Covid-19: Development of A Robotic Disinfection System for Covid-19

新冠肺炎的爆发给加拿大和世界各地带来了损失，影响和威胁着我们的生活。为了遏制传播，各级政府已经宣布了几项措施，如社交距离、洗手和戴口罩。病毒传播的一个主要途径是通过接触受污染的物体和表面，因为新冠肺炎病原体可以在几小时到几天的较长时间内保持传染性。因此，迫切需要为包括医院和长期护理设施在内的公共场所寻找有效的消毒方法。然而，现有的非接触消毒方法要么是基于化学物质的，要么是基于紫外线的，都对人体有害。为了解决这一问题，拟议的研究的目标是开发一种对操作员安全的非接触式机器人消毒方法。具体地说，将研究两种对人体危害小得多的消毒方法：1)蓝光和2)加热空气。将开发两种相应的计算机控制消毒装置，并进行测试和比较。机器人系统将由一个移动平台、一个机器人和一个消毒装置组成。目标是在5-10分钟内在目标位置进行快速设置以进行操作。通过使用机器人来减少人类直接参与非接触式消毒过程的需要，我们将同时降低目前暴露在危险环境中的工人的健康风险，并提供一种高效的公共设施消毒和消毒手段。该项目将与加拿大一家领先的机器人公司(工程服务公司-ESI)和一名在内科和毒理学方面具有专业知识的医疗专业人员合作进行。在新冠肺炎全球大流行的直接危机之后，发达的系统将继续广泛适用于公共空间的消毒。因此，该项目的成果将确保在这个艰难的时期和未来许多年的公共安全和福祉，并在降低未来不仅是新冠肺炎，而且是其他细菌和病毒污染物扩散的风险方面产生长期和重大的影响。

The outbreak of COVID-19 has taken its toll on Canada and around the world, impacting and threatening our life. To curtail the spread, all levels of government have announced several measures such as social distancing, hand washing, and mask-wearing. One main route of viral transmission is through touching contaminated objects and surface areas because COVID-19 pathogens can remain infectious for extended periods of time from hours to days. For this reason, there is an imminent demand to find effective disinfection methods for public settings including hospitals and long-term care facilities. However, existing non-contact disinfection methods which are either chemical-based or UV light-based, are both hazardous to humans. To resolve this issue, the objective of the proposed research is to develop a non-contact robotic disinfection method that is safe to the operator. Specifically, two disinfection methods that are much less harmful to humans will be investigated: 1) blue light and 2) heated air. Two corresponding disinfection devices with computer control will be developed, tested and compared. The robotic system will consist of a moving platform, a robot, and a disinfection device. The goal is to have a quick set up at a target location for operation within 5-10 minutes. By using a robot to reduce the need for humans to be directly involved in non-contact disinfection processes we will simultaneously reduce health risks to workers who are currently exposed to hazardous environments and provide an efficient means of disinfecting and sanitizing public settings. This project will be conducted in collaboration with a leading Canadian robotics company (Engineering Services Inc.- ESI) and a medical professional with expertise in Internal Medicine and Toxicology. Developed systems will continue to be widely applicable for the disinfection of public spaces beyond the immediate crisis of the COVID - 19 global pandemic. The outcome of the project will therefore ensure public safety and wellbeing in this arduous time and for many years to come with long-lasting and significant impact in reducing risks for the spread of not only COVID - 19, but also other bacterial and viral contaminants in future.