From manual transportation and pipeline transportation to today's computer-controlled intelligent transportation system, the internal transportation system of Hong Kong hospitals has undergone many changes over the years.
Although these facilities are inconspicuous to ordinary hospital users, and even submerged in the huge hospital facilities and engineering systems, they have been "silently cultivated" in the hospital for many years and have made irreplaceable contributions to both staff and patients. ; With the rapid development of science and technology, fully automatic control of intelligent conveying, including robotics systems, will become more and more widely used.
Written by: Yuan Bailiang, senior engineer and former president of the Institute of Engineers
The author has been involved in hospital projects for many years, and I have witnessed the innovation of many facilities with the advancement of technology. One of the more "low-key" equipment is the logistics system within the hospital.
In the past, the technology was not developed, and the transportation within the hospital was mostly handled manually. Later, in order to meet the more urgent needs than the transportation of laboratory samples and drugs, and to avoid the possible loss of samples due to manual transportation, the hospital gradually developed special transportation facilities. As a delivery system, it is called "pneumatic tube system".
This system of transporting goods was first seen in the British railway transport authorities in the 19th century, and has been used in hospitals in the 21st century.
This type of transparent bamboo tube-shaped capsules with a diameter of 4 inches to 6 inches and a length of about 10 inches to 12 inches run in a delivery pipeline extending in all directions. Up and down multiple floors and rooms, the capsules can be pushed or sucked by the blower so that they can be delivered to each hospital floor at a high speed without any obstructions, and the pipeline transfer operation is generally set in the logistics position, which is not easy for patients to notice.
However, the size of the objects transported by such pipelines is limited, and the hospital floor also needs to have a certain height so that there is enough space to allow the construction of curved pipelines.
In a large hospital, there will be more than 90 capsule transceiver stations in wards, and there are more than 10 regional pipeline networks connecting the ward transceiver stations to each other. The total length of the pipeline can reach 4,500 meters, and there will be as many as 20,000 times a day. Capsule shipping process.
As for the transportation of larger objects, quilts, clothing or meals, etc., it is necessary to rely on robots for transportation.
With the development of technology, the delivery robot can be connected to the elevator system in the hospital. Once the robot needs to use the elevator to deliver goods to different floors, the elevator system will cooperate with it to pick up the robot to the required floor, and the system will also avoid Robots use lifts at the same time as regular passengers.
In recent years, with the widespread use of intelligent systems, the robot can be almost fully controlled by a computer, and it can automatically charge at the charging position in a timely manner.
Such systems will be installed in newly built hospitals, and have also been piloted in some large hospitals on Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. In addition to greatly enhancing the efficiency and speed of delivery, the intelligent system also brings unexpected benefits under the new crown epidemic.
Earlier, during the raging epidemic, robots replaced some medical staff to transport food or daily necessities to the isolation ward, saving some medical staff from wearing full protective clothing to enter and exit the "unclean area" to deliver goods and food. It also reduces the infection risk of medical staff. Its load-bearing capacity is also higher than that of human beings. It can transport more items at a time. It also helps to solve the problem of long-term manpower shortage of hospital staff and long transportation routes due to the development of large hospitals. .
Written by: Yuan Bailiang, senior engineer and former president of the Institute of Engineers
"01 Medical Clinic" cooperates with senior engineer Yuan Bailiang to launch a column "Yuantu has you" every Monday to share the big and small matters of engineering and medical care.
Yuan Bailiang has always been committed to promoting the professional development of the engineering field, and he has just stepped down as the president of the Institution of Engineers.
Decades of professional journey are really worth remembering, and I am convinced that later generations may be able to understand the key points of the engineering profession.
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