The dependence on finite reserves of raw materials and the production of waste are two unsolved problems of the traditional linear economy. Healthcare, as a major sector of any nation, is currently facing them. Hence, in this paper, we report theoretical and practical advances of robotic reprocessing of small medical devices. Specifically, on the theory, we combine compartmental dynamical thermodynamics with the mechanics of robots to integrate robotics into a system-level perspective, and then, propose graph-based circularity indicators by leveraging our thermodynamic framework. Our thermodynamic framework is also a step forward in defining the theoretical foundations of circular material flow designs as it improves material flow analysis (MFA) by adding dynamical energy balances to the usual mass balances. On the practice, we report on the on-going design of a flexible robotic cell enabled by deep-learning vision for resources mapping and quantification, disassembly, and waste sorting of small medical devices.

Abstract-- Centralized control of a multi-agent system improves upon distributed control especially when multiple agents share a common task e.g., sorting different materials in a recycling facility. Traditionally, each agent in a sorting facility is tuned individually which leads to suboptimal performance if one agent is less efficient than the others. Centralized control overcomes this bottleneck by leveraging global system state information, but it can be computationally expensive. In this work, we propose a novel framework called Longitudinal Control Volumes (LCV) to model the flow of material in a recycling facility. We then employ a Kalman Filter that incorporates local measurements of materials into a global estimation of the material flow in the system. In this work, we present a novel modeling framework that divides the entire conveyor into smaller Longitudinal Centralized control approaches improve task performance Control Volumes (LCV) which enables a low-dimensional over distributed approaches by leveraging information about representation and prediction of material flows throughout the system state to coordinate agent actions.

Due to complexity and dynamics of construction work, resource, and cash flows, poor management of them usually leads to time and cost overruns, bankruptcy, even project failure. Existing approaches in construction failed to achieve optimal control of resource flow in a dynamic environment with uncertainty. Therefore, this paper introducess a model and method to adaptive control the resource flows to optimize the work and cash flows of construction projects. First, a mathematical model based on a partially observable Markov decision process is established to formulate the complex interactions of construction work, resource, and cash flows as well as uncertainty and variability of diverse influence factors. Meanwhile, to efficiently find the optimal solutions, a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) based method is introduced to realize the continuous adaptive optimal control of labor and material flows, thereby optimizing the work and cash flows. To assist the training process of DRL, a simulator based on discrete event simulation is also developed to mimic the dynamic features and external environments of a project. Experiments in simulated scenarios illustrate that our method outperforms the vanilla empirical method and genetic algorithm, possesses remarkable capability in diverse projects and external environments, and a hybrid agent of DRL and empirical method leads to the best result. This paper contributes to adaptive control and optimization of coupled work, resource, and cash flows, and may serve as a step stone for adopting DRL technology in construction project management.

Automation is extending into every aspect of how organizations get work done, and today comes news of a startup that is building tools for one industry in particular: life sciences. Artificial, which has built a software platform for laboratories to assist with, or in some cases fully automate, research and development work, has raised $21.5 million. It plans to use the funding to continue building out its software and its capabilities, to hire more people, and for business development, according to Artificial's CEO and co-founder David Fuller. The company already has a number of customers including Thermo Fisher and Beam Therapeutics using its software directly and in partnership for their own customers. Sold as aLab Suite, Artificial's technology can both orchestrate and manage robotic machines that labs might be using to handle some work; and help assist scientists when they are carrying out the work themselves.