Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
InTouch Companion: Medical Rounding Robot
InTouch Health is now leasing a remote-controlled medical telepresence robot called The Companion to hospitals and nursing homes nationwide. The 200 pound robots stand about five feet tall and have computer screens for "heads"; they are controlled remotely by physicians with a wireless broadband Internet connection, the right software and a joystick control.
(From Robotic doctor makes the rounds at Oakwood)
Rounding Robots Save Time
The purpose of the "rounding robots" is to allow physicians who admit patients to widely separated medical centers to be able to round (that is, visit or provide a consultation to) their patients without having to waste hours of travel time in their cars. Patients can see their own doctor and speak with him or her in real time; the physicians can also see and hear their patients.The robot can travel about 2 miles per hour; a safety mechanism uses infrared warning sensors to keep the robot from bumping into people and objects. InTouch leases them for about $3,000 per month, which includes hardware, software and support.
See the medical mantis from Peter Watts Starfish for a taste of how a medical telefactoring experience might work.
Most Patients Are Comfortable with Rounding Robots
See also the story Patients happy with robo-doc which details a Johns Hopkins study on the use of this technology; 57% of patients thought they felt comfortable with "telerounding" and 50% preferred a telerounding visit from their own physician to a visit from a real doctor they didn't know. Read more about medical telepresence techologies at The Medical Telepresence Tour.Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 5/9/2004)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 9 )
Related News Stories - (" Robotics ")
Robots For Hire En Masse
'...small investors profited, too.' - Raymond E. Banks, 1956.
Robot Clerks Become A Reality In China
'The robot clerk in the waiting-room checked her number...' - Miriam Allen deFord, 1952.
Atlas Robot Makes Uncomfortable Movements
'Not like me. A T-1000, advanced prototype. A mimetic poly-alloy. Liquid metal.' - James Cameron, 1991.
Humanoid Robots Tickle The Ivories
'The massive feet working the pedals, arms and hands flashing and glinting...' - Herbert Goldstone, 1953.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Japan's AI Buddharoid Automonks
'...each of them is a neural mapping of the mind of a Tibetan monk who actually lived.'
The New Habitable Zones Include Asimov's Ribbon Worlds
'...there's a narrow belt where the climate is moderate.'
MIT Computerized Bionic Leg Is Part Of The User
'The leg was to function, in a way, as a servo-mechanism operated by Larry’s brain, through the mediation of the electronic brain in the leg.'
California Governor Candidate Calls For Voting By Phone
'... every veephone on the continent would display, over and over, two propositions.'
Robots For Hire En Masse
'...small investors profited, too.'
China's Handheld Electromagnetic Gun
'Completely silent, accurate up to about twenty meters. No recoil...'
3D Printing A 12-Meter Boat Hull
'It makes drawings in the air...'
China Still Working On Rescue Robot That Eats People
Firefighter Rescue Robot Eats Humans - again!
Lawyer AIs Create Chaos In Our Legal System
'I want my lawyer program.'
Chinese Hospital Tries Vonnegut's 'Harrison Bergeron' Cosplay
'He wore spectacles with thick wavy lenses. The spectacles were intended to make him not only half
blind, but to give him whanging headaches besides.'
Robot Clerks Become A Reality In China
'The robot clerk in the waiting-room checked her number...'
Can One Robot Do Many Tasks?
'... with the Master-operator all you have to do is push one! A remarkable achievement!'
Atlas Robot Makes Uncomfortable Movements
'Not like me. A T-1000, advanced prototype. A mimetic poly-alloy. Liquid metal.'
Boring Company Drills Asimov's Single Vehicle Tunnels
'It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
Humanoid Robots Tickle The Ivories
'The massive feet working the pedals, arms and hands flashing and glinting...'
A Remarkable Coincidence
'There is a philosophical problem of some difficulty here...'
