Autoblog

Dutch inventors might have ushered in the return of the full-service station. Yet like so many other things being taken out of the hands of flesh and blood people, the new full-service could be an all-robot affair. The robot -- called the Tankpitstop robot -- is affixed to the bowser, and if it recognizes the make and model of car, and your gas cap doesn't need a key, it will open everything up and start pumping.

The creation is the brainchild of a gas station operator who said he saw a robot milking a cow, and figured that a robot could fill a car. Heck, if robots can build cars and fill their fluids, we figure there's no reason why they can't fill a tank. The question now is how to let drivers know that the robot knows how to fill your car. What you don't want is to pull up in your freshly-waxed ride and hear the robotic equivalent of "Hmmm, let's try this..." As it stands, the robot costs €75,000. No telling what a station's liability insurance will cost.

[Source: Reuters]