Mindaehong, CEO of Read&: "The Core of Service Robots is Software"

The Only Domestic Robot Integrated Control Solution Company
Expanding Service Robot Activity Areas Outdoors... Green Light for the Robot Integrated Control Market

Min Dae-hong, CEO of Lead &, is explaining the integrated robot control technology. Photo by So-yeon Park muse@

"Robots that have stopped working were left abandoned like junk in the warehouse," said Min Daehong, CEO of Lead&. He recently met with Asia Economy at the headquarters in Anyang and emphasized, "The core of service robots is software." He added, "Just as a smartphone terminal is useless without software no matter how good its performance is, the same applies to robots. We can also integrate and control robots from different manufacturers."

It has become a common sight to encounter robots in everyday places like airports and restaurants. In the future, various robots made by different manufacturers will penetrate our daily lives and perform important tasks involving personal information. Lead& is a leading company in the field of integrated robot control solutions. Originally a company developing online education platform content, it transformed into a robot solution company managing and controlling robots during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lead& is currently engaged in robot control business for hotels and hospitals. They receive proprietary technology from robot manufacturers and integrate robots with hotel and hospital systems for unified management. Lead&’s integrated robot control system has been applied at Severance Hospitals in Yongin and Sinchon. Based on linkage with the Hospital Information System (HIS), they provide integrated control services.

"Security is vital for hospital robots. There can be no mistakes in handling narcotics, blood sample management, or medication. A robot tracking management system is necessary, and system security is essential."

Readn integrates robots made by various manufacturers with the systems of institutions such as hotels and hospitals for unified control. [Image provided by Readn]

In the future, robots made by various manufacturers will need to communicate and collaborate with institutional systems. For example, if a customer orders coffee and steak from a serving robot, this order must be linked with the hotel system and delivered respectively to the barista robot and chef robot. If the connection fails, the robots become useless. Hotels and public offices also have many infrastructures to consider, such as elevators, automatic doors, and transfers.

Recently, Lead& developed a hotel robot service and applied it at Kangwon Land. They integrate control of various robots, from room service robots delivering items to rooms, casino cash and chip transfer robots where safety and security are critical, multilingual concierge robots, to frying and pasta cooking robots.

"The Kangwon Land project was not easy. Maintaining the stability of a 5-star hotel kitchen facility and ensuring multiple different robot models could properly transfer via elevators was a kind of challenge. But the development process was very enjoyable, and considering the necessity, it was a rewarding task. In the future, the entire hotel will become a robot. The hotel room service management system is linked with the hotel system. Robots will handle everything from ordering to cooking and serving. We integrate and control the entire process."

The field of integrated robot control solutions has great potential for development and expansion. Due to its characteristics involving security and personal information handling, it is also a sector difficult for foreign companies to penetrate. CEO Min predicted that various robots such as personalized robots and care robots will emerge. Recently, with the amendment of the "Intelligent Robot Development and Distribution Promotion Act (Intelligent Robot Act)," the activity area of service robots is expanding from indoors to outdoors, and the robot integrated control market is expected to grow further. Lead& also plans to proceed with an initial public offering (IPO) in the future.

Founded in 2003, Lead& began full-scale IT business in 2009 starting as an LG Electronics partner. Since 2012, it has expanded IT solution contracts with major domestic public institutions and medical institutions, starting with the digital information integrated operation system at Seoul National University Hospital. Currently, it operates robot infrastructure construction, control, and operation systems for hospitals, hotels, and public institutions. In February this year, Lead& built the "AI-5G Based Service Robot Convergence Model Demonstration Project," led by Yongin Severance Hospital and promoted by the Korea Institute for Robot Industry Advancement, together with LG Electronics.

Recently, Lead& was finally selected as the project operator for the "2023 Demand-Based Customized Service Robot Development and Distribution Project," the third phase annual project planned as part of the Korea New Deal Comprehensive Plan and the Robot Industry Proactive Regulatory Innovation Roadmap by the Korea Institute for Robot Industry Advancement. This includes establishing a concierge service at Konkuk University Hospital based on elevator (EV) boarding indoor autonomous driving robots to reduce medical staff workload, and building a smart concierge service based on autonomous driving robots for visitors at Seodaemun Museum and Seodaemun District Office. In addition, Kangwon Land, Anyang City Hall, Seoul National University, and Yonsei University are operating robot services under Lead&’s integrated operation system platform.