{"id":568822,"date":"2023-12-12T09:00:54","date_gmt":"2023-12-12T14:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.therobotreport.com\/?p=568822"},"modified":"2023-12-12T09:05:15","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T14:05:15","slug":"sri-international-designs-xrgo-to-protect-pharmaceutical-workers-through-teleoperation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.therobotreport.com\/sri-international-designs-xrgo-to-protect-pharmaceutical-workers-through-teleoperation\/","title":{"rendered":"SRI International designs XRGo to protect pharmaceutical workers through teleoperation"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SRI’s XRGo telemanipulation software working with a Staubli robot arm. Source: SRI International<\/p><\/div>\n

In pharmaceutical manufacturing, every time people enter a clean room to address a manufacturing error, they could disrupt the sterile environment. SRI International has developed the XRGo telemanipulation software, which it said could allow staffers to remotely control a third-party robotic arm.<\/p>\n

XRGo provides fine controls so an operator can conduct tasks such as adjusting misaligned test tubes or performing routine maintenance without ever needing to enter the room, said SRI. This also protects the pharmaceuticals from contamination, the company<\/a> said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAutomated processes require human oversight and occasional intervention,” wrote Bill Rusitzky<\/a>, vice president of business development at SRI, in a blog post.<\/p>\n

“By allowing people to do this from outside the sterile area, we avoid having to endanger the pharmaceuticals or, in some cases, throw them out,\u201d he added. \u201cAs much as possible, we want to remove the interaction between people and the pharmaceutical product. The Annex 1 regulation in Europe<\/a> is just the start of what governments will start to require.\u201d<\/p>\n

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XRGo could open up pharmaceutical jobs<\/h2>\n

Remote manipulation could also help protect pharmaceutical workers, noted SRI. Some products, such as the radioactive chemicals used in chemotherapy, are hazardous.<\/p>\n

\u201cRemoving people from those situations is critical and has the added long-term benefit of opening these jobs up to people who were not physically capable of performing them in person,\u201d Rusitzky said. \u201cThe pharmaceutical companies that we\u2019re working with are confident that this is something that the industry needs to do, and they\u2019re excited about XRGo\u2019s potential in this space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Menlo Park, Calif.-based SRI, which has developed wearable and teleoperated systems<\/a> for a variety of uses, recently rebranded<\/a> to reflect its heritage of scientific and technological innovation.<\/p>\n