Texas High School Student Attends Classes Using Vgo Telepresence Robot

Robots are cool and while many of them that we talk about here are more for fun for a geek, there are many uses for robots that have nothing to do with fun. We have talked a lot about Robonaut 2 for instance that was designed by GM and NASA to help astronauts in space on the ISS. A high school student in Knox City, Texas uses his robot so he can attend classes since he can't actually go to school.

The student is Lyndon Baty. He suffers from polycystic kidney disease and the treatment for the disease has compromised the boy's immune system. The kid uses a telepresence robot called the Vgo to attend classes. He is able to control the robot and have video that lets him attend classes and interact with teachers with Skype-like quality.

The robot cost the district about $6,000 and that includes a service contract that is about $1,200 per year. The battery in the bot is good for 6-12 hours of use. Apparently, the student drives the robot to and from his classes just the other students move from class to class during the day.

Via Singularity Hub