Grace is designed to alleviate the strain on front-line hospital workers by resembling a healthcare expert.
Because of the enormous strain on healthcare personnel, the Hong Kong-based company behind humanoid robot Sophia has developed a new prototype to communicate with the elderly as well as Covid-19 patients in isolation.
BBC published a video of nurse Grace, outfitted in a blue uniform, demonstrating her capacity to not only interact but also monitor a person’s temperature and assess their response using a thermal camera in her chest. The humanoid can communicate in English, Mandarin, and Cantonese and is designed to engage with and assist those in need.
“I can visit individuals and brighten their day with social stimulation… but I can also perform talk therapy, collect bio readings, and support healthcare providers,” Grace said in the film while standing next to Sophia in the Hong Kong studio of developer Hanson Robotics.
Grace, according to robotics inventor David Hanson, is meant to ease the strain on frontline medical personnel, who have been overworked as a result of the epidemic.
“A human-like look fosters trust and natural engagement because we are evolved for human face-to-face interactions,” Hanson said, adding that Grace is meant to have a soothing demeanor and can imitate the motion of more than 48 main facial muscles.
The goal is to begin mass-producing a beta version of Grace by August, with plans to completely deploy the robot in multiple areas by next year, including Hong Kong, mainland China, Japan, and Korea. Furthermore, with the firm creating tens or hundreds of thousands of such units, the cost of the robots, which now rival the price of luxury vehicles, is expected to fall.
HBUctPWhuzekMw