Latest News

Back to Latest News back

 

Beijing Winter Olympic Games venue introduces working robots to reduce COVID-19 contact risk

Beijing Winter Olympic Games venue introduces working robots to reduce COVID-19 contact risk
November 10, 2021

Wukesong Sports Centre, the ice hockey venue for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, has introduced robot technology to aid its preparations for the events - providing both convenience and an additional layer of safety amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

First opened in January 2008 ahead of the Beijing Summer Olympics later that year, the venue in Beijing's Haidian district hosted basketball events during the 2008 Games and has now been repurposed into an ice hockey arena for the Winter Olympics.

Part of its transformation for the Winter Olympics has included the introduction of a range of technologies, with the China News Service reporting robots being used for various purposes including coffee-making and cleaning and logistical activities.

In a video posted by the China News Service on Tuesday, a robot grinds coffee beans and then places the resulting grounds in a percolator to brew a cup of coffee. The whole process only takes four minutes.

Another kind of robot helps out with logistics at the venue, able to carry up to 300 kilograms of goods and perform contactless distribution at the venue.

The intelligent path-finding robot can move freely, avoid obstacles and automatically recharge itself.

Employees only need to put the items they want on the logistics robot and it will carry them to a delivery station where the items are unloaded. The robot will notify the pickup person with a text message when it arrives and costumers can pick up their goods with a verification code. After delivery, the robot returns to its docking station for disinfection and to recharge.

Besides the logistics robot, the stadium has also been equipped with contactless intelligent distribution cabinets which can solve the problem of delivering items in that last kilometer. The cabinets have intelligent storage and pickup, remote monitoring and information functions.

Shi Wei, Deputy Director of the venue, told media “how can the competitions be held amid the COVID-19 pandemic? We are in the Haidian district, so we have some high-tech products developed here such as disinfection robots and contactless delivery robots, which are one of the highlights of our event during the pandemic.”

Anta, the official sportswear partner of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, also incorporated high-tech design elements to ensure athletes do not get cold.

Anta uses warmth retention materials, such as far infrared graphene and super down feathers with nanoscale protection layers, to fight off the cold.

The Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games announced in October that the Olympic Village will officially open on 27th January next year, and all of the preparations for the games have been completed in terms of pandemic prevention, venues and facilities, transportation and environmental protection.

Image: A disinfection robot in action at the Wukesong Sports Centre (top, credit: VCG) and the exterior of the Wukesong Sports Centre (below).

About the author

James Croll

With a background in adventure tourism, events management and marketing, James Croll is a regular contributor to Australasian Leisure Management and Asian Leisure Business.

Click here to view his LinkedIn profile.

Read more from this author

Related Articles

25th October 2021 - New Chinese COVID outbreaks sees postponement of Beijing and Wuhan marathons

22nd October 2021 - Looming fall of Evergrande symbolises current plight of Chinese economy

30th September 2021 - China to restrict Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics tickets to residents

21st September 2021 - Xi’an municipal government considers China National Games as opportunity to focus on wellness

27th August 2021 - Hong Kong and Macau to partner Guangdong in hosting China’s 2025 National Games

20th August 2021 - China introduces centralised ticketing system for live performance industry

8th November 2021 - Esports to feature as medal sport at Asian Games Hangzhou

29th October 2021 - Alibaba Sports secures 15-year operation and management contract for Hangzhou Asian Games venues

11th December 2020 - World Athletics announces second postponement of Nanjing’s World Athletics Indoor Championships

9th October 2021 - Officials acknowledge COVID challenges facing Beijing Winter Olympics

9th August 2021 - Scaled down closing ceremony marks end of 2020 Tokyo Olympics

8th February 2021 - IOC President says Beijing 2022 will ‘transform winter sports’

28th January 2021 - Chinese officials confident of completing preparations for a successful Beijing Winter Olympics

2nd December 2020 - Repurposed Beijing Water Cube becomes first venue completed for 2022 Winter Olympics

21st August 2020 - Beijing’s Workers’ Stadium demolished as part of China’s revamp of venue infrastructure

13th June 2020 - IOC Coordination Commission praises progress on Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

13th August 2019 - Beijing 2022 ski jumping venue to become year-round attraction

19th July 2019 - Alibaba secures Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics ticketing contract

25th June 2019 - IOC satisfied with preparations for Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

14th March 2019 - Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics works move forward

12th June 2018 - Venue recycling key to planning for Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

30th October 2017 - Construction commences on new Beijing 2022 Olympic venues

8th September 2017 - Beijing readies for 2022 Winter Olympics

11th August 2016 - Beijing to reuse 2008 Olympic venues for 2022 Winter Games