  In a pandemic contact between humans needs to be avoided wherever possible.
Robots can take over an increasing number of tasks to protect people from being
exposed to others. One such task is the disinfection of environments in which
infection spread is particularly likely or bears increased risks. It has been
shown that UVC light is effective in neutralizing a variety of pathogens, among
others the virus causing COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2. Another function which can
reduce the need for physical proximity between humans is interaction via
telepresence, i.e., the remote embodiment of a person controlling the robot.
This work presents a modular mobile robot for telepresence and disinfection
with UVC lamps. Both operation modes are supported by adaptable autonomy
navigation features for facilitating efficient task execution. The platform's
primary contributions are its hardware and software design, which combine
consumer-grade components and 3D-printed mounting with open-source software
frameworks.
