Urban Robotics and Automation: Critical Challenges, International Experiments and Transferable Lessons for the UK

Abstract

Welcome to the UK-RAS White Paper Series on Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS). This is one of the core activities of UK-RAS Network, funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). By bringing together academic centres of excellence, industry, government, funding bodies and charities, the Network provides academic leadership, expands collaboration with industry while integrating and coordinating activities at EPSRC funded RAS capital facilities, Centres for Doctoral Training and partner universities.

Robotics and automation in the city: a research agenda

“…making of real time interventions in the real world" (van Est, Bunders, & Korthagen, 2017). We use the established engineering term "Robotics and Autonomous Systems" (RAS) to describe the full complement of automated and autonomous systems, robotics and AI being developed and applied to address contemporary urban challenges (Marvin et al, 2018a).…”

“…We position automated infrastructure system control in the corporate smart city (indicated by a dashed line) because it is concerned with collective management, and in many respects, the UA agenda fits the interests of "smart cities". However, incorporating contemporary developments in RAS, the automated management of urban infrastructure provides a specificity and focus often lacking in the smart city approach (Marvin et al, 2018a).…”

“…These innovations are designed to free up time, save money, provide control, enable precision and strength and to be tailored to our personal needs. For example, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) (or drones) can exploit urban airspace for the efficient delivery of goods in congested urban environments (Marvin et al, 2018a;Wilke, 2019). And urban robot experimentation in Dubai (UAE) and China reveals how ".…”

“…Enabled by vast increases in computing capacity, burgeoning data harvested through powerful algorithms embedded in digital platforms, advanced material developments and urban connectivitythe capability of machines is expanding across all facets of the economy and throughout everyday life (Chui et al, 2018). Technological developments open up new horizons for vastly extended application of robotics and automation in production, but also beyond the factory (Marvin, While, Kovacic, Lockhart, & Macrorie, 2018a). Building on the digital turn (Ash, Kitchin, & Leszczynski, 2018), and mediation of the city through corporate data platforms (e.g.…”

Envisioning and Questioning Near Future Urban Robotics

“…The complexity and unpredictability of public spaces such as streets and sidewalks can cause malfunctions and collisions, the robots can crowd the sidewalks, or the presence of robots can force the city to alter its layout of buildings and roads for more efficient performance. For instance, the participants extensively explored the themes related to human-robot relationships, such as (1) human vandalism towards robots, acknowledged in academia as a crucial issue [19] which can create a barrier to the robots' diffusion in cities [20], (2) the open debate on how far the robots should be allowed to protect themselves from theft or vandalism [21], (3) the robots' ability to perform social rituals as enablers of long-term relationships [22], and (4) possible relationships of mutual care resulting from the social roles played by robots [23].…”