![]() ![]() Instead of spending hours filling up prescriptions, human workers can perform more rewarding tasks that require human judgment.ĭrug dispensing robots can also drastically reduce the margin of error that is unavoidable during manual operations. ABB analysis shows that repetitive tasks could be completed up to 50 per cent faster with automation, compared to current manual processes, with the added benefit that robots can work 24 hours a day. This, coupled with a lack of interest in repetitive, boring work such as inventory registration, has made it expensive to run pharmacies manually. The advantage of automationĬhinese regulations that require only qualified pharmacists to dispense drugs have caused a shortage of trained professionals who can work in pharmacies. The two robots only pause when all the required medicines have been placed in the basket. Once the correct medicines have been picked and placed, the IRB 2600 returns the medicine box to its designated shelf. The robot is also equipped with machine learning capabilities to improve the accuracy of its selection and picking tasks over time. The robot uses two types of vacuum grippers – one to pick up medicine boxes and the other to handle more delicate medicine glass vials. The IRB 1200’s 3D vision technology enables it to automatically switch fixtures according to the shape of the medicine box. A conveyor delivers the basket to a human pharmacist, who makes one final check of the content before sending it out for delivery. ![]() Powered by 3D vision, the IRB 1200 picks out the medicines according to the prescription from the box and places them into a basket located on the other side of the set up. Once the prescription flashes on a screen, the IRB 2600 quickly locates the required medicine box using the shortest path possible, removes it and hands it over to its fellow robot pharmacist, the IRB 1200. Medical staff feed drug prescriptions into an information system that is connected to the automatic robotic pharmacy setup. “This is our new set of “smart” weapons to serve all of our inpatients,” said Shi Rongrong, the deputy director of the hospital’s pharmacy department. Both robots can work throughout the day and night, without making a single mistake or taking breaks. The RML takes around 10 seconds to locate and place the medicine box and can process up to 360 kits every hour, while the second robot system can pick up about 720 medicines in the same time. The automatic drug dispensing function is achieved by the synchronized movements of an RML system, using an ABB IRB 2600 robot and a bin picking system with an IRB 1200 small robot that is designed to work fast in a room that is just over 16 sq.m in size. In a small glass room at the hospital’s inpatient department, two ABB robots work together to remove medicines from circular shelves and prepare them for distribution to patients. Less than a year later, the hospital has two robots that dispense drugs more accurately than their human counterparts. In 2019, the hospital - which offers comprehensive medical care using traditional Chinese and Western medicine - collaborated with ABB to research the use of robots and automation systems in hospitals, labs and pharmacies. Rising labor costs and shortages, a growing geriatric population and the urgent need to reduce medical errors, all call for more innovation and flexibility in the healthcare industry.Īnd that is what the Shanghai Seventh People’s Hospital set out to do. Still, factors weighing on the efficiency of drug dispensing are increasing every day. From electronic tablet counters to completely computerized stocking and labeling solutions, technology has had a transformative impact on pharmacies across the world. Complementary capabilities include 3D vision system and machine learning to help the robot improve its performance over time.Īs one of the busiest parts of a hospital, the pharmacy has, over the years, relied on technology to streamline its operations. Unlike humans, who have the potential to make errors, the automatic system is more accurate, thereby creating a better and safer drug dispensing method.Īn RML and bin picking intralogistics operation to pick and place medicines. The hospital needed a solution to simplify work at the pharmacy while also enhancing the safety of the drug dispensing process at its inpatient departmentĪ robot pharmacy automation system featuring a Robot Mini Load (RML) synchronized with a 3D bin picking automation system to store, retrieve, pick up and sort medicines according to prescriptions. ![]()
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