New robot trained to conduct blood tests

American experts from Rutgers University presented a robot capable of drawing blood from patients and conducting its analysis.

The procedure of phlebotomy (the scientific name of the process of blood sampling) is not as simple as it may seem at first glance. Specialists participating in the process at all its stages should be seriously prepared, the prerequisite is compliance with the conditions of sterility and the corresponding storage parameters of the materials under study. Not every medical institution can afford to comply with all necessary conditions at 100 percent due to limited financial resources. This leads to the problem of insufficient accuracy of test results.

The new robot is designed to help solve the problem. The operation of the device is based on the functioning of the three systems. The first system allows you to study the circulatory system of the patient, for this purpose various sensors are used.On the basis of the data obtained, the device creates a map of the vessels in a three-dimensional projection, after which it begins the procedure of blood collection.

The information processing module is the second component of the complex. Vacuum pumps move the samples to tanks. In tanks, the third unit, the analyzer, starts operation. The centrifuge provides the separation of blood into the necessary components, and the microscope analyzes cells by qualitative and quantitative characteristics.

To date, 30 tests have been conducted. In all cases, the robot managed to get into the patient's vessel with filigree precision.

The project manager and inventor Martin L. Yarmush highly appreciated the quality of the tests carried out, noting the accuracy of the results and compliance with all the necessary rules for processing the material. In the future, the scientist hopes to expand the functionality of the robot, allowing him to perform more serious studies of the human body.