110 MAY2020|COMPUTERSHOPPER|ISSUE387
CORONAVIRUS HELP
Thecoronavirusoutbreakhasaccelerated
theadoptionof medicalandassistance
robotsinChina,withreportssuggesting
theirusehasbeensparkedby ashortage
of staff,aswell asconcernsaboutthe
spreadof thedisease.Insomeareas,
telepresenceorvideoconferencingbots
are beingusedto monitorpatientsor
allow physiciansto communicateremotely,
whichishelpfulwhensomanypatientsare
underquarantine.
Buttheuseof roboticsisgoingfurther
thanferryingacameraandtabletbetween
beds.Localreportssaythatdisinfecting
botsarecleaningtwohospitals,while
others areusingrobotsto delivermeals
and medicineto patients,andto collect
dirtybedsheetsandrubbish.
Robotsarealsomakingdeliveriesin
areasunderquarantineoutsideof hospitals.
Chinesemediareportsshowvideosof a
rollingdronecalledPeanutcarryingmealsto
thousandsof travellersinisolationata
hotelinHangzhou,callingout‘Hello
everyone,cuteLittle Peanutisservingyou
food’.Reportssuggestdronesmaybeused
morewidelyto makedeliverieswithoutthe
riskof spreadingthevirus.
Suchtechnologyisn’tlimitedto China.
In theUS,apatientinSeattleisbeing
monitoredviaInTouchHealth’sVicirobot,
whichcancheckvitalsignsviaa
stethoscopeandallowvideoconferencing,
whileotherhospitalshaveturnedto the
XenexLightStrike,whichrollsthrough
roomswithanultravioletlightto help
disinfectionagainstdiseasesincluding
coronavirus.Asimilarrobotcalled
GermFalconisdoingthesamedisinfection-
via-lighttrickforaeroplanes.
consistentlyperformjustonerepetitive
taskona24/7basis,aftertakingalot
oftime,effortandmoneyfortraining,”
Rayexplains.
“Smartrobotsaredesignedfor
flexibility.Theycanlearnbyexample:
human employees can teach them new
tasks by simply moving their arm and
recording the movement. Sensors allow
smart robots to operateinspace,
knowing their environment and
stopping when somebody or something
gets in its way. Sensoryawareness
makes these robots able to work
alongside humans and other robots.”
Robots maytakeour jobs, but smart
ones are likely to work alongside us.
FALLINGDOWN
Some of that mobility and automation
is already on show.Robots are building
cars and optimising warehouses, but
they’re in wider use in more dramatic
fashion, too, showing there’s no
question robots are coming on leaps
and bounds, although sometimes it’s
more of atrip or stumble.
Perhaps the best example of robotic
feats of prowess, and the hilarity that
can ensue,isBoston Dynamics, once
owned by Google.The company makes
military robots, which naturally raises
Terminator concerns –and the
machines are terrifying to watch.
Head over to YouTube (www.youtube.
com/user/BostonDynamics), and you’ll
see humanoid robots performing
parkour,four-legged machines with
demonic digital faces clambering up
stairs, and amass of metaland cabling
that can run faster than Usain Bolt.
On the other hand, there are
compilations of that same humanoid
robot falling over after failing to place
apackage on ashelf,‘dogs’ slipping in
the snow,and other four-legged
⬆PeanutisdeliveringfoodinChinesehospitals
contraptionsbeingkickedoverwith
ease.Though they’d be terrifying
deployed alongside soldiers, such
machinery is laughable at adistance
over the internet; if this is the best
the well-motivated and well-funded
military and its suppliers can do,other
industries don’t have much hope.
Take,for example,the Knightscope
K5, arolling robot equipped with
cameras to act as asecurity guard,
which infamously fell intoafountain in
Washington, DC –atleast it only hurt
itself.Another version of the same
security bot also reportedly knocked
over atoddler at an American mall.
Sometimes the product works, but it’s
less sensational than it sounds.
Some robots are technically
impressive,but not worth the effort.
“WITHOUTROBOTS,OUR
CURRENTSOCIETYMAY
LOOKVERYDIFFERENT”
⬆BostonDynamics
leadsthewaywith
humanandcanine
automatons
