The Essential Guide to Droids (Page 28-29)
Medical: 2-1B Surgical Droid
[edit]The 2-1B surgical droid was a joint venture between Industrial Automaton and a small medsensor company called Genetech. The droids were an instant hit and are now found in nearly every major clinic, emergency ward, and roving hospital ship.
Droids possess several inherent advantages over organic surgeons—their hands are always steady, their minds are always clear, and they never forget a preprogrammed procedure. But previous surgical models met with only modest success, since their limited intellects couldn’t deal with sudden complications or foresee unplanned side effects. Additionally, more close-minded patients refused to be operated on by droids.
Genetech could do nothing about the latter concern, but addressed the former quite handily. The 2-1B is an extremely intelligent unit, equipped with an advanced analytical and diagnostic computer. After three prototype knowledge matrices were completed, they were sent to the State Medical Academy on Rhinnal, where some of the finest physicians in the galaxy further refined their programming.
The 2-1B can diagnose impending cardiac arrest in a hibernating Pui-Ui, recall that the species possesses a fatal allergy to perigen, and deal with an enzyme eruption in the patient’s third liver heat by inserting an Intravenous Access Unit catheter or administering a mixed dose of lotromine and Clondex. This level of sophistication was previously unheard of in any surgical model.
The droid's gunmetal-gray body is unremarkable, even a bit ugly, but the 2-1B wasn't built for looks. Many of its internal components are visible through a translucent torso sheath. Each arm is long, delicate, and perfectly balanced. The gripping claws at the end of each limb are deceptively gentle for holding laser scalpels and other medical instruments. In some operating rooms, these hands are removed altogether and replaced with hypodermic injectors or cutting saws.
Each 2-1B comes with a five-meter computer interface tether that plugs into a chest-mounted access port. When the cable’s other end is attached to a medical mainframe, the droid can instantly download detailed historical data or search through patient archives. The earliest 2-1Bs were designed to be hardwired into place like heavy appliances, but newer versions can move about on two long legs.
Although all 2-1Bs share a common knowledge base, some have since become specialists in fields such as neurosurgery, cybernetic limb replacement, and alien biology. The vain and wealthy even employ them to resculpt their sagging faces and burn away unsightly pockets of body fat.
Several years after the introduction of the 2-1B, Genetech was run out of business by the larger Genetech Corporation, who filed a copyright-infringement suit based on the smaller company's suspiciously similar name. The successful surgical line continues to be manufactured under the aegis of Industrial Automaton.
Info Boxes
[edit]Front View
[edit]- Hydraulic Lines
- Precision Servomotor
- Multiwave Visual Sensors
- Vocabulator
- Interface Socket for Computer Tether
- Torso Sheath
- Attachment Point for Hypodermic Injector
- Precise Servogrip Pincers
- Knee Assembly
Rear View
[edit]- Analytical Computer
- Medical Diagnostic Computer
- Hydraulic System Pumps
- Wrist Rotator
- Gyro-Balanced Joints