NOTE: I want to be clear - this is in no way to single out Medtronic - it just happens to be the company in the headlines the day I write my blog on reliability being a major factor in the launch of a successful soft tissue surgical robot.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Making a prototype surgical robot is relatively easy. Making several that all do the same thing is harder. Making production quality is super hard - and pushing out hundreds that will be reliable in the market place time and time again is really the realm of the few.
One of the biggest challenges for any company (big or small) coming into the soft tissue robotics market place is the incredibly high bar (in all aspects) set by the incumbent Intuitive.
They now have a 99.5% plus up time of their system. Which means that it more or less always turns on - and then when it is in operation in a case, it works for the duration of the case as intended.
With such complex mechatronic systems - that is no mean feat. If just one thing goes wrong then the case has the potential to be cancelled. If cases get cancelled then you will not only disappoint the patient (the worst part of this) but the surgeon will become frustrated and the hospitals will become distrustful. Systems will come back.
As I was writing this blog on reliability - my news radar lit up, and three articles came across the wire - which was timely. And this is not any news that in any way helps competition in our space. No one should relish in this news or use it to score points. It does not help our industry.