Robots to mop floors, assist doctors in AIIMS' COVID-19 ward

Now, a robot will mop the advanced COVID-19 ward in the premier All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the national capital while another will help doctors to monitor and interact with patients.

An artificial intelligence-powered robots -- iMap 9 and Humanoid ELF -- developed by consumer robotics brand Milagrow will be deployed in AIIMS on a test basis.

Milagrow iMap 9 is a floor disinfecting robot that navigates and sanitise the floors without any human intervention. The makers claim that it can destroy COVID-19 spores on floor surfaces using sodium hypochlorite solution as prescribed by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

A statement by Milagrow said the robot moves around autonomously without falling, avoiding obstruction while planning its own path, guided by LIDAR and advanced SLAM technology.

"Its Real-Time Terrain Recognition Technology (RT2RT) scans at 360 degrees, six times per second to make a floor map in real-time with an accuracy of up to 8mm over a 16m distance. This enables the iMap 9 to perform successfully in the first attempt, whereas other robots can take twice or thrice the time. Additionally, the robot can do zoning, virtual blocking of avoidable areas and sequential cleaning of zones based on specific needs," it said.

Armed with 60 sensors and 3D tracking and HD cameras, the 92-cm tall Humanoid ELF enables doctors to monitor and interact with patients remotely with no person-to-person contact, which significantly reducing the transmission risk. Patients can also interact with their relatives from time to time through this robot.

"The Humanoid ELF can navigate around the ward independently and record the activities in high definition video and audio. Offering 8 hours of battery life, it can travel about 2.9 km per hour...The advanced humanoid features eyes with emotion, Open API for further development, and customization. Both the Milagrow iMap 9 and Humanoid ELF come with the auto charging feature," it said.

AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria was quoted as saying in the statement, “Milagrow Floor Robot iMap 9.0 and Milagrow Humanoid will be tried at AIIMS."

Milagrow founder Chairman Rajeev Karwal said countries like the United States, China, and Italy have already successfully implemented AI-based robots at health facilities to minimize human intervention in treating COVID-19 patients, and India can replicate the same to provide some relief to its frontline healthcare workers in their battle against coronavirus. As the outbreak continues to rise alarmingly, our state-of-the-art robots will help check the virus spread and protect the doctors, nurses, and caregivers from getting infected.”