Human Friendly Robotics
Human Friendly Robotics develops Tyler, an autonomous flooring robot that installs ceramic tile, LVT, VCT, and carpet tile on commercial jobsites. A single operator running Tyler achieves roughly 800 square feet of ceramic placement per day—eight times a tile setter's manual output—while crews retain responsibility for cuts, edges, and finishing. The company prices its work per installed square foot.
- Robotics
- Construction Technology
- Hardware
Funding
Founders
Founder details are not available yet.
Product
Problem
Commercial flooring contractors face a severe shortage of skilled tile, vinyl, and carpet installers, with an aging workforce and persistent recruiting challenges constraining installation capacity. The US is projected to be short 349,000 installers by 2030, and 42% of surveyed construction firms report project delays due to worker shortages.
Solution
Human Friendly Robotics develops Tyler, an autonomous flooring robot that rolls onto commercial jobsites, scans the floor, and installs tile, vinyl, carpet, or VCT at about 100 square feet per hour with ±1 mm placement precision. A single operator manages the robot, which handles repetitive placement, heavy lifting, and precision execution while skilled installers retain responsibility for cuts, edges, finishing, and quality control. Tyler multiplies a tile setter's daily output by eight times, laying approximately 800 square feet per day compared to 100 by hand, and reduces the physical strain that shortens careers in the trade.
Target Audience
Primary customers are commercial flooring subcontractors and construction firms that need to expand installation capacity without hiring additional skilled labor, including large networks like Starnet Commercial Flooring's ~200 member subcontractors.
Features
- Autonomous floor scanning and layout planning with onboard sensors, eliminating chalk lines and manual setout
- ±1 mm placement precision across full runs, within ANSI standards for rectified tile
- 50-lb chassis that drives onto any jobsite with no rails, civil works, or install crew required
- Handles tile, LVT, carpet, and VCT materials at ~100 sq ft/hour placement rate
- Operates with one on-site operator via tablet interface, with crews handling edges and cuts
- Supports overnight or around-the-clock installation through staffed shifts where conditions permit