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Well it was a relatively small meeting devoted to microsurgery which may not even be a SPORT first indication (maybe except for vas Deferens repair.
Some folks on this board were fantasizing they would wheel in a SPORT and do some type of demo, a grand unveiling.
Wasn't going to happen at meetings like that. Probably never in a meeting like that. At a booth at a major surgical meeting, I certainly hope so. Their should also be professional journal publications coming out on experience with SPORT anywhere it is clinically trialed.
I go with my instinct and the flavor of all this boards correspondence over the last two years I have been on it.
1) They are undeniably disingenuous in regards to honoring any pledges to be more open to shareholders, let alone the investment market.
2) Given his position of vital involvement in Titan, Reiza may not as well exist as a public figure for a public company.
3) Any dissemination of even the most mundane but important-to -shareholder information is almost nonexistent.
4) The backpatting at the AGM of the "Titan as a great investment" was insulting to shareholder's intelligence and reflected badly on believing they are capable of rational thought, or a scintilla of empathy.
5) Announcements such as the partnership with Platform Imaging are downright bizarre from a PR viewpoint. For god sakes, buff up the Platform Imaging website first (or even later). Maybe they are pure gold, but the presentation wouldn't fly at a sophomore H.S. business class.
6) Hargrove sounds as if he has a strong and in-depth understanding of marketing strategy, but as a CEO he has zero or negative presence.
I'm still a shareholder and almost refuse to believe this company is not a solid bet, but a buck a share at this point is downright strange.
My God! You took the words right out of my mouth. I was going to write the same post a few days ago.
Milly sounds like something you would hear a finance major saying in a college bar.
Agreed, they are important but get paid to churn paper. If they aren't stockholders, they could care less about expediency. The IP protection process itself is never ending.
Well I take most of my last post back. The I-Snake has similarities to Titan.
All the more reason to keep moving.
Titan only has to defend their IP against technologies that are similar to them. I know of no other info mentioned on this board over the past years that suggests potential (and real like TRXC) competitors doing the snake-arm thing.
Also, they can build up all the good IP they want, but that doesn't stop someone from producing a robot with non-snake-arm technology. And I think that is far, far more likely. As I've said before, Titan is pursuing a distinct (and hopefully being proven as we speak) technology. It is time for them to get people interested in it. I really don't believe anyone out there is ready to copy it.
The truth is that robotics development (and associated software) can proceed very rapidly these days. I'm not talking about exotic stuff like haptics, shape-changing solids, polymer actuators, automated debridement and so forth. But nuts and bolts actuators, micro-minature effectors, and software control, that's the province of any good technical university or tech think tank.
Where Titan still has the BIG advantage (in the aspect of time and commerce) is being further down along the regulatory pathway, thanks to Ximedica. They NEED! to capitalize on this and MUST ADVANCE! their near term potential to the marketplace in order to capitalize on what they have. If they move too slowly (because Reiza, Fowler, and Hargrove are out to save the world and all very nice guys) they will be overtaken. I do believe they may TRULY have a superior product at hand for this time and place, but that is all. If they have some MA in place, shout it out. And if not, still draw some attention to the potential of your product, you sh*t kickers from Canada.
All viewpoints, if honestly given, add to synthesizing the best estimates of reality.
I thank everyone but the pumpers and dumpers for their contributions to this board.
Thanks for the link. Decent article in a good publication.
I didn't see Titan mentioned...
Patent schmatent! Big conference; microsurgery is even more obscure than general robotic surgery. So what! Do you think they are going to demo anything? N;, maybe show a new poorly produced video to the 200 participants. Titan has never budged a nickel on that stuff. No one follows that stuff but the surgical robotics nerds on this board. Titan needs to make a big financial press announcement about something that points to seriously competing with ISRG, or a MA of some serious brand recognition, not a dipsh*t Platform Engineering or about how they will use a Sony video screen.
How about a decent company profile article with timelines in the WSJ? Now that might make a difference.
Everything else is crap. Fowler and Hargrove can talk their asses off on some You tube video but so what? We need to put this freakin' company on the map!
