The robot detects groups of people who break social-distancing rules and navigates to them. From there, it encourages them to stand two meters apart from each other. (Image Credit: Sathyamoorthy et al., 2021, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0)
According to previous research, staying at least two meters away from other people helps reduce the spread of COVID-19. Using WiFi and Bluetooth-based technology could help detect and discourage social-distancing lapses. However, this approach relies on participating from individuals or infrastructures, but what if robots were deployed instead? Researchers at the University of Maryland developed an autonomous mobile robot that enforces social-distancing rules by navigating toward people not practicing the mandate, encouraging them to move further apart.
With its Red Green Blue-Depth (RGB-D) camera and 2D LiDAR sensor implementation, the robot can detect breaches and navigate to them, encouraging people to move apart through text on its display. It also utilizes a system that sorts people breaking social-distancing rules into different categories based on whether they are standing still or moving. The system deploys Deep Reinforcement Learning and Frozone, an algorithm designed to help robots move through crowds.
The team tested their technique by instructing volunteers to break social-distancing rules while standing still, walking, or moving erratically. Overall, the robot detected and addressed many breaches while tapping into CCTV, which improved its performance. The robot features a thermal camera that can determine if people have a fever, helping with contact tracing. At the same time, it implements measures that provide privacy protection and de-identification.
The researchers need to study the system further to refine and validate the technique, which involves observing how a robot’s presence affects people’s behavior in crowds. The authors add: "A lot of healthcare workers and security personnel had to put their health at risk to serve the public during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our work's core objective is to provide them with tools to safely and efficiently serve their communities."
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