Servo - December 2016

60 SERVO 12.2016

When you’re thinking of robots in the future, the first type that probably comes to mind is a bipedal humanoid servant robot, similar to what we’ve seen in the movies for many decades. Step aside from a whimsical wish of a home robot and imagine this scenario. You’re on a hike in the woods outside of your city and are hiking on a one meter wide path with a friend. Your friend suddenly tells you that he doesn’t feel well, and grabs his chest and struggles to sit down and recline against a tree. For a second, you don’t know what to do.

Then, you remember that you downloaded an app on your phone called ‘Drone-Delivered AED.’ You finger through your apps and come to that particular one and hit the emergency button image.

An AED (Automated External Defibrillator) is a portable electronic device shown in use in Figure 1 that automatically diagnoses the life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias of ventricular fibrillation and tachycardia in a patient, and then is able to treat them through defibrillation (the application of electrical ‘shocks’ sent through the skin to stop the arrhythmia), allowing the heart to reestablish an effective rhythm.

A few moments later, you hear a voice on your phone, “I Is the sky above you open for the drone that is coming your way?” You look up and reply, “Yes, it is about 25 meters open at the tree tops but the path is only a meter or two wide with brush on both sides.” “That is no problem, sir. The AED drone will soon be there. Keep your phone on and hold it above your head. The drone will land near you.” You then inform “the voice” that you downloaded and viewed the instruction video when you received the app, so you feel comfortable using the drone’s AED.

You soon hear the buzzing of the drone as it slowly lands on the clear pathway. The graph in Figure 2 shows just how critical it is to rapidly begin the defibrillation process, though few of us will be lucky enough to be near an AED if a heart attack occurs. A voice emanates from the drone and you realize that the voice is a real person. “This is Jackie from Fire Station number 12. Move the drone over by the patient; the props will not move. Is the patient breathing?” “No,” you say, “but I’ve been performing CPR on him.” “That is good. Do you detect a heartbeat?” “I don’t think so, but I’m not sure.” “No problem, sir. Did you view the instruction video that comes with the app?” “Yes,” you tell her.

“Great. I will instruct you on how to pull out the electrodes and where to place them. Quickly remove the clothing from the patient’s chest. Pull out the two electrodes and remove the red-tabbed plastic covering from one electrode and stick it firmly about three centimeters or one inch above the patient’s right nipple. Remove the plastic from the second electrode and place it the

by Tom Carroll g{xÇ Now a n d

TWCarroll@aol.com

Robots of the Future

I was recently on vacation and happened to see two TV commercials presented right after each other touting robots and the future. One was by the job site, Indeed.com about booming jobs in the future of robotics. The other was by OppenheimerFunds, implying that people feel that robots can be inhuman, cold, and heartless as depicted in three scenes, and yet beautiful, as in another scene where a humanoid robot was shown helping a senior with her meal. The ad stated: "At OppenheimerFunds, we find beauty in disruption. We challenge perceptions about robots, revealing not only the investment opportunity, but how robots will change how we live for the better." All facets of life are now looking at robots for use in the future.