The original version of the Robinson floor tester was conceived to test simple versions of Floor assemblies. with the weights being loaded by hand, it is vulnerable to inconsistencies. also, test specimens feature a cutout in the center to allow for the drive shaft to go through. this may not make a difference to a concrete slab, but weakens a wood construction considerable creating a disconnect between the test and real floor assemblies. the nature of this design makes it rather unsafe to work with.

Around the year 2000, Tooling development Inc was commissioned to design and build an improved version of the floor tester, addressing some of the short cummings of the original Robinson tester. Driving the unit from above, allowed for the testing of large span floors. This machine incorporated a feature to recreate a crack in the concrete test bed in order to evaluate its effect on the tiles above. This feature allows for the testing of anti fracture membranes.

in 2013 Tooling Development Inc, redesigned the Universal Floor and Tile tester to bring it up to the latest standards in safety and incorporating numerous improvements as a direct result of user feed back. this version of the machine is being supplied with a "Compliance of Safety" Certificate.