As one of the top STEM colleges in the U.S, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) consistently develops technology which addresses problems in today’s society. One of their most recent creations addresses the need to disinfect surfaces which has become extremely important, as of late, because of the coronavirus pandemic.
MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory worked with Ava Robotics to develop an autonomous robot equipped with UVC light. Ultraviolet C (UVC) light is an efficient way to disinfect surfaces and kill bacteria and viruses living on those surfaces. However, UVC light can also be detrimental to human health because it can damage skin and eye cells. Moreover, prolonged exposure to UVC light can potentially cause skin cancer.
To test the capabilities of their robot, MIT let their robot attempt to disinfect a food bank in the Boston area. The robot is able to map out an area through which it can autonomously move. In the case of the Boston food bank, the robot was able to cover 4,000 square feet in half an hour. More importantly, the robot was able to neutralize/kill roughly 90% of coronavirus particles on the surfaces.
Although MIT only tested their robot at the food bank, this technology could, in theory, also be applied to different buildings like factories, schools, or restaurants. The application of this technology in different types of building can allow for an easier, more efficient, and less labor intensive disinfection process. Furthermore, the wide-spread use of this technology could reduce the number of people who have to physically clean surfaces and risk infection themselves.
In the future, this technology could have the power to revolutionize the way we disinfect surfaces and prevent the spread of potentially deadly viruses or bacteria.
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