Robots

To make the train journey safe amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Northern Railways (NR) has deployed remote-controlled Ultraviolet-C disinfectant robots to sanitize the coaches. The robot approved by the Indian Council of Medical Research is said to be more effective than manual cleaning and provides 99.99% effectiveness. Lucknow has become the first city to adopt the robots and railways will also launch them soon for other trains.

A team of researchers from UC Berkeley, Facebook, and Carnegie Mellon University have collaboratively built a new class of AI-supported legged robots namely Rapid Motor Adaptation (RMA). The robots are equipped to traverse through unfamiliar terrain such as sand, mud, tall grass and dirt piles without falling. It has achieved a 70% success rate while walking down steps and 80% while navigating over piles of cement and pebbles.

Founder and Chairman of Milagrow Robots, Rajeev Karwal died due to COVID-19 on May 12. After working in top roles across leading electronic brands including Onida, LG, Philips, Electrolux and Reliance Digital, he started Milagrow in 2007. Moreover, the company gained popularity in 2020 when two Milagrow robots were deployed to assist doctors and healthcare workers in the COVID ward of AIIMS Delhi to prevent transmission of the virus.

Boston Dynamics, a robotic company, has uploaded a video of robots dancing on ‘Do you love me’ song on its YouTube channel that has gone viral. The viral video was re-shared even by Tesla owner Elon Musk on Twitter while stating that this was not computer graphics. The two-minute-long clip has featured four robots performing dance moves. A YouTube user commented, “The best thing of 2020!!! Made me smile!!”