| Project Reference: | ITP/043/21LP |
| Project Title: | Smart Robotics Coordination System (SRoCoS) for Hospital Logistics |
| Hosting Institution: | LSCM R&D Centre (LSCM) |
| Abstract: | Hong Kong Hospital Authority (HKHA) manages 43 public hospitals, 49 specialist outpatient clinics and 73 general out-patient clinics. The smart hospital is the main strategy for the HA’ s sustainable development. In particular, one of the strategic initiatives is to deploy robots with advanced technologies to reduce manual labour for repetitive tasks. There are several current trials of using robots in hospitals like Tseung Kwan O Hospital (TKOH), United Christian Hospital(UCH) and others for cleansing, disinfection services, material delivery, welcome and reception guide services to visitors. From their experience, the existing solutions in the market have the following deficiencies: (1) One model only for one function; (2) incapable to take elevators autonomously; (3) no system to control multiple robots; (4) difficult to make hardware and software modifications to fit local hospital requirements. To tackle these problems, the project aims to develop a smart robotic coordination system (SRoCoS) to provide delivery service in hospitals including: 1. Autonomous mobile robot system that supports vertical logistics 2. Fleet planning and management system with open Application Programming Interface. This project has been defined by a present demand of the community, thereby need consideration of an efficient and user-friendly solution. The pilot trial is preliminary planned to be conducted at Tseung Kwan O Hospital (TKOH). With this representative experience, we shall deliver a reliable and scalable solution for delivery service in Hong Kong hospitals. |
| Project Coordinator: | Dr Ka Lun FAN |
| Approved Funding Amount: | HK$ 19.94M |
| Project Period: | 8 Nov 2021 - 7 Nov 2023 |
