![[Translate to Englisch:] Grafik Cobot](/fileadmin/_processed_/6/5/csm_IMAGE_4_55b2865ade.png)
In the Cobot2 research project, the three HSZG research institutes ZIRKON, IPM, and GAT are collaborating to use collaborative robotics to both relieve the burden on nursing staff in inpatient care (hospitals, nursing homes) and sort hospital waste for recycling in the circular economy.
Such human-technology interactions can relieve the burden on nursing staff and at the same time be socially sustainable in terms of the careful use of human resources and environmentally friendly through the recycling of used materials. This includes the effective collection and recycling of waste in the care sector and the transfer of used care and dressing materials into a circular economy. Collaborative robot systems could reduce costs in healthcare and nursing and free up (staff) capacities for other areas of work, such as human-centered care.
A test bench is to be set up which, by combining various sensor technologies and subsequently evaluating the data, will bring advantages in sorting technology and define characteristic differences between very similar materials. The analysis is supported by a socio-technical system with collaborative robots (so-called cobots), which place the waste on the sorting belt and remove it again fully automatically. The socio-technical system to be developed offers numerous advantages, especially in the area of medical and nursing waste, as the risk of injury to staff is significantly reduced and time resources can be gained.
In the further course of the project, in addition to the concrete human-robot interaction, the consequences for human work processes and social interaction in work teams will be investigated.
