Coronavirus: Can robots be used to clean public spaces?

Robots have been used in a trial to see if they can disinfect public areas in the fight against coronavirus.

The University of Leeds used robots to sanitise parts of the city centre and Leeds Bradford Airport.

The robots were developed by researchers in the Self Repairing Cities project, a consortium involving the Universities of Leeds and Birmingham, and University College London.

Dr Bilal Kaddouh, assistant professor at the Leeds School of Mechanical Engineering, said: "The robots were able to identify the objects that they needed to clean, and they were able to manoeuvre in the public spaces."