One takeaway we have from the USPS study preference for the "helper robot" is that people tend to prefer new technologies to be rolled out gradually and with human oversight, but once people become familiar with the technology, the feedback becomes increasingly positive. The public is just beginning to become exposed to collaborative robots in public spaces. People may not be aware of them, but they're already among us, working their way into delivery, retail stores and service industries such as hospitals, hotels and airports. In fact, collaborative robots can be seen as the “everyday robot," and their usefulness will quickly outweigh any doubts people have about accepting them into our lives.
Once you've cleared the hurdle of acceptance, you've opened the door for refinement and specification of functions, and finally, scale. Think of it this way: few of us can imagine life without our personal smartphones, yet at one time the smartphone was just another innovative concept many people didn't see a need for. Perhaps we will continue to see a variety of purpose-built collaborative robots in the next 5-10 years, along with a widespread use across several industries.