The Kerala government on 24th February 2023 launched the use of robotic scavenger to clean manholes, Bandicoot, for cleaning sewages in this temple town, becoming the first state in the country to implement robotic technology for cleaning all its commissioned manholes.
Roshi Augustine, Water Resources Minister, inaugurated Bandicoot under the Guruvayur Sewerage Project in Thrissur district by the Kerala Water Authority (KWA). Therefore, as part of the 100-day action plan strategy of the state government.
Manual scavenging in Kerala has ended with the launch of the project in Guruvayur. Now Kerala has become the first state in the country to implement the use of robotic scavengers to clean manholes, Minister claimed in a release.
The robotic Tron Unit, which is the crucial component of Bandicoot, enters the manhole and cleans sewage using robotic hands, just like a man’s limbs, the release, adding that the machine has waterproof, sensors, and HD vision cameras that can detect harmful gases inside the manholes.
Bandicoot, constructed by Kerala-based Genrobotics, had recently won the ‘Kerala Pride’ award at the Huddle Global 2022 conclave organized by Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM).
Inaugurating the use of robotic scavenger to clean manholes in Guruvayur Municipality, Augustine mentioned it was a huge step towards the application of technology-driven solutions for manhole cleaning across the state.
All the commissioned manholes have been transformed into a robotic revolution, with the deployment of Bandicoot in Guruvayur. Furthermore, a special team of KWA officials will be constituted for the operation of robotic scavenger cleaning in Guruvayur. The modernization of the sewerage system will facilitate in containing the spread of epidemics and serious health encounters caused by them,” the minister noted.
At the function organized at P Krishna Pillai Square here, Director of Genrobotic Innovations, Vimal Govind M K, detailed the gathering about the technology. He mentioned Bandicoot will be cleaning- up all the commissioned drainages and sewerage in Kerala.
Bandicoot robots are currently being used in few towns across 17 states in India and three Union Territories. In 2018, KWA initiated implementing Bandicoot to start the use of robotic scavengers to clean manholes in Thiruvananthapuram. A Technopark-based company, Genrobotics, have built “the world’s first robotic scavenger” Bandicoot in an effort to eradicate manual scavenging providing respite for workers engaged in manhole cleaning.
A Solution to A Hazardous Profession
Moreover, as a part of the 100-day action plan of the state government, the Water Resources Minister, Roshi Augustine, initiated Bandicoot under the Guruvayur Sewerage Project in Thrissur district. Aeologic Technologies also provides robotic automation services and offers solutions in emerging technologies. With its launch in the temple town, the minister is claiming that manual scavenging will mark an end in Kerala. Augustine proudly said that Kerala has become the first state in the country to execute the use of robotic scavengers to clean manholes. The Kerala Water Authority (KWA), back in 2018, started implementing Bandicoot to clean the manholes in the capital city of Trivandrum. Later on, it went on to be launched in other metropolitan cities, such as Ernakulam.
Bandicoot 2.0
Bandicoot is a robotic machine that is developed for cleaning any type of sewer manholes. The robot is consisting of two major units, a stand and a robotic drone unit. The drone unit will get into the manholes for the cleaning operations or unclogging operations. The diving depth of the robotic drone is customizable as per the maximum depth required of the clients. Additionally, it has a feature of Nano coating in addition to the powder coating surface treatment process allows the robot to execute its operation in any hazardous or corrosive sewerage environments efficiently for a longer period. The bandicoot has the flexibility for performing more efficient cleaning than humans in terms of efficiency and time of manhole cleaning. The drone unit is armed with an extendable robotic arm with four degrees of freedom for performing grabbing, shoveling, and unblocking actions inside the manholes. To achieve stability while performing these operations, the robotic drones are designed with 4 expandable legs, with the aid of an integrated waste-collecting bucket system the gathered waste can lift out from the manhole.
