the W3 rides elevators “via IoT”; the lift integration itself has to be arranged with your building and lift company. What hardware and lift-maker approvals that needs is not verified . Note each lift’s maker, model, door width and car depth, and the gap and level difference at the landing. For the questions to ask the robot maker, building and lift company, see lift and door integration.
  • Doors: list every door on the route: automatic, manual, fire doors held open or closed. Whether a model can open or trigger doors is not verified unless the model page says so.
  • Keep exits clear. In Dubai, the Universal Design Code asks for internal corridor widths of at least 1000 mm per simultaneous pedestrian, with a 1500 mm turning space at direction changes.[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] Dubai Civil Defence’s FAQ on the UAE Fire and Life Safety Code gives a minimum clear width of 1200 mm for corridors serving 50 or more occupants (seen through search on 2026-10-14; the DCD site did not open from our box, so this is not verified ). Do not plan robot parking, charging or waiting points in corridors, exit routes or in front of fire doors. How a robot is treated under these codes, and the rules in Saudi Arabia and the other GCC states, are not verified ; ask your fire-safety consultant.

6. Charging and storage

From the T9 manual:[source, retrieved 2026-10-14]

  • Place the charging pile on a flat surface, fix it firmly and do not move it after setup. Its position is set with KEENON’s deployment tool.
  • Keep 0.5 m in front of and around the pile clear (from the troubleshooting table).
  • Storage: −15 °C to 45 °C, 20–80% RH. A store room without air conditioning in summer may be outside that range: not verified for your site, so measure it.

KEENON’s slides add that patterned wall features behind the charging station can stop the robot finding it; move the station to a flat wall or place a plain board behind it.[source, retrieved 2026-10-14] Note a mains socket near the chosen spot. Whether a charging pile is included differs by model (see each model page’s charging pile row).

7. Peak-hour test plan

Ask for an on-site trial at your busiest service, not a quiet afternoon. Before it, agree in writing:

  • the routes and table zones to be mapped, and who does the mapping;
  • the busiest hour to test, with normal seating, staff traffic and children;
  • what counts as a stop, a reroute or a failed delivery, and who records them;
  • charging timing around service hours (charging times are on each model page);
  • what happens to mapping data afterwards.

We do not publish success rates or staffing savings: none are verified.

8. Reading our model pages against your survey

  • Compare your narrowest measured point with minimum passage width, and your steepest ramp with slope angle, on the T8, T9, T10 and W3 pages, or side by side in the T8 vs T9 vs T10 comparison.
  • Conflict to note: KEENON’s docs-centre slide gives the T10 a 58.5 cm minimum passage width; KEENON’s T10 product page (used on our model page) gives 59 cm. Use the larger figure until KEENON clarifies.
  • Our pages give the manufacturer’s stated figures. They are not test results for your site.

9. Checklist

  • Route map drawn: service points, table zones, lifts, charging spot.
  • Narrowest point measured at peak seating; turning space at aisle ends.
  • Steepest slope, every threshold and lift-landing gap measured.
  • Carpet, rugs, wet zones (kitchen exits, pool decks) noted.
  • Black, polished, mirrored and glass surfaces below 30 cm noted.
  • Ceiling height, glass roofs, direct sunlight noted.
  • Terraces kept out of the robot route unless the supplier assesses them.
  • 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi checked along the whole route.
  • Lift maker, model and door details collected (hotels).
  • Charging spot: flat wall, socket, 0.5 m clear, not in an exit route; store-room temperature checked.
  • Peak-hour trial agreed in writing.
  • Gulf import steps planned: documents, radio approval, batteries, landed cost.

10. What we could not confirm

  • Turning diameter, threshold height and carpet limits for models other than the T9.
  • KEENON’s Wi-Fi coverage or signal requirement.
  • What the W3’s lift integration requires.
  • Whether any model is rated for outdoor terraces in Gulf summer conditions.
  • The DCD corridor figure (search only) and how fire codes treat robots; Saudi and other GCC rules.
  • AGIBOT delivery products: we have no AGIBOT delivery model page, so this checklist uses KEENON material only.

Sources used

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