In an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, a team of researchers from the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM) has built a robot capable of collecting specimens from patients in healthcare settings.

The remote robotic system developed by KIMM researchers can reportedly collect specimens from patient’s upper airways by accurately inserting a disposable swab into the patient’s nose or mouth.

Source: KIMM

Healthcare professionals guide the robot via remote control, thereby limiting direct contact between patients and healthcare workers and thus the spread of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.

The technology from KIMM joins a host of other automated efforts emerging during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among them are robots that are disinfecting public spaces, taking temperatures and informing the public of the dangers of COVID-19.