IIT Kanpur-incubated company to launch automatic disinfectant chambers

An IIT Kanpur-incubated company is set to launch a series of automatic disinfectant chambers that would help reduce the risk of people catching COVID-19 when they visit public places, the institute director said on Thursday.

"One of the first products that is going through the rigorous testing is the intelligent disinfectant chamber" IIT-Kanpur Director Abhay Karandikar said.

Dr Nikhil Agarwal, CEO of IIT Kanpur incubator said, "CuproHealthtech is launching the disinfectant chambers. We are working with the team closely to ensure the best possible support”.

Disinfectant chambers are closed cabins where disinfectant is sprayed on the individual to sanitize or disinfect him or her completely.

The chamber will determine the temperature of the person before allowing him or her to enter and the AI-powered camera will record the face of the individual and moderate the entry of the individuals, Karandikar said in a release.

He said the chamber will sanitise individuals from top to bottom within seconds, and asserted that the whole process is completely automatic and free of any human intervention.

As people go out in pubic spaces after the coronavirus-triggered lockdown is lifted, the IIT-Kanpur director said, they will be prone to getting infected from belongings of others including clothes and shoes. He said hand sanitizers and face masks may not guarantee complete protection.

CuproHealthTech is a health technology firm based out of Hyderabad. Cupro is incubated at Foundation for Innovation and Research in Science & Technology (FIRST) –- a technology incubator of IIT-Kanpur.