New Army of LG Robots Eye Air Pollution
- By CDOTrends editors
- April 06, 2021
Autonomous robots provided by South Korea’s mobile carrier LG Uplus will help monitor air quality in the southern city of Jeonju under an innovative program announced this month.
Working inside an industrial complex half a century old, LG Uplus robots will collect air quality information for better city management in Jeonju.
The robots will replicate the work currently done by human inspectors using vans loaded with measuring equipment to patrol industrial complexes and monitor air quality and the emission of pollution. Drones are also used to check the quality of air.
This process is time-intensive as inspectors cannot cover many areas to get real-time information.
Jeonju’s statement said that the air quality monitoring system would be demonstrated in the Palbok Industrial Complex and its surrounding residential areas in March. The system consists of a control tower, six autonomous robots, and 20 air monitoring stations.
“We will be able to provide a fresh air environment using data created by autonomous robots and monitoring stations,” an unnamed Jeonju official said.
Palbok in Jeonju’s northwestern district was designated as an industrial complex about 50 years ago. Many factories are obsolete, and residents living in nearby areas often complain about pollution and bad air quality.
The LG robots will roam freely to check air quality in real-time. They can also detect abnormal phenomena such as fire or smoke to prevent disasters. Collected air quality information will create big data for improving the quality of life.
In September 2020, LGU+ demonstrated a 5G-connected autonomous factory monitoring robot in an oil refining facility in Seosan, some 105 kilometers southwest of Seoul.
The robots used a 5G connection and satellite-based navigation techniques to patrol around the refinery.
LG is working towards the commercialization of its patrol robot this year.
Image credit: iStockphoto/PhonlamaiPhoto