A mobile robot resembling a dog named Dr. Spot could advance medical treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic by providing a new connection between isolated patients and doctors who need them.
The four-legged robot is designed to aid assessments by having the canine machine with a video camera, which is connected to a doctor, to visit patients who need to be isolated, the New York Post reported.
“In the early days of the pandemic we wanted to help protect the healthcare workforce from the virus by limiting its exposure to patients potentially infected with COVID,” said Giovanni Traverso, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who work on the project.
“We wondered if we could do this by incorporating robotic systems into healthcare settings and if patients would be willing to collaborate with robots during their assessments,” he said.
In a new study published this month, Traverso and colleagues Peter Chai and Henwei Huang described how patients reacted to the robots’ medical care.
“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 minor procedures such as assessing vital signs, taking nasal swabs, and placing intravenous catheters.
The researchers conducted a nationwide survey of 1,000 people to analyze their views on receiving robotic medical services.
“We found that people across the country were willing to interact with robots, particularly systems that facilitate telehealth and systems that facilitate the measurement of vital signs such as heart rate, respiratory rate and oxygen levels.” , said Traverso.
Giovanni Traverso is an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who helped develop Dr. Spot
Researchers partnered with engineering and robotics design firm Boston Dynamics in nearby Waltham, Massachusetts, to build Dr. Spot.
Dr. Spot is made of aluminum, plastic, and electronic circuit boards and, like some other robotic doctors, can perform minor procedures, including assessing vital signs, taking nasal tampons, and placing intravenous catheters.
“It takes a few months to build a robot,” said Marco da Silva, a senior robotist at Boston Dynamic, owned by SoftBank Group Corp.
Boston Dynamics product offerings start at around $ 74,500, with the option of additional customizations that can cost more than $ 20,000 each, according to their website.
Da Silva said it took another six weeks to build the specialized software and modifications needed to give Spot the skills to conduct patient assessments.
Marco da Silva, chief robotist at Boston Dynamic who worked on the project Dr. Spot
The researchers presented Dr. Spot 40 patients in the emergency department of Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
The team mounted an iPad at the Spot base, which showed a real-time person-to-person video that allowed doctors and nurses to conduct telecare interviews with patients while operating the robot with a remote control.
Sophisticated robo-doc cameras and computer systems make it possible to identify a face even if a patient is wearing a mask. You can also assess body temperature, respiration and heart rate and use special lens filters to determine blood oxygen saturation.
People stand on the lawn in front of Building 10 on the campus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts
The headquarters of Boston Dynamics in Waltham, Massachusetts. The robotics and engineering firm partnered with MIT to work on the Dr. Spot
“Overall, emergency department patients responded very favorably to Dr. Spot, primarily because it reduces the risk of person-to-person exposure to COVID,” Traverso said.
More than 90 percent of patients reported that their interactions with the robot were satisfactory and said they were willing to interact with more robotic systems, according to the study.
“Robotics, to some extent, is already used in hospital settings,” Traverso said. “But in the framework of COVID-19, we see that robotic systems could really play an important role in healthcare based on the great acceptance of people.”