Basically for all the hype in the awards article, this is just another MIS robot that "deploys" in the same way as SPORT. You would think they were speaking about an implant that does surgery. Hardly a 'virtual' incision. Probably written by an undergrad business intern. From the photo, each wristed joint has its own actuator (motor). I do see that as these actuators get smaller and smaller, and are under intelligent software control driven by a surgeon console, these platforms will offer an alternative (and more robotically traditional) method as compared to snake arm articulation. That is why I have said there are two main camps here in terms of technologies to make a surgical robot. Titan has gone the one path; other companies are probably going the other. Both have merits, disadvantages, and will improve over time. But, Titan's is a little bit more exotic at the moment. Will big companies who might be considering MA take that chance?
Good analysis. I'll add that I agree the Titan IP appears to really have a lot of the snake arm effector ideas tied up nicely. I don't know who that think tank is that is always named on the patents, but they obviously are pretty obsessed with the mechanism. Which leads me to remind everyone, patents can portray devices that have never been tested, let alone built. Conceptually they appear to work, but practically is another issue. There is no way to really understand mechanism performance until it is built. You can create a library of patents for a device that is never accepted as a viable technology.
I doubt that the team dreaming up this stuff is actually fabricating and testing. So, as you say, a lot, lot of money is going to be required to keep the developmental ball rolling past the first generation of SPORT arms. It remains to be seen whether the technology will be adopted in favor of other more conventional robotic mechanisms. The sooner Titan gets its foot in the door with this "radical" new technology the better. That is why I think that any MA company will want to have a good handle on the SPORT mechanism performance before they bet the bank on it and support it ahead of more "conventional" approaches.
They are a target if the targeter believes in the platform. If there are other platforms that can be shaped more by the purchaser, Titan may not be "the one". The longer Titan rides out their own design, the greater the chance that they will keep wanting to go it alone. I'm starting to think the big names will lose interest and Titan will blow opportunities. I've said before these guys are self-righteous.
Hope I'm wrong and someone pays big bucks to MA soon.
I honestly think a major reason TRXC has been shown so little response to their Sofar ALF-X acquisition is that other legitimate companies are speaking up about their plans. TRXC just looks like a mom and pop shop right now. JnJ/Google, Warren, Samsung, etc. If Titan isn't in the mix as a MA target, man I hope they don't play this silent crap right into the ground.
I've never understood keeping the big secret about this supplier. I hope its not some dipshit family-owned concern like Platform Imaging. I haven't heard much about them recently.
Who isn't going to bring up surgeon ergonomics, smaller footprint, disposable instruments, single port, big 3D viewscreen, etc? These are all obvious evolutionary improvements for all 2nd generation robotics platforms post daVinci. Titan actively discussed these in their sparse info distributions over the past few years. They are mentioned in every article and review of surgical robotics. That JnJ mentions them is not because they are going to partner with Titan. It could happen but these similarities are not hints.
I'd say the theory which questions why Titan can be so "calm" running to the end of their cash is more telling.
Chart on page 17 is completely generic with respect to current surgical robotics. Granted, there is an emphasis on future data, imaging, and informatics which is a tip of the hat to the intended participation of Google.
If it matters, the mention of 'Wristed Movement' is only meant to convey robotics are moving beyond straight-stick manipulators. ISRG already has wristed movement; others are planning it too. SPORT is not technically wristed movement, but snake-articulated movement serves the same purpose.
The photo is something like a daVinci. I think it is just a photoshop. About as useful as the OR image on page 15 showing surgery without facemasks. Maybe they all gargle with Listerine (JnJ) first.
Could you please mention one or two of the coincidences as you recall them? Nothing in the linked pdf that is interesting for me in regards to Titan/SPORT.
All good but when will the investing public get excited about it?
Agree that the article is lousy. Almost could say computer-generated or written in non-english first. Just a teaser I think for buying company reports.
Titan not mentioned? As I've said 100 times, they are still, unbelievably, off the radar to the investment public. That's the way they want it because they are self-righteous as hell. I hope it doesn't bite them in the end when they turn down some great offers.
