Meet Thola – the Robot set to Enhance the User Experience at UKZN Libraries
“UKZN [University of KwaZulu-Natal] has, since its founding, held fast to a belief that African scholarship is not a derivative enterprise. We do not wait for the world to innovate and then import the results. We generate knowledge – in our laboratories, our lecture halls, our clinics and yes, in our libraries,” said Acting Deputy-Vice-Chancellor (DVC) for Research and Innovation at UKZN, Professor Anil Chuturgoon.
“That is why it matters considerably, that Thola was not purchased from a catalogue in the Global North and shipped to Durban. Thola was built here. Conceived here. Brought to life by our own Mr Trevor Lorimer, shaped by the specific needs and the specific imagination of this institution and this community,” said Chuturgoon at the launch of the aptly named Library Services Robot, Thola, at the University’s Medical School campus. Thola means ‘find’ in isiZulu and was named after a university-wide competition that sought creative names for the then diminutive robot.
The project also reflects UKZN’s commitment to advancing one of the key pillars of its Strategic Plan – Research and Innovation – by showcasing locally developed technological solutions that respond to institutional needs while contributing to the University’s culture of creativity, problem-solving and knowledge generation.
Chuturgoon highlighted that Thola is a robot that can introduce itself, answer your questions about library hours and book renewals, and hold a conversation in multiple languages and will be stationed at UKZN’s Medical School Library, where he will “initially support the circulation functions that have long occupied our librarians’ time: the issuing, returning, and renewing of books”.
The DVC emphasised that Thola will enhance the student experience while freeing up librarians’ time to further assist students in their pursuit of knowledge. “For decades, libraries around the world – and ours is no exception – have asked highly educated, deeply curious information professionals to spend a substantial portion of their working hours on transactional work. Stamping. Scanning. Logging. Renewing. These tasks must be done, and done accurately. But they consume the bandwidth of people who are capable of something far more significant: guiding a doctoral candidate through the labyrinth of primary sources; helping a first-generation university student discover that the library is, in fact, for them; partnering with researchers to navigate the avalanche of data that now defines scientific inquiry.”
“When Thola handles the transaction, the librarian is freed for the relationship. That is the promise here. Not replacement. Elevation,” he assured.
Dr Nonhlanhla Ngcobo, Director of Library Services at UKZN, said the development and placement of Thola at the library was a “significant milestone in the vision of the 21st century academic library”.
Ngcobo underscored the Thola’s underlying ethos to support lifelong learning and help ensure that “libraries remain relevant, accessible and impactful in a rapidly changing and technologically-driven world”.
Thola made a dramatic entrance, accompanied by his creator, Mr Trevor Lorimer from Powerline Robotics. The robot has gone through various iterations and has grown in both size and abilities. Lorimer demonstrated Thola’s vast knowledge and interactive capabilities (in multiple South African languages) at his robotic fingertips to the audience’s fascination. He thanked the University and Library Services for the opportunity to develop the robot, saying it was “an honour to be the engineer that brought this to life.”
Adding that the project was a “labour of love”, Lorimer demonstrated the gantry system designed to return books to shelves and highlighted the mapping technology currently being developed.
Programme director and Senior Library Manager for Library Services at the University, Dr Roshini Pather, said that Thola was curated to “enhance the user experience” and reaffirmed the University’s commitment to embracing the future of libraries.
Guests from libraries around the province were invited to the launch and introduced to Thola’s innovative capabilities. Deputy Director of Library Services at Mangosuthu University of Technology, Ms Bongiwe Nyide, exclaimed that Thola was a “true South African” when she learnt that he could speak and understand multiple South African languages.
Acting Senior Library Manager Ms Aphelele Xulu thanked everyone who contributed to the successful launch and paid special tribute to Lorimer for being the “brains behind the development of Thola”.
Words: Raylene Captain-Hasthibeer
Photographs: Albert Hirasen
