100 journalists visit the grassroots | Aiwei Technology: Technology allows modern medical services to 'fly into ordinary people's homes'

Publication Time:

2023-02-19 00:00

Source:

(Reporters visited Aiwei Technology Co., Ltd. in Hunan Xiangjiang New Area. Video produced by Xingchen All-Media Reporter Peng Sui)

　　Changsha, February 19 (Xingchen All-Media Reporter Peng Sui) Spring is in full bloom, and the scenery is beautiful. Recently, organized by the Changsha Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, Xingchen All-Media reporters visited several specialized and sophisticated "small giant" enterprises to explore their growth code and listen to good stories in early spring.

　　As a national-level specialized and sophisticated "small giant" enterprise, Aiwei Technology Co., Ltd., since its establishment in 2000, has been deeply engaged in the original research of "automation of medical microscope morphology testing based on artificial intelligence and machine vision technology", and has taken the lead in the world in applying "artificial intelligence" and "machine vision" technologies to the morphological testing of clinical pathological specimens such as urine, feces, blood, body fluids, and gynecological reproductive tract secretions, filling the technical gap in the field of automated morphological testing of medical microscopes internationally.

　“We only do one thing, which is to achieve automated microscopy, so that more people can enjoy modern medical services.” said Lin Changqing, deputy general manager of Aiwei Technology. What is automated microscopy? Reporters found the answer in the company's production workshop. Through the automatic operation of the urine analysis production line, 10 test tubes containing samples were seen "queuing" one by one for dry chemical testing and microscopy. Through the back-and-forth scanning and identification of the microscope lens, the data is transmitted to the computer in real time without any manual intervention.

　　Urine tests are one of the three routine clinical tests. In the era when manual microscopy is the mainstream technology, an experienced doctor can only test about 10 samples per hour at most. In addition to being cumbersome and inefficient, there are also many drawbacks such as the test results relying on personal experience, which are difficult to trace and standardize. With the advancement of technology, artificial intelligence has been initially applied to microscopy, which can significantly reduce the workload of operators and improve work efficiency, but the instrument's recognition rate is low, and positive samples still rely on manual review, which is not suitable for large-scale clinical routine specimen testing. "Now, through artificial intelligence, big data, and machine vision technology, depending on the instrument model, 80 to 540 samples can be tested per hour." Lin Changqing introduced.

　　Today, Aiwei Technology's products have accumulated more than 14,000 units installed in hospitals at all levels across the country, covering 40% of grade-A hospitals in China. It has established cooperative relations with more than 1,000 distributors in domestic and overseas markets. The international sales network has covered many countries and regions in Europe, North America, South America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa.

　“Perhaps in the near future, having a physical examination will be as simple as brushing your teeth every day, and ordinary people can do it at home.” Lin Changqing described the scenario of "household civilian medical testing" to reporters. In his opinion, technology can break through cognition and subtly change things, including people's lives. In the future, the company will strive to promote the sinking of high-end medical resources to the front line, forming an integrated medical and health three-dimensional service system combining hospitals, health centers, clinics (pharmacies), communities, and families for prevention, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, care, and nursing.

　　From zero to one, from nothing to something, there are "thousands of mountains" in between. Original technology research is a long and arduous process. At that time, there were no existing technologies to learn from, nor were there similar products to refer to. “Since it’s a ‘blank,’ we’ll fill it. Anyway, ‘those who have nothing to lose are not afraid.’ Once we set our goals, we won’t look back. We use our own hands to draw blueprints from blank paper, then transform the blueprints into reality. From project establishment, technological breakthroughs to optimization and improvement, the early stage requires a large amount of investment regardless of cost in order to complete the original accumulation of a batch of core key technologies.” The company's deputy general manager, Zhou Fengliang, said with emotion.

　　Twenty-three years is just a blink of an eye for a city, but for a company, it means the passage of time and the birth of all things. When asked why they have been rooted in Changsha for so long, Lin Changqing frankly stated: “Policies, talents, and subsidies are only part of the reason. We are all Hunan people, and we have feelings for Changsha. It’s like a seed, from rooting to germination, to flowering and fruiting, it’s all on this land, so why leave? Changsha carries our initial aspirations and dreams.”

　　The phoenix chooses the good tree to roost. In recent years, Changsha, based on local realities, has guided and organized specialized and sophisticated "small giant" enterprises to find benchmarks globally, resources nationally, teams provincially, and orders in the market. By encouraging innovation and financial empowerment, leveraging the power of technology and capital, and relying on talent support, these enterprises have become industry benchmarks and hidden champion enterprises in their respective specialized fields. In 2022, the city newly cultivated 74 national-level specialized and sophisticated "small giant" enterprises, with a total of 141, ranking 4th among provincial capital cities and 13th among cities nationwide.

　　Spring is the season of hope. On this fertile land, specialized and sophisticated "small giant" enterprises take root downwards and develop upwards, illuminating the land of Xingcheng with vibrant life.