PUCK’s concept is derived from the issue of hospitality workers receiving fewer tips because society has moved towards being a cashless society. Surveys were carried out which found that customers’ preferred method of leaving a tip was in cash. This is because they had confidence that the tip would actually go to that waiter or waitress rather than to the company who then may take part of it. Since COVID-19, cash has become obsolete and is slowly being drawn out of society which, as a result, has meant customers’ desired method of tipping is becoming unavailable. Therefore, this is causing a decline in hospitality workers’ tips which make up a large chunk of their wages. PUCK has been developed to tackle this issue and make contactless tipping feel like customers are leaving change on the table for the waiter or waitress but in a cashless society.

PUCK is a virtual Service assistant which optimises the restaurant experience for the customer and the servers. On standby, it acts as a table number which allows customers to be aware of what table number they are when ordering on a digital platform. If a customer needs service however, they can tap the device to turn an ambient light on which makes the waiter aware that the customer needs seeing too. When the customer is ready, they can pay their bill for the table from the device via contactless payment. From there the customer can choose to leave a tip and/or feedback to a specific waiter or waitress.

The PUCK App gives hospitality workers access to their tips from their phone at any time and allows them to withdraw them at any time straight into their bank account. The PUCK App also allows workers to see their reviews and store them in a portfolio for future use.