HausBots Launches Wall-Climbing Robot to Help Reduce Workplace Accidents
December 14, 2021
Birmingham, U.K.-based HausBots, in partnership with WMG at the University of Warwick, has announced the availability of its wall-climbing robot. The robot can climb vertical surfaces and be used for inspection and maintenance tasks, such as building and infrastructure inspection, surveying, painting or removing graffiti.
The idea of the HausBots started in the co-founder’s garage, and with the help of the WMG SME team the robot was brought to life, as the team was able to help with building the prototype and testing the technology.
Four years ago, when the first prototype was developed researchers at WMG, University of Warwick worked with HausBots on the circuit motor controls and designed the system to help them get production ready, thanks to the Product Innovation Accelerator scheme with CWLEP.
One of the key uses of the HausBots is to help reduce the number of workplace accidents, in the U.S., 85,000 workers fall from heights every year, of which 700 of them will be fatal. The accidents also cost insurance companies more than $1 billion in claims every year. By reducing the number of accidents, companies can incur a huge economic savings in addition to lowering injuries and trauma.
However, to ensure the robot itself doesn’t fall it had to undergo extensive electro-magnetic compatibility (EMC) testing to make sure the fans, which essentially attach it to the surface, are functioning correctly.
The WMG SME team tested the robot by placing it in the EMC chamber and assessing how it responds to noise and to make sure it didn’t emit any unwanted noise into the atmosphere itself. Using amplifiers to simulate noise and analysers, the researchers were able to detect any unwanted interference and emissions with the robot and record results.
“It has been a pleasure to be with HausBots and help them develop their product,” said David Norman, Ph.D., from the WMG SME group at the University of Warwick. “The concept of the robot is incredible, and could save lives and reduce the number of workplace accidents. Our facilities and expertise have helped HausBots develop a market-ready product, which is now on the market and has carried out many jobs from painting and cleaning the graffiti off the spaghetti junction in Birmingham. We hope to continue working with them in the future and can’t wait to see where they are this time next year.”
“The WMG SME group have helped us from day one, by helping us build the prototype all the way to making sure the robot safely sticks to the wall and carries out its job efficiently,” said Jack Cornes, CEO and co-founder of HausBots. “We have worked tirelessly over the last three years to make HausBot, and we are incredibly excited to have sold our first one to a company in Singapore. We hope this is the first of many that will also help reduce numbers of workplace accidents. Going forward we hope to continue our work with WMG at the University of Warwick to make more robots for other uses that can reduce harm to humans.”
For more information about the HausBot robot, visit the company’s website here.
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