A quick overview of the use of social robots to combat COVID-19 based on my talk at the European Robotics Forum 2021. Collaborators: Dong Dianbiao (China), Carlos Cifuentes (Colombia) and Bram Vanderborght (Belgium).

Introduction

When social robots tackle dangerous jobs

Social robots are designed to socially interact with people or to evoke social responses from them[1]. For decades researchers have made great efforts to demonstrate that robots with social abilities can go beyond the classical dirty, dangerous, and dull jobs (3Ds) that robots should do[2], [1]. Social robots have been deployed in diverse applications e.g. education, healthcare, hospitality, retail[3]. None of them has 3Ds as the main research or application purpose.

The COVID-19 crisis forces people to change their habits and metaphorically so do social robots. Around the world, social robotics applications have been deployed in public places and high-risk areas delivering non-direct human contact services e.g. hospitals, residential care homes, shops, schools[4]. They are also beneficial in dealing with psychological issues emerging in quarantine or isolation[5]. Social robots now tackle the dangerous factor of their given tasks more than ever before. This situation somewhat brings the concept of Disney’s Baymax into life – a social robot that serves and protects people from danger. Furthermore, social robots have the potential to contribute to economic recovery efforts[6].

Where and how social robots are used during COVID-19 pandemic?

This article overviews the use of social robots during the COVID-19 pandemic. Similar to deployments of other robots, the use of social robots in COVID-related applications is well-covered by the media. Our ad-hoc search process using Google (until August 2020, keywords: robot, COVID, coronavirus, etc.) since most of the deployments are not yet published in scientific journals and conferences. The search results show that at least 44 countries and territories have deployed robots with a certain degree of autonomous social behavior. Robots with no human-like social behaviors were excluded e.g. autonomous mobile robots for delivery or disinfection, fully teleoperated robots with no autonomous social behaviors. Deployments of social robots before the COVID-19 outbreak without newly added features after the pandemic outbreak are also excluded.

Since collecting all deployments around the world is impractical (e.g. language barriers, local media coverage only), we do not focus on the number of deployments per country but more on application categories, types of robots, and operation areas. We aim at drawing the benefits and limitations of the current deployments of social robots and give our opinions for future deployments.

Social robots are used in various application categories

During the COVID-19 pandemic, robotics is expected to make a difference in four broad areas i.e. clinical care, logistics, reconnaissance, continuity of work and maintenance of socioeconomic functions[7]. Researchers from Texas A&M University expanded these areas and organized applications into six categories and 30 subcategories[8]. Social robotics currently has taken part in five categories and 15 subcategories in many aspects of life.

Most of the applications focus on (non)-clinical care and public safety. However social robots have started to address issues related to the quality of life, and continuity of work and education since many countries are reopening while maintaining certain COVID measures. In this section, we highlight some representative deployments for each category.

Clinical care and Non-hospital care

Clinical care and non-hospital care categories are where social robots have been deployed the most. Social robots joined forces with healthcare workers early in the pandemic in high-risk environments such as hospitals, residential care homes, and centralized quarantine centers.

Social robots with tablets and mobility work as healthcare presence for medical staff to interact remotely with patients or suspected cases. For example, China used 16 CloudMinds robots in a hospital in Wuhan to protect doctors and monitor patients[9]. Six Tommy robots were deployed at the Circolo Hospital in Lombardy (Italy) for similar purposes[10]. Thailand developed Ninja robots to help doctors remotely collect physiological measurements[11]. Besides the purpose of protecting medical staff, a robot with social abilities can also create a feeling of having a companion in isolated areas.

Social robots can help people socialize with their families and friends through the robot’s tablet. Pepper robots from Softbank Robotics[12] are used in intensive care units in France and a residential care home in Belgium to help patients and older adults connect with their loved ones through video calling apps[13], [14]. Zorabots, a Belgian-based company, also installed several James robots with calling functions in residential care homes during the quarantine[15]. In Texas (USA), a robotic harp seal Paro is used to help patients reduce the feeling of loneliness[16]. In Colombia, a NAO robot was used as a tool to support gait therapy[17].

Some hospitals have used social robots for non-direct human interaction with patients and visitors when entering hospitals. They also provide guidelines and safety instructions verbally and visually through their tablets or external displays. For example, Seoul National University Hospital (Korea) uses LG’s CLOi GuideBot[18], and Brussels University Hospital (Belgium) uses Pepper[19]. A few of these robots are integrated or connected with sensors to measure the body’s temperature e.g. Cruzr robots at Antwerp University Hospital (Belgium)[20], Kanyinya treatment center (Rwanda)[21] and hospitals in Queensland (Australia)[22], Mitra robots at Fortis Hospital (India)[23], NAO robot at a clinic in Torre del Mar (Spain)[24].

Mobile robots with facial expressions have been used for logistics purposes in high-risk areas. Siasun robots are used in Shenyang (China) to deliver food and medicines[25]. The Sawai Man Singh Government Hospital in Jaipur (India) conducted trials of using the Sona robot to deliver necessary items to patients[26]. Similar trials with robots with social behaviors are also conducted in other countries e.g. Bahrain, Indonesia. The use of this kind of robot might create a more friendly user experience compared to typical mobile robots.

