Armed with disinfectant, South Korean robot tackle coronavirus spread
Seoul - A self-driving robot equipped with cameras and an LED screen greets visitors at the lobby in the headquarters of South Korea's largest mobile operator, checking their temperature, dispensing hand sanitiser and disinfecting the floor.
"Please take part in social distancing," the white robot firmly but politely reminds three SK Telecom employees who stand chatting nearby.
Having largely managed to contain an epidemic that infected more than 11,000 and killed 269, South Korea is transitioning from intensive social distancing towards what the government calls "distancing in daily life".
The robot, developed jointly by SK Telecom and Omron Electronics Korea, an industrial automation solution provider, transmits data to its server in real time, powered by the telecom company's fifth-generation (5G) technology.
It sets off an alarm if anyone's temperature is over 37.5 Celsius (99.5 Fahrenheit), while using artificial intelligence (AI) to detect gatherings and advise people to disperse. Those not wearing a mask will be reminded to put one on.
"The robot helps minimise people-to-people contact and reduce time that's taken for temperature checks at the entrance, and the AI technology raises accuracy," said Ra Kyhong-hwan, head of data business cooperation at SK Telecom and one of the developers.
Armed with ultraviolet lamps and two disinfectant sprayers, the robot can disinfect 99% of 33 square metres (355 square feet) of surface area in 10 minutes, the company said.
The developers added a function to hide faces mirrored in the screen to protect people's privacy, Ra said.
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A customer can place an order through a QR code, and the robot, called Delitower, would pick up food from the restaurant or a delivery rider and bring it straight to the customer's location.
"We've been testing delivery robots since last year and are seeking to adopt them at the offices, hotels and residential complexes as more people find robots to be useful amid the coronavirus outbreak and social distancing," an official at Woowa Brothers told Reuters.
See the full story here: https://www.iol.co.za/technology/gadgets/armed-with-disinfectant-south-korean-robot-tackle-coronavirus-spread-48791375