Enhancing Hygiene and Efficiency in Life Sciences
Maintaining strict hygiene protocols is critical in life science environments. Operators often need to handle sensitive materials while wearing gloves, which makes interacting with workstations cumbersome and time-consuming due to frequent sanitization requirements. Recognizing this challenge, Tulip sought to develop a solution that would allow operators to interact with workstations without physical contact, thereby streamlining workflows and enhancing overall efficiency.
Implementing Speech-to-Command with HiveMQ
Tulip developed an innovative Speech-to-Command solution that leverages HiveMQ for secure and reliable MQTT-based messaging. This solution was initially developed as an internal project led by Gabriel Cardoso, Solution Engineer, designed specifically to allow operators to control workstations via voice commands. Here’s how it works:
Voice Input to Web Application: Using the computer's microphone, the solution captures voice commands through a web application, which converts spoken words into text via the Web Speech API. This makes it compatible with multiple platforms, including Chrome and Firefox.
Data Transmission to HiveMQ: The converted text is then transmitted via WebSockets to a specific topic in HiveMQ, which serves as the central MQTT broker. HiveMQ efficiently handles this data transfer, ensuring the information is securely passed to Tulip's on-premises connector.
Integration with Tulip’s MES: Tulip’s connector, deployed in a Docker container, receives the information from HiveMQ and makes it available to Tulip’s MES. The MES then triggers predefined actions based on the received commands, such as progressing a task from one step to the next.
This system not only maintains hygiene standards but also increases productivity by allowing operators to complete tasks hands-free. The solution demonstrates the flexibility and reliability of HiveMQ, which supports a smooth and secure data flow, ensuring that the Tulip platform remains adaptable for future expansion.
Through their partnership, HiveMQ and Tulip work to consolidate and contextualize data from factory machine systems into actionable insights. HiveMQ provides a scalable, reliable method for creating a single source of truth for manufacturing data, which can then be efficiently sent to Tulip’s cloud-native environment for dashboards and analytics.
Transforming Workstation Interaction with Voice Control
Tulip’s Speech-to-Command solution showcases the value of MQTT technology in the life sciences sector, where hygiene and efficiency are paramount. By utilizing HiveMQ as the messaging backbone, the solution allows operators to navigate tasks and trigger specific functions through simple voice commands, effectively transforming the way they interact with their workstations. This capability not only simplifies day-to-day operations but also highlights HiveMQ’s scalability and potential for further integrations in machine execution systems across diverse industries.
Future Plans
Following the success of this project, Tulip plans to explore additional implementations of MQTT for hands-free operations in other environments that prioritize sanitation and operational efficiency. With HiveMQ’s flexible platform and robust messaging capabilities, Tulip is well-positioned to continue innovating for enhanced machine interaction in regulated and demanding settings.
