Operational Excellence, Grand-Prize WinnerBy Howard Baldwin
For anyone who grew up watching Lost in Space, the idea of having robots running around is nothing new. But it has always been difficult to find a cost-effective use for them. It took the innovation of InTouch Technologies to add Internet access to a robotic device and position the device as a tool for improving the way the company itself and its customers operate. CEO Yulun Wang has a Ph.D. in robotics; his previous company, which he took public in 1997, pioneered the field of surgical robots. With his 37 employees Wang has now created a robot that takes advantage of the ubiquity of broadband networking, improvements in camera technology, and infrared motion detectors. This is only recently possible, Wang notes, because not only did the telecommunications infrastructure have to evolve, but so too did the robotic technology. "We had to develop robotic capacities with regard to mobility," says Wang, noting that the robot has what he calls "an omnidirectional, holonomic drive system," which means it rolls on balls, not on wheels. The RP-6 (for "remote presence") robots, which cost $150,000 each, can act as a surrogate for anyone who needs to be in two places at once. "By using the RP-6 to go to all the presentations I've attended in the last 12 months, I've probably saved 40 travel days," Wang says, noting that he frequently makes a remote appearance at a sales presentation to aid the in-person sales representative. InTouch also uses the robots at trade shows so that attendees can talk to physicians in remote hospitals or contact their own hospitals in real time. "It gives the remote person the ability to do what they would do if they were here. If they wanted to ask something of me, they'd stand at my door," says Wang. That's important, because in a time when relationships are crucial, nothing can replace physically being in a location. At the same time, workers today are increasingly accustomed to telecommuting, conference calls, and collaborating remotely. InTouch takes advantage of this increasing comfort to keep remote workers connected. Other entities have purchased the RP-6 robots to improve their own operating excellence. Cellular technology vendor BitPhone has one in its Toronto office and one in its Laguna Niguel, California, office, so that employees can collaborate (other customers include Cisco and consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton). At the UCLA Medical Center, the RP-6s are currently used primarily in the intensive care unit, although they also pull some shifts in the emergency room and with patients on the medical and surgical floors. In many cases, the visual interaction coupled with the readings of bedside equipment and nursing reports are sufficient for doctors to effectively monitor patients. Primarily used by doctors, the RP-6 has a camera that faces the patient, displaying a view of the patient to the doctor. Microphones and monitors at either end of the connection allow the patient and the doctor to communicate. Wireless capabilities connect the robot to the hospital's network, allowing the doctor to access the patient's chart, records, and lab-test results, as well as readings for bedside equipment. "Doctors have all the information they need at their fingertips," says Wang. InTouch is focusing on the intersection of two important issues in healthcare: an increasing number of older patients and a decreasing number of healthcare professionals. "The biggest challenge that we have as a society is taking care of our aging population," says Wang. "But the healthcare profession is losing people at an alarming rate." Meanwhile, costs continue to go up, and at the same time, he adds, the average life expectancy goes up one year every four years. "It's the biological equivalent of Moore's Law." About the AuthorFreelancer Howard Baldwin is amazed anew every year by the creativity exhibited in the Cisco Growing with Technology Awards. iQ Magazine, Fourth Quarter 2005 |
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