The new delivery personnel traveling the hallways of Canonsburg General Hospital will never be mistaken for R2-D2 or C3PO, lacking as it does the android good looks and big-screen personality.
Just remember, R2-D2 and C3PO aren't real robots.
But Tug is, and ever since its December arrival, a "Star Wars" sensibility has pervaded the hospital in North Strabane.
The Robot Age is upon us.
Tug works nonstop 24 hours a day, seven days a week, hauling blood, urine and other specimens from the emergency room down several long hallways to the hospital laboratory.
The metal imp is not replacing any human workers. But it does work at a bargain price at $3 an hour, a little more than half minimum wage.
The modern-day robot designed to do human deeds is the hallmark product of Aethon, an Allegheny County-based robotics company founded in 2000. Aethon, with 55 human employees, sold its first robot in 2003, and now has 100 Tugs rolling down hallways of hospitals and medical facilities nationwide.
Tug is designed to deliver specimens, pharmaceuticals, linens and food in hospitals.
Terry Wiltrout, hospital director of operations, said Tug makes about 50 round trips a day, each round trip requiring about seven minutes. Aethon says Tug can save Canonsburg Hospital $240,000 over five years.
"Tug is pretty much one of a kind," said Chuck Wagner, Aethon project manager.
Tug's presence means emergency room nurses can spend more time with patients, not having to deliver specimens to the lab. "We evaluated all areas of the hospital and figured this was the best area to use Tug," Mr. Wiltrout said.
But for hospital workers who enjoy personable colleagues, Tug may be a disappointment. He talks, but his "waiting to proceed," and "your delivery has arrived," are not the fuzzy stuff of friendly relationships.
Tug doesn't pretend to be an android like Honda's amazing Asimo, which walks, talks and resembles your little brother in a space suit. Nor does Tug do all the tasks of The Jetsons' Rosie. And Tug is not as garrulous as R2-D2 nor as whiny as C3PO.
Tug has wheels, not legs. It has neither arms nor noggin. It has a techno-nerd personality and the demeanor of a college refrigerator. And, at least for now, Tug's gender is unclear.
But what Tug does well is navigate hospital hallways, open and shut doors, deliver specimens and announce his presence. He can be programmed to operate an elevator.
Once a specimen is placed inside Tug's rib cage, a nurse pushes a button and Tug leaves its ER port, opens the ER doors electronically and rolls down the hallway, staying one foot from the wall, as programmed.
Along the way, it stops for people and obstructions, and announces that it's "waiting to proceed." Translation: "Get out of the way, moron." If the obstruction persists, Tug will stop for 10 seconds before trying to navigate around the obstacle.
If the hallway remains jammed, Tug will summon help from Aethon support staff in Robinson, Allegheny County. They can see the obstruction via a camera inside Tug and maneuver the robot around it.
Upon reaching the lab entry, Tug announces, "Your delivery has arrived." Tug soon will be equipped to open the lab door electronically and take specimens inside.
Once specimens are removed, the lab technician presses a button and Tug spins and returns to the ER, where it announces, "Your delivery has been received." Mission accomplished, it docks to recharge its battery.
"It rarely makes a mistake," said Adam Karpa, Aethon implementation specialist. "It is very reliable."
For those who encounter Tug in the hallways, here's some advice:
Don't ask it for directions or try talking to it. Keep out of its way. Tug is way too patient and not human enough to object.
Some people are clueless when Tug rolls down the hallway.
"People think it's a vacuum cleaner," said Patricia Hickle, an ER nurse who uses Tug. "I've seen people in the hallway talk to it."
She said Tug is a dependable time-saver whom she has dubbed "Robbie the Robot."
West Penn Allegheny Health Systems, which includes Canonsburg General, has purchased Tugs for its six hospitals to save money and use professional staff more wisely.
The Alle-Kiski Medical Center in Natrona Heights has had a Tug for two years. Employees have attached a papier mache head to their Tug and dressed it for holidays. For Easter, they put rabbit ears on it.
When Tug arrived in Canonsburg last month, hospital employees were surprised and disappointed by its utilitarian shape, Ms. Hickle said. "They thought it would be R2-D2 and have arms and legs and look like 'Lost in Space.' "
Hospital officials are considering holding an in-house contest to name it. But first, it must be determined whether Tug is a male or female. Debate rages.
Some hospital employees insist Tug's a "she" because it works around the clock and takes orders well. But Tug has "infrared light whiskers," talks only when necessary, cares less about what it looks like and is good with directions. For those reasons, there's strong argument Tug is male.
Della Misenhelder, a lab technologist, insisted Tug is female. "She'll do just fine because it's a she," she said. "There's no personality problem yet."
Regardless of its gender, Mr. Karpa said, Aethon has "thought of it all. It's amazing technology."
So if you visit the hospital, don't bug Tug. Don't hug Tug. You can dig Tug but not tug Tug. Tug is expert at rolling on the rug, delivering any drug and making people shrug. Basically Tug is a working stiff whose reputation is rising at Canonsburg General.
"I can see this being expanded to other departments, with the possibility of it being used throughout the hospital," Mr. Wiltrout said, noting potential use in the imaging department or to deliver linens, pharmaceuticals and food.
"Alle-Kiski has been using it for two years with no down time or outages," he said.
Can it mow the lawn or shovel snow?
These are questions Mr. Wiltrout pondered, not me. But in due time, robots will do these chores.
And regardless of Tug's refrigerator shape, Ms. Hickle said Tug represents "the shape of things to come."
First Published: January 8, 2006, 5:00 a.m.