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Robots, Elevators, and the BMS · NOXTalks

• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Knox Talks, the AI-generated podcast exploring the groundbreaking ways technology shapes our built environment.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: Today we're talking about something that sounds like science fiction, but is happening right now in buildings around the world.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: Picture this: it's almost 11 at night in a 40-story tower.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: The cleaning crews have gone home.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: A small robot rolls off its charging dock, calls an elevator, rides up to the 17th floor, and the building automatically turns on the lights and unlocks the doors.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: Down in the lobby, security watches the whole thing happen on their screens.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: Nobody had to coordinate any of this by hand.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: This is real.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: It's happening in Japan, Poland, New Zealand, and probably coming to a building near you soon.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: So why now?
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: Two big reasons.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: First, the elevator companies finally built the software for this.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: Otis Cohn and Schindler all have systems that let robots talk to elevators.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: The robot can request a car, get assigned to a specific elevator, and know when the doors will close.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: These are proper production systems.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_00: Second reason?
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: Labor shortages, hospitals especially, are using robots to move supplies, medications, and linens between floors.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: This frees up nurses and staff to do the important work that actually requires human judgment.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: One company called Diligent Robotics says their hospital delivery robot has made over 1 million deliveries and taken more than 110,000 autonomous elevator rides.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: Let me give you three real examples of how this works.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: Hotels and offices use delivery robots for room service and document runs.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: The robot calls the elevator, rides up, notifies the guest when it arrives, and goes back to its dock.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: There are hotels in Poland and Japan already doing this with Otis elevators.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: Hospitals are the killer app here, pharmacy to nursing station, lab specimens going down, clean linens going up.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: These robots are moving critical supplies 24-7, and they're coordinating with both elevators and security doors to do it.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: And then there's security, patrol robots that need to cover multiple floors after hours.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: They take the elevator between levels, stream video to the security system, and log everything for the morning team.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: One company called Cobalt built their whole multi-floor patrol system around this kind of elevator integration.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: Now here's what's happening under the hood.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: The robot authenticates to the elevator system, asks for a car, and gets real-time updates about timing.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: Meanwhile, the elevator is also talking to your building management system.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: That's how the building knows to turn the lights on and unlock doors at just the right time.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: Otis and Cohn both publish detailed guides on how all this works.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: But here's a security warning you need to know about.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: If you're using Schindler's system with a platform called GeneTech, their own documentation says the connection is not encrypted.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: You have to put it on a separate, closed network.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: By contrast, Otis explicitly encrypts all their communications.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: So the security picture is different depending on which vendor you pick.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: Now, not all robots can ride elevators.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: Delivery robots and hospital robots, sure, but many cleaning robots still can't do this autonomously.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: Tenant, a major cleaning robot company, requires manual mode when taking elevators.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: So if you're planning a cleaning robot fleet for multiple floors, check this first.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_00: Before you deploy any of this, three things matter.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_00: Look for UL 3300 certification for the robots.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_00: Your elevators need to comply with local safety codes.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: And if robots need to go through locked doors, you need to integrate your access control system.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: Assim Abloy and Boston Dynamics demonstrated this at a trade show last year.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: Here's how you pitch this to your leadership.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_00: Treat robots like any other connected device.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_00: Put them on a separate, secure network.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: Map out which systems need to talk to each other, and schedule robot operations for off-peak hours so they're not competing with people for elevator space.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: The return on investment usually shows up in three places.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: Coverage.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: One robot with elevator access can patrol way more square footage.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: Staff time.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: In hospitals, robots doing deliveries means nurses focus on patients, and night and weekend work without overtime pay.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to try this, here's a 30-day plan.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: Pick one use case like hotel deliveries or after hours patrol.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: Confirm with your elevator company that your system can support this.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: Set up the network with proper logging and security, then do a test run after hours with your security team watching.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: The big picture?
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: Elevators used to be black boxes you couldn't program or integrate.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: Now they're just another programmable system in your building.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: When robots, elevators, and building automation all speak the same language, you can get way more done without adding people.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_00: The tech is here.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: The standards are getting solid.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: The question is just when you're ready to turn it on.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_01: Futuristic flights flow.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_01: Innovation spots fly.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_01: In the channels of eye.