As for robotic snake arms: It is critical to make the distinction between Sport's articulated "snake arm" effectors and a true robotic snake arm that has controllers in its articulations. Sport's technology does not really have "robotic snakes". True robotic snakes can form complex curves, and follow paths. Sport's arms are just mechanically driven from an external source. They are "bendy" but not capable of complex curves or path following. Their intrinsic design is not robotic; Sport's console input to effector output is robotic. Their real advantage is size-based only. That is until more micro wristed articulators are developed (picture miniature human hands) or true robotic snakes come into the picture. Sport's overall strength is that it is (hopefully) a quality MIS platform. The snake effectors allow it to have a good geometry for MIS. Whether it's dexterity is all that good remains to be evaluated by the market.
You may think I'm nuts, but Titan needs to sell themselves soon (meaning their pizazz) before they are eclipsed by something more innovative coming down the pike. I trust they are working hard and covering all the bases but it is taking too long and they should have much larger financial resources.
Can't see that. Apples and oranges technology, business model, history, etc..
Besides Fowler and crew would never settle for being part of the ISRG machine.
Without an MA soon, my only hope is they get out first, generate some excitement and sales, blow the pps through the roof, and then I sell.
Look at TRXC, the Sofar (not so good) ALF-X news went over like a lead balloon. For better or worse, admit it is a working MIS platform. But no one cares because they are no name companies.
In the same way, without a big partnership I can't see Titan being a long term contender on their own. The ISRG story sounds like a fairy tale now; it is not going to happen again in this corporate and regulatory climate. Deep pockets are needed to pull off anything in medicine, let alone surgery which is even harder.
JMO of course, but look how long TITXF has just sat flat as a board. Unbelievable given where they are at.
Regarding MA possibilities and going it alone, it will be highly dependent on this basic mechanical issue:
Do snakearm-articulated surgical effectors outperform wristed-articulation types? There is no answer for this at this time, and it may never be completely decided. However, any company that wants to partner up with Titan in any way is considering whether the Titan system will in the long run, be a viable technology with advantages over more standard robotic articulation. Just consider: as robotics gets ever smaller, micro wristed articulation will become better and better in terms of motion control. Will the same be the case for Sport's mechanism?
I am quite nervous about the possibility of Titan "going it alone". They could really end up the oddball technology if competing with Samsungs and other huge medical companies.
I'm getting confused. Can anyone tell me why "Warren Robotics" is called "Warren"?
Recall that Titan made a deal a while back with an instrument maker. Never disclosed who it was (is).
Honestly, I am shocked that the ALF purchase did not even blip TRXC into an increased pps, even for a day. I can't believe so many investors in TRXC would just immediately conclude the ALF deal was a loser; or anyone out there looking for a medical robotics play. There isn't enough info out there on ALF to form a strong opinion, but the purchase by TRXC, you would think, would at least initially be perceived as a jump on the "compete with ISRG" bandwagon and warrant some initial enthusiasm. It is instead a dead turkey. There has been relatively high volume in their selloff too.
Man, must suck to the max to be invested in TRXC right now. Does anyone on this board really believe the TRXC deal could have been as bad as it is looking?
Apparently, the stockholders of TRXC have barely responded to the acquiring of SOFAR's ALF-X, or bell ringing if it is true that they did that.
I'm no fan of TRXC but it is pretty amazing that the pps hasn't substantially moved - yet.
TRXC investors not looking too happy with the ALF-X deal, apparently. I'm a bit surprised myself. Anyone suggest why that might be the case?
No. and Hardly.
By the way, I'm on our institution's value analysis committee. It's just my opinion that ALF-x will be a hard sell in the US, assuming it gets approval. Is TRXC hiring the engineers needed from Sofar? to manage it? Surgibot technology has NOTHING to do with robotics, and I am not trying to be negative to you.
Even a dud will sell some units, waste money, take up surgeon's time training, and just add complexity to decisions on which system to buy. These things do affect Titan and the overall push to robotics for many institutions.
If you look at how much progress, planning, and quality there is in Titan: from Fowler to Ximedica to SAIL to 8 protoypes coming to the outstanding SAB, etc., etc., isn't it is almost impossible to believe they sit a $1.05 .
