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Al develops a serious hernia that requires surgery and threatens to end his therapy career. |
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Rather than giving in to his injury, Al begins development of a "robot therapist" that will be able to apply the intense pressure required to administer muscular therapy. He immediately sets the process in motion to patent his ideas. |
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Lockheed Martin awards Meilus Muscular Therapy & Sports, Inc. $3,200 to prove the feasibility of robotics for use in soft tissue therapy. |
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Lockheed Martin, USF and the
Southern Technology Application Center award another $15,000 to build the first working prototype of the robot therapist. |
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Meilus Muscular Therapy & Sports, Inc. is awarded the
Tampa Bay Enterprise - Small Business Administration Award for a business plan developed by
USF's Marketing Department to introduce robot therapists to the world. |
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Al earns another $15,000 grant from his three major supporters for further development of the mechanical portion of the robot. |
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USF's Medical
Department investigates the potential benefits for evaluating the robot's performance in clinical trials. |
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The Industrial Design Society of America provides $10,000 to give Meilus Muscular Magic Robot a face lift, creating a robot that's not only maximally efficient but also non-menacing to patients new to automated therapy methods. |
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Lockheed Martin nominates Meilus Muscular Therapy & Sports, Inc. for the Small Business of the Year award for the city of St. Petersburg. |
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NASA features Al's work in their publication,
Spotlight on Technology. |
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Meilus Muscular Therapy & Sports, Inc. completes the first production version of the portable therapy robots for personal use by patients. |
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Lockheed Martin, US, and the
South Technology Application Center Award Meilus Muscular Therapy & Sports, Inc. $48,000 to continue work on the fully-automated Meilus Muscle Magic
Robot™. |
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Meilus Muscular Therapy & Sports, Inc. completes the first production version of the Joystick Robot for personal use by patients. |
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Introduction by WDAE 1250/620 Radio to the
NFL Super Shoot Out during Super Bowl Week, which started an intense business with football and
PGA golfers. |
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Meilus Muscular Therapy & Sports, Inc. completes the first production version of the Automated Robot for personal use by patients. |
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CBS Special on the Evening News on the Clinic |
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ABC Special Evening News |
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Tampa Tribune Business Section Article on Robotics and Quarterback of New Orleans Saints Football,
Orlando Predators Football and Waylon Jennings |
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New Building Purchased to quadruple floor space adding additional treatment facilities, training center and larger R&D center. |
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Dramatic increases in NFL, baseball,
PGA, and Rowing athletic patients and robotic sales. |
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PBS Public Television Channel 16 WUSF features footage shot on Billy Joe Hobert,
New Orleans Saints Quarterback and Karl "Truth 86" Williams of the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers using Robotics to coincide with the last two Buccaneers play-off games. |
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University of South Florida Annual Report features Robotics as an engineering and medical success story. |
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Dwight "Doc"
Gooden treated for dramatic comeback to The New York
Yankees as documented in The
New York Times and The Tampa Bay Business Journal. |
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Philadelphia Flyers
buy 5 pieces of equipment with visit by John LeClair and Jim
McCrossin. Al treats players and GM Bobby Clarke
in Philadelphia. |
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Tampa Bay Lightning
hockey article in local sports magazine |
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A total of 11 clinics
are open across the USA |
