Chapter 5 Robotics as an Enabler of Resiliency to Disasters: Promises and Pitfalls

Wang, Rui; Nakhimovich, Daniel; Roberts, Fred S.; Bekris, Kostas E.

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-70370-7_5

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…However, the case strongly suggests that the RAS would have failed if it had been expected single-handedly support the relevant urban function of delivering groceries in times of crisis, and indeed it was not intended to do so. The impact of robots has often been limited in scope and reliability when they have been pushed to their limits in crisis scenarios (Wang et al, 2021). The case study does not suggest otherwise but reveals that robots provide cities with more options, if deployed as part of a heterogeneous and multilayered constellation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

“…First, we apply a lens informed by literature on urban resilience and the governance of crisis. Although this article does not aspire to make a contribution to the field, the use of such a lens in needed because the role of robots in response to disaster has become a matter of concern as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic (Chen et al, 2020;Wang et al, 2021;Lin, 2022). Other urban crises may be expected and robots can be expected to play ever-increasing roles in crisis responses (Yigitcanlar et al, 2021).…”

Section: Analytical Framework and Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Humans, robots and artificial intelligences reconfiguring urban life in a crisis

Valdez

Cook

2023

Front. Sustain. Cities

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Autonomous urban robots were introduced in Milton Keynes (MK), UK, in 2018 to automate on-demand grocery delivery. Two years later the COVID-19 pandemic rendered routine activities such as delivering groceries or visiting the supermarket unexpectedly unsafe for humans. The ensuing disruption provided opportunities to investigate the potentialities of robotic and autonomous systems to provide cities with resources for coping with unexpected situations such as pandemics, heatwaves and blizzards and ultimately to transform and reinforce urban flows, leading to new ways of living in the city that arise as a result of emerging human-robot constellations. The crisis accelerated the ongoing transformation in human-robot relationships and made its tensions and potentials visible. The case of MK suggests that the cognitive capabilities of urban AIs are not to be found exclusively in computer bits and human neurons but arise from encounters and contexts, with institutions, policies, practices and even the materiality of the city itself being crucial to the emergence of urban AI.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Section: Analytical Framework and Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Humans, robots and artificial intelligences reconfiguring urban life in a crisis

Valdez

Cook

2023

Front. Sustain. Cities

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“…Urban robots are likely to play an important role in making cities preventively better prepared. The impact of robots has often been limited in scope and reliability when they have been pushed to their limits in crisis scenarios [3] but the case study reveals some characteristics of autonomous robot systems that merit further investigation. The case of MK suggests that robots are better able to support cities when they are considered as part of a complex urban network, a combination of humans, technologies and infrastructures which, together, are better able to cope with the unexpected and jointly sustain the flows and operations which define urban life [2].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Humans and robots coping with crisis – Starship, Covid-19 and urban robotics in an unpredictable world

Valdez¹,

Cook²,

Potter³

2021

2021 IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics (SMC)

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In 2018 "Starship" grocery delivery robots were first introduced in Milton Keynes (MK), a new town in England, to automate a task that is difficult to perform in a cost-effective manner by humansthat of on-demand grocery delivery. Two years later the Covid-19 pandemic rendered routine activities such as delivering groceries or visiting the supermarket unexpectedly unsafe. The ability of robots to operate in environments that are dangerous for humans was brought into sharp relief by the Covid-19 pandemic but it may also be relevant in other crisis situations such as those that may be caused by heat waves, blizzards and other extreme events associated with climate change. Drawing on a case study of Starship robots in MK, this contribution investigates the potential of robotic and autonomous systems to provide cities with tools for coping with such unexpected situations. I. INTRODUCTIONThe introduction of robots in urban spaces has considerable transformative potential and delivers technological capabilities and capacities beyond human abilities and existing infrastructural possibilities [1], automating and augmenting complex urban tasks that are unattractive, repetitive or labour intensive as well as those that are highly complex or dangerous [2]. In 2018 "Starship" grocery delivery robots were first introduced in Milton Keynes (MK), a new town in England, to automate a task that is difficult to perform in a cost-effective manner by humansthat of on-demand grocery delivery. Two years later the Covid-19 pandemic rendered routine activities such as delivering groceries or visiting the supermarket unexpectedly unsafe. The service performed by grocery delivery robots, which was merely intended to be convenient and costeffective, unexpectedly became the safe alternative to a task that was potentially too dangerous for humans to perform. The ability of robots to operate in environments that are dangerous for humans was indeed brought into sharp relief by the Covid-19 pandemic but it is also likely to be relevant in other crisis situations [3] such as those that may be caused by heat waves, blizzards and other extreme events associated with climate change. Drawing on a case study of Starship robots in MK, this contribution investigates the potential of robotic and autonomous systems to provide cities with tools for coping with such unexpected situations. Urban robots are the physical agents of AI-driven autonomous systems designed to make decisions in real time and negotiate complicated tasks in dynamic contexts. Urban AIs are designed for learning, dealing with complex M.Valdez -corresponding author.

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Safety and Training Implications of Human-Drone Interaction in Industrialised Construction Sites

Onososen,

Musonda,

Ramabodu

et al. 2023

Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering

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Chapter 5 Robotics as an Enabler of Resiliency to Disasters: Promises and Pitfalls

Cited by 4 publications

References 58 publications

Humans, robots and artificial intelligences reconfiguring urban life in a crisis

Humans, robots and artificial intelligences reconfiguring urban life in a crisis

Humans and robots coping with crisis – Starship, Covid-19 and urban robotics in an unpredictable world

Safety and Training Implications of Human-Drone Interaction in Industrialised Construction Sites

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