There has been no speculative investment in this stock because the Titan story is kept under wraps by management, for better or worse. Worse in my opinion. TRXC just dilutes the field for Titan.
Also, I don't think there are any substantial IP issues between ISRG and ALF-x. They look like two different animals.
In their holier-than-thou, save-the-world arrogance, and absolute indifference to shareholders, I think no it is not dumb to question. I still think they've got their heads up their ass most of the time.
Sounds like whoever is behind the ALF-x was happy to take a shot and unload it. TRXC is like Cessna that just bought the rights to maintain, develop and sell the B-52 (with Italian manuals). I think, despite any merits it may have as a platform, it will be a dud. Do any of the surgeons here think that index finger controlled rotator knob makes sense? Looked odd to me. Besides that it kills Surgibot. They have no interchangeability for parts, upgrade path, anything.
ISRG will step up its marketing and HOPEFULLY, Titan will pick up the pace, realizing its splash potential to be an ISRG option just got turned into a spritz. Opens the door for other European innovators too.
This development is why I have preached so hard that Titan needed to seed the SPORT idea into the marketplace by now. They just allowed themselves to get pushed behind even the back burner in terms of early adoption of SPORT. Many hospitals will blow their money first now on ALF-x, only to regret it. SPORT will find a harder sell then, right off the bat.
They are not just selling shoes here. "Generate revenue?" Buying a sophisticated system will require a HUGE commitment in marketing, support, development, to make it viable. Did you ever see Italian to English translations? It's like Cessna buying the Northrop Grumman B-2. Sounds like the Italians were just happy to get some cold cash for it; buy an island in Greece.
You think TRXC made a good deal? What about Surginot? Jeeze.
No matter how good this system, ALF-x, is, I can tell you from experience that Italian medical equipment usually doesn't go over too well is the states. Usually big problems with software design for English-speaking markets, parts, etc..
Other than that, it's looking like a viable platform competitor, except that it appears to be trying to imitate conventional laproscopic controls - looks a bit awkward compared to daVinci/SPORT control for the surgeon.
Very glad Titan is attending, but not quite sure how they got the invite. What I mean is that the conference is for microsurgery. I know that is a somewhat indefinite term, but aside from the indication Titan has bandied about for vasectomy reversal, they don't fit the mold. Hopefully they see their platform as having the dexterity to deal with those operations.
For example, the Netherland group presenting in two sessions has an abstract that discusses their system's micrometer precision and control. Sounds way beyond what the current SPORT design would be capable of with tension-articulated mechanics, in my 1st pass opinion. That's 7 hundredths of a millimeter.
Abstract
In this paper a novel telemanipulator system is proposed, able to assist during reconstructive surgery procedures involving microsurgical techniques. The proposed solution is based on maintaining work methods and infrastructure in the operating room (OR). An extensive analysis of these conventional methodologies, combined with a review of currently available alternative solutions, has led to the design of a new 7DOF master-slave system. The modular design concept is focused on precision, safety, ease-of-use, and cost-efficiency. A proof-of-concept has been tested, whereas preliminary results indicate a bidirectional precision at the slave end effector of 70 µm. Through optimization of the control software, a bidirectional precision down to 30-40 µm can be achieved.
Could be far from dead money overnight, if the story on SPORT gets published in the right place in the financial press, or a press release about partnering, etc..
You play it the way you want.
Yea, shows the article writers deep knowledge of the robotics sector that they would insinuate the Transanilix Surginot as a daVinci threat.
No mention of Titan in the article. I thought the Aussies and the Canadians were pretty tight.
As I've stated a hundred times in the last 2 years, Titan is STILL off the radar. That's why we sit at a dollar.
The connection would be known by now to the 'people in the know' for godsakes. A lot of stock would be purchased. This is not happening.
My bet is that despite the coincidences, there is no connection. Wish there was.
Well then tell us what you know, Mr. Taco, because I do read the board and that is not the consensus opinion. If it was we wouldn't be a penny stock.
Measly 13,000 shares traded by 11 EST.
Don't you think the cat would be out of the bag by now if JnJ/Ethicon/Google really had the hots for Titan?
I hope it is true, but the general board consensus has been that this did not sound like it was happening.