A Mobile Interactive Robot for Social Distancing in Hospitals

Abstract

We introduce the multimodal interactive mobile robot ISOLDE, intended for use in hospitals, with the primary aim of helping healthcare staff to maintain social distancing during pandemics, such as the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. ISOLDE also addresses the growing concern related to the use of black box models in artificial intelligence, especially in situations involving high-stakes decisions. Thus, ISOLDE’s interactive capabilities have been implemented using a fully interpretable dialogue manager, making it easy to monitor and, if needed, correct the robot’s actions, even for a non-expert. A use case is presented (in a laboratory setting) in which the robot successfully interacts with healthcare staff to carry out a requested transportation and delivery task, and also measuring a patient’s temperature.