Health & Medical

Researchers, including Ken Goldberg’s team at UC Berkley, are hard at work developing robotic systems that assist surgeons by automating routine, often tedious subtasks common to all surgical procedures.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses to innovate, including utilizing workplace robots. From telepresence capabilities to UV disinfection, mobile robots empowered people and provided business value. But even as the infection fades, their use will continue and expand.

HeroWear’s back-assist Apex exosuit, which reduces back strain when objects are lifted, can be adjusted to fit workers of all sizes — both men and women. Imagine that.

In this RoboBusiness Direct session, Mark Davidson, CRO of DreamVu discuss the development of UV disinfection robotics systems that use 3D visioning systems to recognize objects and autonomously navigate.

In this RoboBusiness Direct session, Maria Shepherd, President of Medi-Vantage discuss what the next generation of surgical robotics systems could and should provide. In a follow-on session, maxon’s Carsten Horn reviews solutions that enable robotic surgery.

Flexiv provides turnkey automation solutions based on adaptive robots powered by advanced force control, computer vision and AI technologies.

In this RoboBusiness Direct session, SWRI’s Matt Robinson describes how ROS can support complex, large scale, industrial automation. In a follow-on session, DreamVu’s Mark Davidson reviews the benefits of omnidirectional 3D vision for UV disinfection robots.

In this informative and wide ranging RoboBusiness Direct session, MassRobotics’ Executive Director Tom Ryden leads an all-star panel of robotics researchers and industry thought leaders to discuss that latest robotics and automation research and R&D initiatives, and the ways the resulting breakthroughs make their way into the commercial sphere.

In this informative RoboBusiness Direct session, Conor Walsh, founder of the Harvard Biodesign Lab and faculty member at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, will describe the current state of soft robotics research, the many ways soft wearable robots are actively being deployed now, as well as emerging opportunities for the technology.

In this informative RoboBusiness Direct session based on accrued experience with five surgical robotics startups, Dwight Meglan, Co-founder and CTO of HeartLander Surgical, will describe the challenges to building a successful surgical robotics company, along with the critical success factors and strategies for overcoming them.

Industrial Robot’s Joanne Pransky interviews Hugh Herr, head of the Biomechatronics Research Group and Center for Extreme Bionics at MIT, about the challenges and joys of developing and commercializing robotic prostheses.

Despite the ongoing pandemic, robotics investment and acquisition activity did not slow down in August 2020, with funding flowing to autonomous vehicles, industrial automation, and drones.

Building on the success of the inaugural series, the RoboBusiness Direct Fall program will once again have robotics industry experts addressing critical robotics business development issues through an integrated series of online presentations and continuing media coverage and analysis.

In this presentation, Paolo Pirjanian, CEO at Embodied, will discuss how the relationship between humans and machines is evolving, including how robots and robotic technology can be applied for social good.

Monash University’s Dr. Nicole Robinson explains how social robots can play a role in diet and weight reduction without the need for human intervention.

Despite strong economic headwinds from global shutdowns in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, some funding and merger activity continued in April 2020, particularly in healthcare, transportation, and manufacturing.

maxon, a Swiss developer and manufacturer of drive systems, is a long-time partner of leading medical technology companies worldwide. Its products are used in medical devices such as ventilators, respirators, protection masks and lab automation. During these unprecedented times, maxon is focused on supporting the companies producing these life-saving devices so desperately needed during this…

While much of the interest and investment in healthcare robotics focuses on surgical systems, nonsurgical applications are also maturiing.

The second annual Healthcare Robotics Engineering Forum, which is scheduled for September in Boston, is seeking qualified and engaging expert speakers.

Diligent Robotics plans to use its funding to scale its Moxi mobile manipulation system to a wider customer base and to expand its hardware and software product development.

Exoskeleton companies have long been working with healthcare coverage providers to develop general coverage policies for exoskeletons. But many providers still look at exoskeletons on a case-by-case basis. ReWalk Robotics, a developer of medical exoskeletons for individuals with lower limb disabilities, said it is making some progress with a group of German statutory health insurers…

Field robots, industrial automation, self-driving vehicles, and healthcare systems received funding in February 2020.

Rather than take jobs, robots can address HR concerns about recruitment, morale, and retention through safe collaboration and improved work environments, states a KUKA VP.

ReWalk Robotics has completed a fundraising round to continue its research and development around the ReWalk exoskeleton and ReStore rehabilitation device, as well as business functions.

Medtronic and Digital Surgical expect to co-develop systems providing AI and data analytics for laparoscopic and robot-assisted surgery.