CityU’s advanced robotic VR system teleoperates robots for COVID-19 swab tests

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A research team co-led by City University of Hong Kong (CityU) recently developed an innovative human-machine interface (HMI) that can teleoperate robots to imitate the user's actions and perform complicated tasks. The breakthrough technology demonstrates the potential for conducting COVID-19 swab tests and nursing patients with infectious diseases.

A key part of the advanced HMI system, named Robotic VR, is the flexible, multi-layered electronic skin developed by Dr Yu Xinge, Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) at CityU, and his team. The system’s bottom layer of skin-tone elastomeric silicone serves as a soft adhesive interface that can be mounted on the skin and joints of the user.

“This new system enables teleoperating robotics to conduct complicated tasks. Doctors wearing the HMI system with VR glasses can remotely control the robots and experience the tactile sensations of the robots to accurately conduct surgery, and medical workers can remotely manipulate the robots to look after infectious patients or collecting bio-samples, thus greatly decreasing the infection risk,” says Dr Yu.

The team conducted experiments such as remotely controlling the robotic hand to collect throat swab samples for COVID-19 tests and to teleoperate humanoid robots to clean a room and even provide patient care. The team is developing a next-generation system for the robotic collection of nasal swab tests.

The layers of the electronic skin are interconnected with a collection of chip-scale integrated circuits and sensing components, including resistors, capacitors, a Bluetooth module, a microcontroller unit (MCU), and soft sensors and actuators developed by the team.