Travellers at St Pancras International railway station in London this weekend may well have had cause for alarm at the sight of an army of robots with a passing resemblance to Dr Who's Daleks..
Far from a hostile force, however, these bots have been launched to spread reassurance among the 35 million people who pass through the station each year.
The machines have been deployed throughout the station to eradicate almost 100 per cent of surface and airborne bacteria and germs, including Covid-19.
There are two types: the ultraviolet (UV) and the Dalek-resembling Eco Bot 50.
The UV technology means the robots can cover large areas of ground without the need for chemical disinfectant.
St Pancras International is London's ninth busiest station and home to the Eurostar which takes travellers to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.
The St Pancras robots aren't trailblazers in the usage of UV technology to zap coronavirus. In July, The National reported that Dubai's health authority had introduced eight robots that use ultraviolet light to kill germs in hospitals.
