Robots in Kerala distribute masks and sanitizes, share information to spread awareness

Cochin: An unconventional battle has been waged by the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) against the spread of the novel coronavirus by using two robots.

Of the pair of computer-programmed machines developed by Asimov Robotics which is a startup incubated at KSUM in Kochi, one distributes masks, sanitizer and napkins in a bid to check Covid-19 while the other screens details about the World Health Organisations campaign to contain the disease, a press release said, news agency PTI reports.

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Asimov CEO Jayakrishnan T said a general public apathy towards preventive measures against the novel coronavirus has prompted the solutions-provider company to go for such a drive.

The use of robots in the campaign has invited public attention, also considering the propensity of the novel coronavirus to spread through human contact.

KSUM Chief Executive Officer Saji Gopinath said the institution was mulling over installing such robots in public places such as airports.

All startups being incubated at KSUM too were being given health guidelines in the context of coronavirus, he added.

Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor has also shared a video on Twitter that showed how the robots are interacting with visitors. The two robots one wearing a mask distribute hand sanitizers, napkins, and masks among people. The other robot also responds to queries.

“Robots dispensing sanitizer & #COVID2019 advice. In Kerala!!” Tharoor wrote and shared the video on Twitter.

The 2006-founded KSUM is a nodal agency of the Kerala government for entrepreneurship development and incubation activities in the state.