A canine-like mobile robot named Dr. Spot could advance medical treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic by providing a new connection between patients in isolation and doctors who need to see it.
The four-legged robot is designed to aid evaluations by having the dog machine with a video camera attached to a doctor visit patients who need to be isolated, reports the New York Post.
“Early in the pandemic, we wanted to help protect healthcare professionals from the virus by limiting their exposure to potential COVID-infected patients,” said Giovanni Traverso, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering in Massachusetts who worked on the project. said. .
“We asked ourselves whether we could do this by incorporating robotic systems into healthcare environments, and whether patients would be willing to engage with robots during their evaluation,” he said.
In a new study published this month, Traverso and colleagues Peter Chai and Henwei Huang described how patients respond to robots’ medical attention.
“People are very positive and accept robotic systems in healthcare settings, especially during the pandemic,” Traverso said.
Dr Spot, a robot built to help doctors see patients without direct contact during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic
The robot, developed by MIT and Boston Dynamics, can perform small procedures, such as assessing vital signs, taking nasal swabs and inserting intravenous catheters.
The researchers conducted a nationwide survey among 1,000 people to analyze their thoughts on receiving medical services from robots.
“We have found that people across the country are willing to engage in robots, especially systems that facilitate telehealth and systems that facilitate the measurement of vital signs such as heart rate, respiratory rate and oxygen levels,” Traverso said.
Giovanni Traverso is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering in Massachusetts, who helped Dr. Spot to develop
The researchers then collaborated with engineering and robotics design firm Boston Dynamics in nearby Waltham, Massachusetts, to find Dr. Spot to build.
Dr. Spot is made of aluminum, plastic and circuit boards and, like some other robotic doctors, can perform minor procedures, including assessing vital signs, taking nasal swabs, and inserting intravenous catheters.
“It takes a few months to build a robot,” said Marco da Silva, chief engineer at Boston Dynamic, which is owned by SoftBank Group Corp.
Boston Dynamics’ product offerings start at about $ 74,500, with the option for additional customizations costing more than $ 20,000 each, the website says.
Da Silva said another six weeks are needed to construct the specialized software and modifications needed to give Spot the ability to perform patient reviews.
Marco da Silva, a chief robot at Boston Dynamic who worked on the Dr. Spot project worked
Researchers have found Drs. Spot proposed to 40 patients in the emergency department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
The team has installed an iPad-based Spot, which features a person-to-person real-time video that enables doctors and nurses to conduct telesealth interviews with patients while controlling the robot remotely.
The robo-doc’s sophisticated cameras and computer systems that can identify a face, even when a patient is wearing a mask. It can also determine body temperature, respiration and pulse rate and use special lens filters to determine oxygen saturation in blood.
People are standing on the lawn outside building 10 on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts
The Boston Dynamics headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts. The robotics and engineering firm worked with MIT to provide the Dr. Spot project to work
“Overall, patients in the emergency department responded very favorably to Dr. Spot, especially as it reduces the risk of COVID exposure from person to person,” Traverso said.
More than 90 percent of the patients reported that their interaction with the robot was satisfactory and said they were willing to communicate with more robotic systems, the study said.
“Robotics are already used to some extent in hospital settings,” Traverso said. “But in the COVID-19 environment, we see that robotic systems can play an important role in healthcare based on people’s high acceptance.”