The article investigates the idea of low-cost, telepresence-based mobile robots for
eventual use within villages and rural areas in Nigeria, where diseases such as the Ebola
Virus Disease (EVD) and Lassa Haemorrhagic Fever (LHF) are common, yet human
intervention is constrained due to the great risk of transmission through bodily fluids.
To illustrate the concept and practical issues arising, a systems design approach is
taken to identify some of the engineering requirements; and, in the focus of this article,
a prototype has been developed at Lancaster University. The robotic device is semihumanoid
in that the upper half features two 7-DOF manipulators, designed in part to
resemble human operation, while the lower half consists of a four-wheeled base,
prioritising ease of operation and reliability over the flexibility offered by a leg-based
system
