Spencer is a customer service robot, introduced by Dutch airline KLM, that will soon be helping out passengers flying through and out of Schiphol Airport in the Dutch capital Amsterdam.

Schiphol is a popular transit point for many flyers. However flyers who don't speak the language or have difficulty navigating around airports could use a little bit of extra help to make sure they don't miss their flights, and this is where Spencer comes on. This customer robot language can guide travelers through airports in different languages.

This customer service robot uses programmed map data, accelerometers and range-finding lasers to move through the airport.

This robot isn't just some fun gimmick but could go some way towards reducing the costs that are incurred when passengers miss their flights.

The Snake Monster robot is a peculiar new robot, developed by engineers at Carnegie Mellon University, that has six spidery legs and walks much like a spider. This robot is marked out by its easily reconfigurable platform that uses modular system architecture that can be used to govern robots with a wide array of configurations.

Each Snake Monster robot weighs around 8 kg and is fitted with six multi-jointed legs that each offer a reach of about 30 cm. The robot has a rectangular body and in its present form is supplied with power via an umbilical tether. The robot is capable of moving in any given direction and even boasts the ability to climb over obstacles.

The Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot is a robot, being developed by the US Office of Naval Research, which -- as its name suggests -- will be used to fight fires that break out inside ships and other naval vessels. The robot may itself be aided by an autonomous drone.

The way it will work is that the drone will be sent into dark, smoke-filled hallways and will fly around looking for fires. When it spots a fire, it will transmit its location to the Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot, which will arrive at the location.

In demos, the drone was able to fit inside the ship's 26-inch-wide hatches. However, this required the use of small propellers, reducing the drone's efficiency. However this is one of many areas being addressed by the robot's developers.

The AutoSub6000 is an autonomous robotic submarine that is being used by the UK's National Oceanography Centre to explore life forms on the deep sea floor. This submarine, which is equipped with a high-resolution photography system, is more effective at identifying deep-sea life than usual scientific trawling methods.

This impressive machine is capable of autonomously traveling through pre-programmed deep-sea routes without a tether. It continuously maps the sea floor as it traverses the deep sea. It is capable of accessing depths of up to 6,000 meters and staying there for up to 70 hours per a full charge of its lithium-polymer battery pack.

The robotic submarine captures photos of the sea floor using its downward-facing camera. The images are then analyzed by scientists to identify the creatures that are captured in them.

American startup RaptorMaps is developing a way to use drones to make crop mapping easier for farmers. Keeping track of crops' health is important but excruciatingly difficult for farmers; these drones will help ease the process, hopefully boosting farm harvests.

RaptorsMaps' project is being supported by a $100,000 cheque from MIT. The drones themselves are designed to fly over farms while capturing multispectral images. The system then uses data analytics to identify unhealthy crops. Damage caused by pests, weed or disease can all be depicted. Data picked up by the drones is relayed to the cloud, allowing farmers on the ground to effectively maintain and deal with their crops.

While many people associate drones with war and violence, these crop mapping drones show that the technology can be used, in the words of RaptorsMaps co-founder Forrest Meyen, to "feed the world".

Scientists from the University of California, Berkeley and Singapore's Nanyang University have managed to create a cyborg beetle by strapping on a high-tech backpack to its body that allowed them to remotely control its flight. The backpack is equipped with six electrodes that are wired to the beetles optic lobes and flight muscles. Incredibly, the backpack consists of little more than a commercially available microcontroller, a wireless transmitter/receiver and a micro lithium battery.

Studying insects in flight is difficult, but this sci-fi-like technology makes it easier than ever. Additionally, the cyborg beetle project can do more than expand the field of entomology or insect study. It could eventually be used to create cyborg animals capable of accessing hard-to-reach areas and assisting in search-and-rescue missions for example.

Researchers at the Institute for Simulation and Training at the University of Central Florida are developing mechanical robotic humanoids which could be used for military training. The initiative is part of a program by the Office of Naval Research to create remotely controlled robots and avatars for military training.

With this technology, military trainers will be able to use artificial intelligence, voice modulation and head-tracking software to control multiple surrogates and switch between different characters and sites.

The development of these robotic humanoids goes to show that technology can always be leveraged to reduce costs and time taken to complete a particular task, especially if it is difficult to find people with the knowledge and experience to perform that specific task.

The 'Fotokite Phi' is like a hybrid of an autonomous photography drone and a selfie stick that brings together the best features of robotics, entertainment and aerial photography. True to the toy-like appearance of the camera drone and its packaging, this device is a fun quadcopter on a leash that works in the same way as leading around a flying robotic pet on a string.

Considering that some establishments have banned selfie sticks and drones for photography, Perspective Robotics' Fotokite Phi is a safe alternative that allows people to take photos above the heads of others in crowds without blocking sight lines.

Perspective Robotics already has been given special permission from some European countries so that this photography device can be used near crowds, but it is also looking for approval from the Federal Aviation Administration, since the device isn't technically a drone or a UAV.

The Nobot is a robot that, rather being controlled entirely by a software algorithm, is largely controlled remotely by a human being. The device's Indiegogo campaign describes the concept as being akin to "a person in a robot suit". Nobot controllers can use the robot to help them around the house even if they don't know a thing about programming, while the actual controller of the Nobot gets to earn money from home.

The idea is to set up a marketplace where Nobot operators can connect with robot owners, who employ the operators to get the robot to do various things whether it's laundry, gardening or even childcare.

While household robots aren't novel anymore, Nobot's creation of an entire marketplace around the product and service is truly revolutionary.

If you are just starting out with drones, the Micro Drone 3.0 from Extreme Fliers is a great model for beginners. The affordable quad-copter is small enough to fit in the size of your palm.

The customizable consumer drone is also equipped with an HD camera and has auto-levelling capabilities. Using motion sensors to fly in straight lines, the Micro Drone 3.0 weighs only 71 grams. It not only has a built-in camera, it also livestreams content to directly to streaming service Meerkat. Using a smartphone app, it can be piloted from up to 50 feet away or 300 feet using a remote control instead. Its modular design supports a number of 3D printed add-ons, so you can upgrade it as your get more comfortable.

Robear is an experimental nursing care robot, designed by Sumitoko Riko COmpany Limited and RIKEN, that brings together cutting-edge robotics and thoughtful design.

The robot is designed not merely to make up for the dearth of human carers, but to also save them from carrying out strenuous tasks such as lifting patients out of bed. The robotic bear can lift patients out of bed, place them in a wheelchair, help them to stand and help turn them in bed to prevent bed sores.

With Japan's population aging rapidly, there is a vital need for technological innovations geared towards taking care of this population, especially as the country's birth rate has plummeted sharply. The Robear could be a breakthrough piece of technology in this regard.

Wearable technology has reached a point that enables people to track and monitor just about any behavior; yet good habits aren't born strictly from that. People not only need to put into practice the actions they want to keep up, but also reinforce it in a positive way. MOTI is a set of adorable robots that help form and keep good habits.

Founded by Kayla Matheus, the MOTI robots emit happy sounds and lights when people push the button after engaging in one of their good habits -- whether that's cooking a meal, getting up earlier or going out for a run. A visual cue as much as anything else, when a person glances at their MOTI, they'll be reminded to practice the good habits they wish to form and solidify.