New Delhi, Apr 2 (IANS): As a preventive measure against new coronavirus, a duo from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur and All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has developed a device titled 'Minus Corona UV Bot' to disinfect hospitals.

According to Debayan Saha and Shashi Ranjan, their company PerSapien has developed the device which is an ultraviolet light (UV C-254nm) based robot that will enable sterilization of hospital corridors, wards, Intensive Care Unit (ICUs) and patient rooms without exposing anybody to the contaminated environment.

It comprises a UV-C lamp mounted on a wheeled robotic platform that is operated (front-back, left-right) with a remote control which is also equipped with a camera that gives the perspective from the driver's seat onto a digital screen to remotely control the UV robot and avoid any obstacles.

"Ultraviolet (UV) sterilization technology has been proven to be extremely effective in killing viruses and micro-organisms of any kind which may remain on surfaces even after the minimum number of standard cleaning," informed Saha.

According to the developers, the inspiration came from a similar product made by a Denmark company called 'UVD Robots' who sold their robots to hospitals in Wuhan, China during the coronavirus outbreak there at $80,000-90,000.

But unlike their product, 'Minus Corona UV Bot' would not be that expensive, they said.