Introducing Rosie, the new security
robot patrolling LeFrak City
The newest member of LeFrak
City’s security team roams
the campus on freezing
nights without a coat, knows no fear
and never takes a dinner break. She
never even stops for coff ee – though
she does require regular trips to a
charging pad.
Th at would be Rosie, an autonomous
security robot who’s been patrolling
the grounds since September
23, helping her fl esh-and-blood colleagues
keep LeFrak City safe around
the clock.
Standing fi ve feet tall and weighing
in at some 400 pounds, she’s the
fi rst robot of her kind working in a
residential setting in New York City.
Others have been used in commercial
spaces such as malls.
“It gives us another set of eyes on
the area,” says Randi Koch Nir, the
Director of Residential Lease Enforcement
for LeFrak City. “She’s become
a great community advocate.”
Ms. Nir calls Rosie and her security
role “part of our new LeFrak
City, and the way we’re developing
common spaces that are resident
friendly and that people can use for
their intended purposes.”
Rosie is equipped with a 360-degree
security camera, which takes
in everything within sight as she
passes through. And she’s got smart
features that alert the security dispatcher
14 DECEMBER 2017 | WWW.QNS.COM | LEFRAK CITY COURIER
when something is amiss,
such as movement in an area that’s
closed for the night.
Rosie also records what she sees,
leaving a video record that’s stored
on the cloud, which could provide
clues or evidence if she were to happen
upon criminal activity.
“We haven’t caught any crime on
it or had to use it for anything forensically,
but just her presence is a deterrent,”
says Ms. Nir – who named
the robot after Rosie Jetson, which
readers of a certain age will remember
as the humanoid housecleaner
on “The Jetsons,” the animated 60s
cartoon set in an automated future.
Rosie runs 24 hours a day, seven
days a week, stopping only for
20-minute recharges every three
hours. She “knows” when to return
to the charging station and does it
on her own – and the company she’s
leased from monitors her condition
around the clock.
“They can do diagnostics remotely,
so when she’s not feeling well
they know it, and they can give her
what she needs,” says Ms. Nir.
No doubt many residents were
startled on first encountering the
patrolling robot – who’s currently
sporting a snow-woman costume
for the holidays – but she’s become a
familiar sight to many as she makes
her rounds, and a popular one.
“It seems to make people happy,”
says Ms. Nir. “And kids love her.”
And Rosie offers yet another benefi
t, notes Ms. Nir: “She never calls in
sick.”
PHOTOS: DEAN MOSES
Randi Koch Nir, the Director of Residential Lease Enforcement, with her newest security asset.