By Nick Gilbert
South Carolina hospital deploys Swisslog RoboCourier autonomous mobile robot for automated laboratory transport.
Rosie, the RoboCourier, is busy transporting lab samples
Rosie is an assistance robot for hospital laboratory operation. Rosie can operate efficiently up to 24-hours per day. It is capable of efficiently and rapidly providing specimens to testing cells at the Greenwood, S.C-based Self Regional Healthcare central lab.
The staff at Self Regional dubbed this new innovative Swisslog RoboCourier autonomous mobile robot as Rosie. Swisslog is a well-established supplier of automated materials transport and medication management solutions for hospitals.
With efficient operation since June 2011, Rosie’s major function is to transport specimens from the receiving desk of the lab to five testing areas within the rooms detached by narrow hallways.
Laboratory Manager, Randy Litzenberger says that Rosie has ensured advancement and consistency in turnaround time. Prior to robot deployment, 75-min was taken to collect and transport up to 75% of specimens. Even the staff used to walk 7-mi per day for distributing the specimens. But after installing this robot along with other automations, over 90% of specimens were reported in just about 50 min, thereby reducing the transport time and human maneuver.
Lean process improvements such as enhanced workflow and efficiency, and maximum operations can be achieved by RoboCourier. This new innovative specimen-moving robot is capable of alerting the staff with human-like voice commands. Furthermore, laser guidance can help avoid obstacles.
RoboCourier can also interface with automatic doors while navigation. The robot can efficiently operate 24 hours per day with powerful battery recharging. It can be easily installed, and its route can be instantly mapped and modified.
Source: http://www.swisslog.com/