Other deployments of social robots in care environments but less popular are disinfecting point of care and inventory. For example, a mobile cleaning robot with facial expression from LionsBot (Singapore) is embedded with a disinfection mechanism[27]. A humanoid robot with a similar function is provided by Reliable Robotics from Dubai (UAE)[28]. In the inventory subcategory, Moxi robot with manipulation to pick, deliver and restock medical items are deployed in Texas hospitals (USA)[29].

Public safety

In the public safety category, social robots are mainly deployed to deliver information or announcements to avoid direct human contact. Pepper robot is the most widely used robot platform in this type of application. Some Pepper robots have been deployed in public places, hotels, airports, and shops in many countries, e.g. Germany, Greece, Poland, Georgia, Hungary, UAE, Japan, mainly by Softbank Robotics or its partners[13]. Promobot, a Russian service robotics manufacturer has installed their robots with similar functionalities in Russia, Turkey, UAE, Oman, Kazakhstan, USA[30]. China and India locally developed their robots for the same purpose.

Apart from giving verbal and visual information, some social robots are also integrated with sensors for physiological measures in public places. Cruzr robots have been used at the intersections of highways in Shenzhen (China)[22] and at an IT and multimedia chain in Flanders (Belgium)[31] to check the temperature of drivers and visitors respectively. A startup in Mexico has developed RoomieBot to check COVID-19 symptoms through body temperature and oxygen saturation levels[32]. A student from Cairo (Egypt) has developed a humanoid prototype that performs throat swabs for coronavirus testing[33].

Although there are a lot of robots for disinfection, quarantine enforcement, and monitoring in public places, there are very few social robots in these subcategories. For example, robots for disinfecting point of care are also used in public places. Promobot robots, besides providing information, are also used for monitoring purposes[30]. A company in Vietnam repurposed Beetle Bot, a patrol robot with facial expression, to check mask-wearing and public gatherings[34], [35].

Quality of life and Continuity of work and education

Compared to other application areas, social robots have just started to address issues related to the quality of life, and continuity of work and education. In China, autonomous mobile robots with animated faces are used to deliver lunch and dinner for employees at enterprises in Hunan province[36]. A similar application was also deployed in Medellin (Colombia)[37]. In the Netherlands, the Dadawan restaurant in Maastricht continues to add new robots to deliver food to customers[38]. This type of application is also deployed in a restaurant in Egypt with a Mozo waiter robot[39]. In Japan, Pepper robots have been used as cheerleaders in baseball games in Fukuoka[40]. A similar attempt has also been arranged in Taiwan[41]. Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh (United Kingdom) has tested different robots in assisted living environments[42]. In Denmark, a NAO robot is tested as telepresence for visitors to navigate inside a museum.

There are less popular deployments related to work and education. An android robot developed by Promobot has started to provide services at a government office in Siberia (Russia)[43]. A Tengai robot is used to perform unbiased job recruitment in the Upplands-Bro municipality in Sweden[44]. In Japan, Malaysia, and the Philippines, several robots were used to help students attend their graduation ceremony at universities(missing reference). A student from Quebec (Canada) developed a robot prototype for Loto-Québec to present prizes for lottery winners on behalf of staff[45].

Discussion

Demographics: applications have been deployed in many countries

Robots with social behaviors in response to COVID-19 have been deployed in many countries. There are indeed deployments that have not been covered or only by local media. Most of the applications are located in Europe, Asia, and North America due to their available social robotics technology and research. Some big players can be listed as Softbank Robotics (Japan, France), Zorabots (Belgium), Promobot (Russia), Ubtech (China). These tech firms with their partners have provided solutions in the countries they are located in and the surrounding areas. Some commercial social robots from China are re-branded in other countries with localized software. Although India has a lot of locally developed robot platforms, their robots seem not to reach international customers yet. A few countries have also developed robot prototypes after the COVID-19 outbreak but still at preliminary phases. Some countries in Latin America and Africa have deployed social robots (e.g. Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Nigeria, Rwanda) but there are still little deployments in these regions.

Several barriers prevent the use of social robots in regions with fewer deployments. Social robotics research and development in most of these regions are limited and/or commercial robots are not locally available. For developing countries, robots are still expensive especially while health systems budgets are mainly allocated to other expenses during epidemics such as medicaments, human resources, infrastructure, etc. Moreover, robotics implementation often demands Internet-of-Things based environments, which is not always the case in healthcare facilities in rural areas in developing countries. Regarding lockdown measures, restriction rules are different from country to country. Strict rules limit people’s mobility and international supply chains that directly influence research and development activities.

Lessons learned from deployed applications will be useful for more new deployments. The trends of robot cost decline and open-source platforms hopefully boost social robot adoption in more countries[46].

