The Olis app enables Mid Atlantic Machinery to access a live video feed of their cells in the field, including system logs and diagnostic data. The integrator can also access the teach pendant of the robot – here a UR20 from Universal Robots – to help guide and teach customers. By: Olis Robotics
Olis Robotics is helping engineers, integrators, and operators see, understand, and act faster to resolve issues than ever before.
Nov 12, 2025
When Mayse arrived at his customer’s robot cell, the cause of the problem was immediately apparent – a few reset buttons. In under a minute, the issue was resolved, and Mayse returned to Pennsylvania. However, using a new app from Olis Robotics, customer downtime would have been reduced to mere minutes, and Mayse would have been spared a lengthy trip.
Turning Androids Into Diagnostic Tools
At Automate 2025, Seattle-based Olis Robotics launched a $499 remote monitoring and diagnostic app that turns any Android smartphone or tablet into a secure gateway for industrial automation cells—no industrial PC required.
Users connect their Android device to a controller via Ethernet, configure the IP address, and, within minutes, gain visibility into robot telemetry, system logs, and live video. The app synchronizes these data streams so that video, PLC outputs, and error logs appear together in real time, providing engineers with a clear picture of what went wrong rather than the guesswork that often accompanies downtime.
Setup takes less than five minutes. Users can configure alerts for irregular activity, share screens for live collaboration, and even access the robot’s teach pendant remotely.
In short, the Olis app delivers the same kind of always-on visibility that the Ring camera gave homeowners, only now it’s industrial cells and robots that are under watch.
Early Adoption After Successful Beta Testing at Mid Atlantic Machinery
Mid Atlantic Machinery became one of the first companies to standardize the Olis app across all new deployments after successful beta testing.
“Deploying the Olis app on an Android tablet is the easiest way to add diagnostics capabilities to our machines,” says Mayse. “This helps our service team manage our rapidly growing install base. What’s more, customers no longer need to invest in industrial PCs — they can now access the entire automation cell directly through a mobile device, making setup and support significantly more streamlined.”
Each new press-brake cell shipped by Mid Atlantic now includes a year’s license for the Olis app, along with a tripod, camera, and setup accessories—at no additional cost to the customer.
Eliminating Costly Service Calls
For integrators, on-site service visits can quickly erode profit margins. “If Olis saves us one flight, there is an ROI on it. Time is money,” says Mayse.
Depending on the role of the robot cell in the production process, the potential savings Olis delivers to end users can be dramatic. Studies estimate that unplanned downtime can cost manufacturers between $10,000 and $250,000 per hour. Olis allows problems to be identified and resolved remotely, reducing downtime and keeping production running.
When an issue arises, Mid Atlantic’s team logs in, views live video of the robot cell, and inspects synchronized telemetry data from thousands of miles away. Instead of waiting days for a technician to arrive, problems can be resolved in real time.
Real-Time Visibility & Collaborative Troubleshooting
Mayse explains that it’s often difficult for operators to describe problems over the phone—especially when introducing complex new parts or programs. “Before, we would go out in the field to help them program,” he says, “we can see all the outputs and inputs of the robot synchronized with real-time video and system logs. We can troubleshoot remotely, optimize programs, and basically see what our customers are seeing in real-time.”
This remote access also doubles as a training tool. Engineers can share their screens and guide customers through tasks step by step. “We can jump right into their robot cell virtually and remotely show them on the teach pendant what to do,” Mayse says. “By involving customers in the troubleshooting process, they gain the knowledge necessary to resolve future issues independently.”
A Remote Teammate
During a recent installation, Mayse wired hardware into a robot cell’s PLC in Delaware while his colleague, lead automation engineer Jimmy Eberle, was in Dallas. Using Olis, Eberle remotely fired the robot’s inputs and outputs to verify connections. “It was like having Jimmy right there on site with me,” Mayse recalls. “I didn’t have to fly him out.”
The company even used the app to troubleshoot live from the FABTECH show floor in Chicago. When a customer in Maryland reported a collision issue between the robot and punch tooling, Eberle pulled up the Olis feed, spotted a wobble in the end effector, adjusted the program remotely, and had the customer back online within minutes.
Safer, Smarter Diagnostics
Because Olis provides camera access to robots operating at full speed, engineers can observe behavior that would otherwise be unsafe to inspect in person. “Robots behave differently in automated mode compared to reduced mode,” explains Mayse. “Olis’ camera footage serves as a first line of defense for identifying problems, particularly in high-speed automation where re-gripping or clamping is difficult to perceive with the naked eye.”
By combining synchronized video with fault logs, Olis pinpoints issues such as valves not firing properly or grippers mistiming their sequence—without halting production or risking operator safety. Configurable alerts for irregular activity also enable maintenance teams to act before small anomalies escalate into full shutdowns.
From Reactive to Predictive
The larger shift Olis represents is from reactive service—fixing things after they break—to predictive maintenance that prevents failure in the first place. This enables businesses to take a proactive, predictive approach to maintenance and tackle troubleshooting issues quickly, ensuring minimal disruption to production.
For Mid Atlantic, instead of sending technicians to every site, the company can now support dozens of customers remotely, traveling only for major interventions.
Olis is also affordable for companies of all sizes. At just $499, running on standard Android devices, the solution removes the financial and technical barriers that often block remote monitoring in smaller facilities.
“Olis really hit a home run with the Android tablet format,” says Mayse.
In the same way that smart-home cameras gave consumers real-time visibility into their homes, Olis brings that immediacy and control to the industrial world—helping engineers, integrators, and operators see, understand, and act faster to resolve issues than ever before.
