Periodic Reporting for period 2 - TANDO (Aerial robotic platform for indoor safety and security)
Berichtszeitraum: 2021-07-01 bis 2022-06-30
Traditional solutions for monitoring, safety and security have limited value as they (1) are heavily reliant on manual detection, (2) have high installation and equipment costs, (3) do not have a holistic approach, (4) have a limited field of view, (5) have many false positives that cause expensive event management, (6) require heavy maintenance cost (or unawareness of sensors malfunction), (7) provide detection only when damage is already inevitable, and (8) provide limited value to personnel responding to such events.
Security systems are needed to protect people, assets and property Security systems are indispensable because they provide safety of tangible assets, intellectual property and, above all, human life. Commercial properties, airports, retail shops, industrial enterprises, financial and governmental institutions, schools, medical facilities, as well as homes, require a set of safety and security measures because they are all vulnerable to different hazards (burglary, fire, water leaks…). For this reason, the global physical security market is expected to reach €108.70 billion by 2023, growing at a CAGR (2018-2023) of 7.3%.
Autonomous and periodic indoor security and safety checks have the potential to save lives, property, and capital, thus offering an immediate tangible value. As in many other markets, monotonous and repetitive actions that require advanced vision capabilities are better suited for robots. Robots can reduce false alarms, increase coverage, and perform active surveillance.
Indoor Robotics aims to provide a true answer to some of the most dangerous, time-consuming and costly failures in the physical security market with an emphasis on creating a secure environment within a closed area. With this vision, we have developed Tando, a game-changing holistic security solution to perform active surveillance of indoor premises. Tando robot, the core of the system, is a patented highly crafted drone able to navigate indoors and dock on the ceiling. Tando utilizes advanced sensor fusion as a result of this revolutionary flying robot, our security system is able to perform routine surveillance (patrolling) and space monitoring in indoor environments and is able to be the first responder to an anomaly, allowing for early detection of hazards such as fire and water leakages. Tando only captures video while patrolling and it is highly visible thereby eliminating any privacy concerns associated with hidden cameras.
Security systems are needed to protect people, assets and property Security systems are indispensable because they provide safety of tangible assets, intellectual property and, above all, human life. Commercial properties, airports, retail shops, industrial enterprises, financial and governmental institutions, schools, medical facilities, as well as homes, require a set of safety and security measures because they are all vulnerable to different hazards (burglary, fire, water leaks…). For this reason, the global physical security market is expected to reach €108.70 billion by 2023, growing at a CAGR (2018-2023) of 7.3%.
Autonomous and periodic indoor security and safety checks have the potential to save lives, property, and capital, thus offering an immediate tangible value. As in many other markets, monotonous and repetitive actions that require advanced vision capabilities are better suited for robots. Robots can reduce false alarms, increase coverage, and perform active surveillance.
Indoor Robotics aims to provide a true answer to some of the most dangerous, time-consuming and costly failures in the physical security market with an emphasis on creating a secure environment within a closed area. With this vision, we have developed Tando, a game-changing holistic security solution to perform active surveillance of indoor premises. Tando robot, the core of the system, is a patented highly crafted drone able to navigate indoors and dock on the ceiling. Tando utilizes advanced sensor fusion as a result of this revolutionary flying robot, our security system is able to perform routine surveillance (patrolling) and space monitoring in indoor environments and is able to be the first responder to an anomaly, allowing for early detection of hazards such as fire and water leakages. Tando only captures video while patrolling and it is highly visible thereby eliminating any privacy concerns associated with hidden cameras.
The full scope of work and achievements by the team for the project period (July 2020-June 2022) is:
• Tando achieved a maturity level of TRL8 (first commercial installations), and is now manufactured in small batches, and will meet TRL9 very soon (a serial manufacturing line for the product is currently work in progress. We expect first TRL9 units toward EOY 2022). As of June 2022, 11 paying installations of Tando were completed (for example: ADT in the US, G4S in Canada, Intel in Israel).
• We filed for 15 patents (in 11 countries), out of which 5 were already granted (in several countries). We were able to position Indoor Robotics on solid ground in terms of freedom to operate and competitive advantage.
• We managed pilots with customers and converted most to paying installations. Notable is the installation with Intel, which started with a single system in early 2021, and today we have 5 paying installations with them.
• Our team grew substantially and we are now 43 full-time employees. Once we started meeting TRL8, we started building our manufacturing operations team which consists of 10 full-time employees today, and our customer operations team (this team supports customers onboarding and day-to-day) which consists of 3 full-time employees and growing.
• Tando achieved a maturity level of TRL8 (first commercial installations), and is now manufactured in small batches, and will meet TRL9 very soon (a serial manufacturing line for the product is currently work in progress. We expect first TRL9 units toward EOY 2022). As of June 2022, 11 paying installations of Tando were completed (for example: ADT in the US, G4S in Canada, Intel in Israel).
• We filed for 15 patents (in 11 countries), out of which 5 were already granted (in several countries). We were able to position Indoor Robotics on solid ground in terms of freedom to operate and competitive advantage.
• We managed pilots with customers and converted most to paying installations. Notable is the installation with Intel, which started with a single system in early 2021, and today we have 5 paying installations with them.
• Our team grew substantially and we are now 43 full-time employees. Once we started meeting TRL8, we started building our manufacturing operations team which consists of 10 full-time employees today, and our customer operations team (this team supports customers onboarding and day-to-day) which consists of 3 full-time employees and growing.
Currently, safety and security solutions for indoor environments typically include automatic alarms with cameras and sensors. The main limitation of this type of solution based on fixed sensors is their limited field of view/detection. Imaging-based sensors, such as cameras, infrared sensors and others, inherently have a limited field of view, so to cover a full area, the current approach is to install multiple sensors. However, this approach introduces a new challenge to data monitoring and analysis, as well as an increase in cost. The installation of an array of sensors for intruder detection, fire and water require an installation service. Another issue with this type of security solution is the high number of false positives that cause expensive event management. Lastly, in the event of fire and water leakages, these systems provide detection only after the damage is inevitable. On the other hand, approaches for active patrolling of an indoor area include (1) visual inspection with a patrolling person and (2) robotics solutions for patrolling based on Ground Robots. Visual inspection with a patrolling person is a common security approach mainly in large industrial premises. This method possesses several limitations which include high cost, a limitation for medium-size and small indoor spaces, privacy, and human error which makes it unreliable. Recently, some robotics solutions for patrolling indoor areas have arisen in the market. However, all these robotics solutions are based on ground robots. Therefore, these robots have limitations concerning the field of view and obstacle avoidance. Moreover, these solutions are very costly. Our patented ceiling-docked drone solution offers better obstacle avoidance and path planning at a significantly lower cost (4x cheaper). Tando is equipped with state-of-the-art sensors and can detect anomalies such as heated wires, unauthorized personnel, temperature differences across time, and water leaks. It can respond to events, and then investigate the incident providing footage from different angles in different spectra. When the drone detects an anomaly via its different sensors, the end-user has a high level of confidence that the detection is not a false positive. Having a significant presence, the robot serves as a deterrent to intruders as it is a flying, sensing device. It is basically providing near-real-time live remote operational access.