Types of robots

Morphology and Autonomous social behaviors

Appearances of the currently deployed social robots range from a mobile platform with anthropomorphic face to humanoid and android. Therefore, the level of human-like social behaviors and autonomy also varies. Low anthropomorphic robots are usually non-social robots with added human features with the aim of increasing attention and/or acceptance e.g. mobile cleaning robot with a face. Although not always being mentioned explicitly, higher anthropomorphic robots seem to provide short and scripted social interaction. Android robots such as Tengai and Promobot have high levels of autonomy since they act as an interface between AI algorithms and users.

Customized commercial robots and newly developed robots

Most of the social robots used in the current deployments are designed for generic purposes and have been upgraded with customized COVID-19 features during the pandemic, which is similar to disaster robots in general[47]. COVID-19 related hardware and software have been recently integrated or connected to commercial robots to adapt to the new circumstance by robot providers and developers. For example, Cruzr robot has been integrated with an infrared thermal imaging camera for multi-person temperature measurement[20]. Or, Pepper robot is updated with an app to recognize users wearing masks[48]. This makes commercial robots being deployed more quickly compared to newly developed ones.

Newly developed robots do consider COVID-19 related functions and system components at the design phase. However, these robots are still in early developments and required quality control and (clinical) validation. There is an exceptional “downgrade” case that the navigation module of Stevie social robot is adopted in Violet, a mobile disinfection robot platform with no social behavior[49].

Benefits

Short-term benefits: Non-direct human contact services and socialization

Social robots currently tackle mainly the primary effects of the pandemic i.e. (non-) clinical care and public safety. Although the current social robots used in response to COVID-19 have abilities to express social behaviors, their main purposes are to deliver non-direct human contact and socialization through video calling apps. Many deployments are mobile platforms with a few facial expressions and social actions. Social robots with integrated screens are referred to as “tablets on wheels” and cannot fully be perceived as independent agents.

Performances of the current state-of-the-art social robots are still far from those of human staff. This limits the use of social robots before the COVID-19 pandemic. However under the critical period when human health is prioritized, the current performances of social robots are more or less sufficient. The robots can handle repetitive tasks to free human staff so that they can handle more difficult tasks. Nevertheless, social robots with certain human-like embodiment still create a different user experience compared to automatic machines, computers, tablets, and virtual agents[50], [51].

Long-term benefits: More focus on the secondary effects of the pandemic is needed

There is still space for social robots to unlock their potential regarding the secondary effects[6]. During isolation, children’s mental health and education are strongly affected. The stay-at-home restrictions have largely stopped children from contacting their friends and teachers. The reduction of social interaction and difficulty in online learning can be tackled by social robots. Social robots with their embodiment can motivate the students to interact with the physical world in their courses[2], [52]. Furthermore, the robots can be combined with health monitoring functions.

When the economy reopens, social robots can be deployed in retail and catering industries, which was hit hardly worldwide due to lockdown measures. When countries ease their restrictions, the sectors are gradually recovering. However, the fear of infection remains and social robots can play a role in delivering non-direct human contact. COVID-19 relevant functions such as checking body temperature, social distancing, and mask-wearing are also necessary. Retail robots should take this pandemic as an opportunity to validate their primary functions on a larger scale e.g. providing product information, giving recommendations, guiding customers to item’s location.

To properly address the secondary effects, social robots need to increase their interoperability and sociability. The current deployments are mainly ad-hoc solutions. The robots operate alone for specific requirements and are not highly coordinated with the on-site infrastructure. Connecting with other systems will provide extra information for generating more meaningful social behaviors. This goes beyond the “tablet on wheels” approach and makes the robots more sociable and independent as personable characters to better support end-users[53].

Validation and privacy issues are challenging

Social robotic applications indeed have quickly responded to the COVID-19 pandemic but lack validations, especially long-term use. The current crisis has already made human-robot interaction experiments difficult to be conducted[54]. It is even more challenging if validation experiments are in high-risk areas. For example, it is difficult for technical staff to enter isolated areas to set up applications or deal with technical errors. The medical staff is also busy with essential tasks. They therefore cannot or have little involvement in supporting the technical team even with rebooting the robot or changing batteries[55].

Similar to the use of other technologies used during the COVID-19 pandemic[56], the privacy issue is an important concern when social robots are deployed in public places and at homes. Some robots are equipped with mobility and different types of sensors and cameras, allowing them to actively collect user data more than what static devices such as surveillance cameras can do. Robot providers usually focus on promoting the robots’ benefits and less about what kind of information the robots collect and how they are processed. Since legal frameworks are different among countries, robot providers, and (local) developers should make social robot applications compliant with local regulations.

Conclusion

The COVID-19 pandemic opens opportunities for robotic applications. In light of this trend, social robotic applications have been deployed in many application categories across countries. Lessons learned from these deployments should be considered to improve the current deployments when countries reopen their economies and future emerging infectious diseases.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the medical staffs who provided opinions on the use of social robots in healthcare. The authors also would like to express gratitude to healthcare workers and other essential people for their sacrifices during the COVID-19 crisis.