European company develops mobile robots that are autonomous and multi-tasking

Madrid (Spain), September 19 (ANI): An European company has developed innovative robots which are mobile, multifunctional, collaborative, autonomous and polyvalent, suitable for a wide range of work from street cleaning and rubbish collection to accompanying elderly people.

According to a report carried out in www.basqueresearch.com, this new generation of robots have been developed by TECNALIA Technological Corporation, and are a part of the European DUSTBOT research project under the remit of the VI European Framework Programme and in which TECNALIA is participating.

These latest generation robots are suitable for the monitoring of large spaces (open and closed), as guides for persons in large shopping areas (indicating to them where a particular shop or product is within a shopping centre), for accompanying elderly people or those with certain disabilities (both at home and outside), thanks to their functions of orientation, navigation, communications with others or tele-assistance centres.

They can also be used as guides in teaching spaces (museums, visitor centres), and for transport, storage and transport and goods deliveries, besides the cleaning of both open and closed surfaces, which have either difficult or easy access.

DUSTBOT has collaborative, multifunctional and autonomous robots that are capable of operating in partially destructured environments/situations based on information provided by a map.

The robots can also facilitate working in large areas, stations, airports and other types of public buildings, without being any obstacle for the activity of these places, given its reduced size, and without being a danger for members of the public, thanks to the novel system for the detection and avoidance of obstacles.

The rail station of the Euskotren company in the Bilbao neighbourhood of Atxuri in Spain was chosen for the public presentation of these devices.

The demonstration of two robot models was undertaken: the DustCart and the DustClean.

The DustCart robot, measuring 1.45 metres high and 70 Kg in weight, has a humanoid form and is designed to interact with the user and for the collection of low demand waste.

The DustClean robot, in the form of a small vehicle and measuring 96 cm high and 250 Kg in weight, cleans streets of dirt and dust. Moreover, both control the quality of air in real time.

"These robots are the solution for cleaning areas of difficult access and for the collection of rubbish at the very front door of, above all, persons who have mobility problems when moving the rubbish to the communal waste containers," said Inaki Inzunza, Director of the Business Unit at the Tecnalia Technological Corporation. (ANI)