Practical use of robots and related technologies in counteraction to COVID-19 pandemic

Practical use of robots and related technologies in counteraction to COVID-19 pandemic

Albert R. Efimov
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Robotics Laboratory, Head of Laboratory, 19, ul. Vavilova, Moscow, 117997, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50; National University of Science and Technology «MISIS» (NUST MISIS), Senior Lecturer, 4, Leninskiy pr., 119049, Moscow, Russia, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., ORCID: 0000-0001-6857-8659

Aleksei S. Gonnochenko
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Robotics Laboratory, Chief Technology Officer, 19, ul. Vavilova, Moscow, 117997, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Dmitry B. Payson
Doctor of Economics, PhD in Technical Sciences, PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Robotics La-boratory, Executive Director, 32-2, Kutuzovsky pr., Moscow, 121170, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., ORCID: 0000-0001-5963-9819

Yuriy I. Dyugovanets
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Robotics Laboratory, Head of Analytics, 32-2, Kutuzovsky pr., Moscow, 121170, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., ORCID: 0000-0003-0760-1864

Victor A. Tsygankov
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Robotics Laboratory, Chief Analyst, 32-2, Kutuzovsky pr., Moscow, 121170, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Svyatoslav D. Moroshkin
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Robotics Laboratory, Head of Mobile Robotics Domain, 32-2, Kutuzovsky pr., Moscow, 121170, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Boris I. Levitskii
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Center for medical products and services, Head of Department, 19, ul. Vavilova, Moscow, 117997, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Tatiana A. Volnova
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Department of technological development, Executive Director, 19, ul. Vavilova, Moscow, 117997, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Alexey V. Zuev
PJSC «Sberbank of Russia», Department of technological development, Leading Technology Expert, 19, ul. Vavilova, Moscow, 117997, Russia, tel.: +7(495)500-55-50, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Received 27 April 2020

Abstract
Traditionally, robotics mainly relates to activities which are described as DDD – Dull, Dirty, Dangerous. COVID-19 pandemic has turned to DDD many of common human activities – especially in medical care sphere. Significantly more in demand and more dangerous for the personnel became such mass jobs as disinfection, quarantine control, infected patients' treatment, and number of other crucial services. This transformation highlighted practical abilities of various kinds of service robots. An unexpected application was found for wheel- and caterpillar-mounted platforms, collaborative robots, unmanned autonomous ground and aerial delivery vehicles, etc. in helping healthcare workers and emergency services, while over a half of humankind found itself under contamination threat and quarantined. In the article, the authors inspected and summarized various organizations’ experience and practices undertaken to apply existing robotics solutions to prevent COVID-19 spreading. Considering complexity of such tasks and break-up of global supply chains, the use of mature (or at least tested) solutions which can be rapidly transformed to new applications is deemed the most feasible approach. The authors suppose, as of now, there are no reasonable prerequisites for identifying a leader of response to the pandemic among robotics companies, however, those players who is able to define and enter the advantageous emerging market segment, acquire good chances of business success.

Key words
Disinfection robot, delivery robot, telepresence, telemedicine, 3D-printing, medical certification, unmanned aerial vehicle, social robot, healthcare institute’s automation.

DOI
https://doi.org/10.31776/RTCJ.8201

Bibliographic description
Efimov, A. et al., 2020. Practical use of robots and related technologies in counteraction to COVID-19 pandemic. Robotics and Technical Cybernetics, 8(2), pp.87-100.

UDC identifier:
621.865.8:004.896:616-78:331.101.52

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