Remote monitoring system development for a Fortune 500 company

Our client is a Canadian-based company that offers research and development (R&D) services for third parties. As an R&D company, they strive to solve real-world needs through innovative tech solutions, particularly next-generation AI. One of their noteworthy products is a new kind of robotic system that contributes to people’s well-being. The aim of this social robot with the capacity for empathy is to create meaningful connections with people and become a reliable 24/7 companion for people in different everyday situations.

This product is multifaceted and involves multiple disciplines, along with hardware and software components. Among these, the company sought the expertise of Relevant Software to improve the Unibot web app. Part of the robotic system, it’s a platform for creating, editing, and managing the content for a robot to play. The app is designed to work in tandem with the Remote Monitoring System (RMS), which distributes the content to the appropriate devices registered and connected within the ecosystem.

The company reached out to us to develop a system that could remotely monitor devices (their CPU, RAM, disk, locations, different motors, etc.) and install software, drivers, and others. They were looking for a user-friendly platform to manage system and content packages (files) efficiently. Additionally, the client wanted a platform to connect remote devices and to access the device system console directly from the app. This would allow for quick issue fixes and troubleshooting through a secure tunnel.

Our PMO was responsible for managing the full project's lifecycle, defining the scope, budget, and timelines to provide a clear roadmap for the project's execution. The project manager also oversaw the project's delivery, coordinating with teams, managing resources, and maintaining open lines of communication with all stakeholders.

Our main objective was to create a software platform that specializes in monitoring systems for EM devices during real-world deployments, pilot studies, and evaluations. We addressed three key aspects: 1) provided technical support to the EM devices and their end-users, 2) facilitated component updates for EM devices, 3) ensured the displayed device information is privacy-preserving.

On the backend side, we implemented device discovery logic for wired Haru devices, which enables direct device registration through a mobile app. Device discovery (device server) is another feature that allows connecting to the EM device not yet cloud-connected. It collects necessary networking and authentication details from the EM device and, through a WI-FI-connected mobile app, communicates with and configures the device for cloud integration. We also created secure tunnel functionality that enables SSH-like terminal interactions with the device, which is useful for conflict resolution, log checks, and system resource monitoring.