Screen protector bubbles on your iPhone could be a thing of the past with Kawasaki's new robot

Kawasaki this week showed off an industrial robot called "duAro" that can perfectly apply a screen protector to Apple's iPhone with no trapped air bubbles, accomplished in conjunction with Aldebaran and SoftBank's humanoid Pepper robot.

The duAro display was a part of this week's Pepper World in Tokyo, Kotaku noted on Thursday. In online video, the machine can be seen peeling film off the protectors before neatly applying them in a way that eliminates air bubbles.

The duAro is equipped with twin arms which can work together while taking up minimal space. A linked Pepper unit can accept tasks and pass them along, Japan's ITmedia said.

Unlike many advanced robots, the Pepper is actually available to both businesses and the public. Its signature feature is the ability to react to the emotions in a person's voice and expression -- from there it can serve a variety of purposes, in part through its support for apps.

Conceivably, the duAro or some equivalent could make its way to Apple stores and make it easier to apply screen protectors. While the company already has some machines for the task, a duAro could automate the procedure, possibly even letting customers do it themselves.