ABB has showcased several new technology concepts at its first global healthcare research hub on the Texas Medical Center (TMC) campus, in Houston, Texas, including a mobile YuMi robot, which will assist staff with laboratory and logistics tasks in hospitals.
The dual-arm mobile YuMi will be able to sense and navigate its way around its human co-workers autonomously, while learning to find different routes from one location to another.
According to ABB, it has the potential to undertake a wide range of repetitive and time-consuming activities, including preparation of medicines, loading and unloading centrifuges, pipetting and handling liquids and picking up and sorting test tubes.
ABB analysis shows that repetitive tasks could be completed up to 50% faster with automation, compared to current manual processes, with the added benefit that robots can work 24 hours a day.
The mobile YuMi could also be used in hospitals for a wide variety of logistics roles. For example, it may be able to dispense medicines, transport them to where they are needed in hospitals, bring medical supplies to hospital staff and bed linen direct to patients’ bedrooms.
Other technologies showcased by ABB at the new facility included YuMi robots that could aid in centrifuge tending and test tube handling systems, and an IRB 1200 robot that could execute liquid transfers in a pipetting application.
ABB’s new 5,300ft2 (500m2) healthcare hub will be housed at the TMC Innovation Institute, which fosters collaboration of medicine and technology, connecting start-ups with academia and leading technology companies to accelerate the development and prototyping of breakthrough medical technology.
Bill McKeon, president and CEO of TMC, said: “Texas Medical Center, TMC Innovation, and the entire TMC network of member institutions are pleased to welcome ABB on the occasion of its first foray into the healthcare space with this incredible and unprecedented new robotics facility.
“A primary goal across TMC – the largest medical city in the world – is to make research happen faster while simultaneously cutting costs in order to create more rapid and cost-effective solutions for patients who are in desperate need of treatment.
“ABB’s move into the heart of the Texas Medical Center campus with this first-of-its-kind R&D facility for creating robotics solutions in healthcare will set a new course for advancements in medicine and establish TMC as the nexus for a new kind of synergistic partnership that will shape the future of healthcare for clinicians, researchers, and patients alike.”
