Robot incidents in 2020
The Machine Record holds 7 incidents involving commercial robots in 2020, most involving Starship Technologies: 4 where a person was hurt, 1 of them fatal, and 1 that reached a regulator, a recall or a court.
Counts measure what was reported in the press the register reads and cleared verification, not how many events took place. Fleet sizes are not public, so none of this is a rate. The rules are on the methodology page.
Reading the numbers
The 7 cases dated 2020 are spread over 5 months, with September 2020 the busiest at 2 and 7 months without a case. The newest case is dated 2020-11-17: Lawsuit filed against Intuitive Surgical and VA physicians alleging robotic surgery negligence led to the death of a patient on March 23, 2023.
Starship Technologies accounts for 2 of the 7 cases (29%), followed by Intuitive Surgical with 1; 3 cases name no company. By kind of machine, industrial robots make up 43% of the set, ahead of delivery robots (2). Most cases are placed in the United States (2), with 1 other country represented.
In 43% of the cases someone was seriously hurt. 4 cases (57%) record a person hurt, 1 of them fatal. The most common type of event is investigation (3). 4 cases (57%) went beyond the first report to an investigation, a regulator, a recall, a fine or a court.
By kind of machine
By company
By outcome
Every case dated 2020
Newest first. Each one links to its timeline and to the sources it rests on.
- 2020-11-17Lawsuit filed against Intuitive Surgical and VA physicians alleging robotic surgery negligence led to the death of a patient on March 23, 2023.Lawsuit
- 2020-11-03iRobot warned owners that certain Roomba i7+ Clean Base docking stations could malfunction and present a hazard if liquids collected by the robot vacuum were deposited into the unit.Report
- 2020-09-16A Starship food delivery robot was flipped over after being involved in an accident with a car at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, prompting students to hold a memorial vigil.Report
- 2020-09-02Employee Incurs Multiple Injuries When Struck By RobotInvestigation
- 2020-07-28A Starship Technologies delivery robot veered into a canal near New Bradwell in Milton Keynes and had to be retrieved by the company.Report
- 2020-02-20Employee Sustains Multiple Injuries When Struck By Robot ShuInvestigation
- 2020-01-09Employee Injures Feet When Repeatedly Struck By Robot PusherInvestigation
New cases, once a week, by email
Every case added to the register in the last seven days, with its sources. Free, no account, and the register is the only sender.