Not everything that needs to be moved from one ward to another in a hospital can be digitized and sent electronically. From laboratory samples and medicines to instruments and small devices to confidential documents, there are items that need to be transported physically. This is why the internal transportation of smaller consignments of goods in hospitals, but also in larger commercial enterprises, still takes the form of courier services.

Pick-up and delivery services in a dilemma

Many healthcare facilities have their own pick-up and delivery service for this purpose. Its employees can be requested by ward staff to transport items from A to B. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult for HR managers in many hospitals to recruit sufficient staff for these tasks.

On the one hand, no special qualifications are required and the work is not very varied, but on the other hand, these transports must be handled quickly and with a high degree of reliability. It is important to be able to speak the local language in order to understand orders correctly and reliably. In addition, there is the obligation to maintain confidentiality in the interests of data protection. Not all applicants are suitable for fulfilling the bureaucratic obligations to provide evidence by confirming collection and delivery. However, if someone is fully qualified, it would often be desirable to deploy them elsewhere in view of the shortage of nursing staff.

Automate internal goods shipments

Hospitals have therefore been looking for efficient solutions to automate the transportation of goods for some time now. In this way, staff can be relieved of errands and thus freed up for other tasks for the benefit of patients.

Pneumatic tube systems are not suitable for all required shipments. Many consignments are too large or too sensitive to be sent in pneumatic tube carriers. If just one of them leaks, causing its contents to leak inside the system, this jeopardizes hygiene throughout the building. In addition, pneumatic tube systems require large investments, cause high costs for operation and maintenance and can only be adapted with enormous effort during conversions.

Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) from the Austrian manufacturer DS AUTOMOTION GmbH perform transportation tasks in hospitals. In their traditional areas of application - food and laundry transportation and waste disposal - they have been relieving staff of simple but physically demanding tasks for many years.

The development of compact small load vehicles such as the SALLY modular mobile robot platform has for some time now also enabled the AWT of smaller shipments between hospital wards. In its original form, the SALLY mobile robot is designed for smaller loads of up to approx. 100 kg. It consists of the basic vehicle, which can be flexibly adapted to different transport tasks using task-specific superstructures. For example, a total of 22 SALLYs work together with four driverless forklift trucks from DS AUTOMOTION to handle sterile goods in two Danish hospitals.

SALLY courier picks it up, SALLY courier delivers it

"With the SALLY courier, DS AUTOMOTION has developed a new type of solution for the fast, secure and documented transportation of small consignments of goods within medical facilities," says Eva Hertel Murga, Product Manager at DS AUTOMOTION GmbH. "Modular in design, easy to implement and easy to use with little training, the comprehensive AWT solution is far more than just a product innovation."

This starts with the load handling device designed specifically for the application. Designed as a closed, easy-to-clean cabinet, it contains modular compartments and drawers. Customers can choose their arrangement and partitioning when ordering. They can be locked individually; a code entry (barcode) is required to open them. This makes it possible to track the path of the goods from the person placing the order to the person receiving it. "It also prevents any insights that could raise data protection concerns," adds Eva Hertel. "Individual medication packages for individual patients, for example, are particularly sensitive." In addition, an ongoing transport inventory can be kept by scanning the barcode on the transported goods. A built-in weighing sensor prevents the permissible load weight of approx. 50 kg from being exceeded.

Staff can request a SALLY courier via a simple call button at the station base. After loading, the destinations for the inserted items are entered on an intuitive touchscreen panel directly on the vehicle. If compartments are still empty, the SALLY courier can pick up more freight en route. This enables interlinked transports along the entire route, which ensures evenly high capacity utilization and reduces waiting times. By connecting to the in-house mail system, the software automatically sends delivery notifications.

Safe and flexible navigation

To navigate, SALLY uses SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) technology to check its path based on fixed features of its driving environment. It therefore does not require any guidance or artificial landmarks for navigation. This ensures low installation costs and makes it easier to add additional stations at a later date.

As the SALLY courier moves in publicly accessible areas and shares aisles with people, other AWT vehicles and pushed beds, safety is a particularly important issue. SALLY's safety features for collision avoidance and personal protection are familiar from all other DS AUTOMOTION Automated Guided Vehicles, carefully tested and proven a thousand times over. The SALLY courier is also equipped with two protruding safety bars and two additional 3D cameras. It also has tactile floor scanners as fall protection.

The SALLY courier can use the DS NAVIOS guidance control system to open doors and gates as well as request elevators and use them with people at the same time. The smart AWT vehicle from DS AUTOMOTION can also avoid unexpected obstacles. "If there are cleaning trolleys or people in the corridor, it is not enough to stop in front of them," explains Eva Hertel and introduces a key innovation. "The SALLY courier can drive around obstacles and thus avoid unplanned downtimes."

Flexible 24/7 use

The SALLY Kurier is designed for trouble-free operation around the clock with minimal maintenance. If required, the compact AWT vehicle automatically drives to the charging station. As the intelligence lies in the central DS NAVIOS control system, several SALLY Kurier vehicles can also be operated in a network within one system. Thanks to DS AUTOMOTION's many years of expertise in large-volume systems, integration into an existing AWT system is easy.

Compact package, simple implementation

DS NAVIOS not only handles traffic control with priority control and deadlock detection as well as transport data evaluation, but also enables central monitoring of the entire fleet as well as diagnostics and remote maintenance. It also handles order processing and optimization.

"Up to now, AWTs have usually been implemented after thorough analysis in the form of customized large-scale systems," says Eva Hertel. "To make the introduction easier for hospital operators, we offer the SALLY Kurier as a ready-to-go basic package with options." This contains everything needed to set up a route with two stations. In addition to a vehicle and a charging station, this includes the DS NAVIOS control system. Commissioning, documentation and training are also included. In addition to further vehicles and charging stations, options include route extensions, service packages, financing offers and further interfaces for modular system expansion.

SALLY Kurier was presented in the DACH region on June 5, 2019 at med.Logistica in Leipzig, and the first AWT systems based on this innovative, modular concept for pick-up and delivery services in hospitals are scheduled to go into operation in the fourth quarter.