Release date: 2016-05-11 Joanne Pransky, Associate Editor of Industrial Robot, recently spoke with Aldo Zini, President and CEO of Aethon. In addition to developing methods to quantify the value of medical robots, Zini also has several patents around dispensing technology. When he was studying for a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering at the University of Pittsburgh, Zini developed an interest in using automation to make hospitals more efficient. Later, Zini earned a master's degree in public administration (health systems IT) from Carnegie Mellon University and became vice president of sales and marketing for Automated Healthcare. The company's ROBOT-Rx is the first robotic dispensing system and was acquired by McKesson for $67 million. Zini then served as Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at TechRx. Later, it brought more than $200 million in revenue to the dispensing software provider NDC Corp. The TUG developed by Aethon in Pittsburgh is a mobile autonomous robot with more than 450 installations worldwide. In the interview, Aldo Zini explained the development history and current situation of TUG robots, and also provided valuable suggestions for students studying engineering at school. Pransky: How is the development of TUG over the years? Can you describe the different versions or major iterations of TUG since 2002? Zini: When we started development, our goal was to create an affordable, reliable and secure autonomous mobile robot. It was not realized between 2002 and 2003. There were some mobile robots at the time, but they were all very expensive, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars; and the technology was very complicated; it was really a product that was hopelessly successful. Our goal is to simplify and develop a robot that people can afford, which means they must have a good return on investment (ROI). That was our initial goal, and then we set out to develop the robot. There are too many unknowns for us in this area, and there are too many that we need to learn. We may have had the commercial version of the first robot until around 2004. Although the robot is still pretty good, it has some limitations. Some of these limitations are related to technology because the laser scanners were still very expensive at the time, and cost considerations prevented us from using them. We rely on other sensor modes - the lidar scanner - but it is not as accurate and reliable as a laser scanner. Although we have the ability to build affordable robots, it was not as reliable or as safe as we wanted it, especially for a structured environment like hospitals. Aldo Zini and Aethon's TUG robot Pransky: When was your second iteration and what changes were made? Zini: We made two changes. One is about making it more reliable and safer, and the other is adding the features and features that the market tells us they want to see on the robot. In terms of reliability and security, we developed a pattern matching technology to develop a modified version of Instant Location and Map Build (SLAM) to continue to produce more robust software. We also increased the number of sonar. As the cost of laser scanners and other robot components declines over time, we can integrate more robust sensor models with better navigation software. These two things really took us to the next level, making technology very reliable and secure. Even today, not many people have autonomous mobile robots. This is a very difficult engineering problem that we are trying to solve at the time, because the robot must be in the hospital – anywhere in the hospital – open the door, take the elevator, do 30, 40, 50, sometimes 80, 90 times a day. And there are patients, visitors, doctors, nurses, clinicians and so on. We can't afford a mistake. In order to achieve that level of reliability, accuracy and security under the supervision of many people, it really took us another four years, at least until 2008, and maybe even 2009. TUG robots have an exchange base platform that can carry many racks, carts or cabinets for use in medical or industrial facilities. Pransky: What are the new developments of TUG you are planning? What new challenges are you facing? Zini: We have been adding new features to our robots for the past two or three years. One of the challenges we have to overcome is the elevator. The elevators all over the world are unique and each one is different. We had to develop our own elevator software and our own elevator controllers, which must be simple to install and operate, install and maintain. To this end, we have invested a lot of work into it. One feature that we are being asked to add recently is also becoming very important in the industry: to automatically grab and unload a cart or a container without any infrastructure. In other words, think about moving our mobile robot to the position where the cart is, finding the cart, grabbing it automatically, taking it to where it needs to be delivered, and then automatically placing it there – no need No human intervention, nor any track, beacon or line. All are autonomous. This is another huge technological leap, because it is very difficult for the robot to move from point A to point B. But the complexity involved in getting the robot to move from point A to point B to automatically grab something and then automatically take it to another place and place it is never done. We have successfully implemented it in a number of locations, including some very large manufacturing sites, and I think we are the only company in the world with this capability. This is a big achievement, although we are still somewhat limited by the way we do it. We are continuing to improve and improve this technology. Pransky: What is the biggest mistake/maximum lesson you have learned? Zini: I would say that it might be -- and I think it's a mistake many people make -- we think we know more than we do. You haven't really done it until you've applied your technology to real-world applications. You can develop something in your lab and spend a lot of money and time day and night, but unless you really use it where people actually use it, you really don't know "What you don't know." I think one of the mistakes we might make in the early days is that we think we have done something, and we are like a high-fiving celebration, saying, "Wow, we are done!" and then when we actually apply it It didn't work as we expected. We have to start over. But that is the lesson we have learned. I think that letting real users—in our case, nurses, doctors, and technicians—use this technology to get you started to understand the features and functions of the product, and to make a viable and valuable product. Need to provide something. That was one thing I learned in my career. You can't get around this step, and you can't push too fast. Pransky: Do you think engineering Ph.D. and master students should be prepared for commercial robots in school? Zini: When I got my master's degree at Carnegie Mellon University, I had the opportunity to get in touch with some companies and do some projects with them. I think I have learned more than I have learned from the actual college courses. I suggest that people who are pursuing master's and doctoral degrees should really look for opportunities to work on projects for the company. There are many companies that accept interns. It is important to go out and see how the business works in the real world. I have seen many engineers who don't understand business operations. They are very focused on technology and want to develop technology and work on it. At Aethon, I often say: "Technology is very important, but we want to build a business." In order to build a business, you must think: Is this affordable? Is it reliable? Is it safe? Can it solve the problem? What is the problem you are actually solving? Can that provide a good return on investment? How do you market? How do you sell? How do you get a very systematic process and so on? I have seen some very good robotic engineers with good ideas, but they don't know how to turn these ideas into business. They are too concerned about the technology itself. To go out to see the real world, work with the company, and gain experience, I think that is what I want to suggest. Source: Heart of the Machine Synced Medical Ear Thermometer,Ear Thermometer,Infrared Ear Thermometer Dongguan Keyutai Mask Co., Ltd. , https://www.maskkytai.com