Fig. 2. Robots such as this arc welding system have enabled the Odense Steel Shipyard in Denmark to increase productivity by a factor of six, thereby helping to safeguard jobs.
such as Reis. Elsewhere, several technologies for enabling closer robot-human interaction are being developed by robot manufacturers and research and development (R&D) organisations around the world. Robot-human interaction is just one of the current
areas of robotics research. While robot manufacturers are clearly very active in R&D, there are also a number of ICT (information and communications technology) companies that are getting involved. Dr Sakakibara says: “Robotics is a technology at the cusp. It is a highly interdisciplinary scientific field combining mechanical and electrical engineering, computer science and even natural and social sciences. In the service robotics field, hardware manufacturers and ICT companies are well aware of this fact and are already searching for enhanced co-operation. Google/Willow Garage with ROS (Robot Operating System) and the PR2 (Personal Robot 2) platform, or Microsoft with its Robotics Developer Studio, are providing (open source) software for robotics and are trying hard to become the platform for service robotics. All players are aware that only plug-and-play solutions will make robots mainstream devices. “In the industrial robotics field, robot manufacturers
are working hard on making programming easier. Off-line programming and simulation tools already make robot applications easier. The programming of industrial robots is the core competence of the robot suppliers. Therefore, it may be difficult to organise a co-operation with ITC companies for programming.” In many fields today, from mobile telephones to factory
automation controls, rapid software development means that this aspect of the product becomes an important differentiator. While it might be expected that the same is true for robotics, Dr Sakakibara says this is not so: “Robotics is an
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integration of mechanics, electronics, sensing technologies and ICT. So, I think the robot mechanism remains as important as other technologies such as software, even if it advances more quickly.”
Funded research
Here in Europe, national Governments and the European Commission have realised the potential benefits of investing in research into robotics. Dr Sakakibara states: “Overall in Europe there is a high level of public funding; on the European level, as well as on a national level, funding bodies have bestowed a significant amount of money on robotics-related research. The European Commission has spent €536 million in the period 2007-2012 for cognitive and robotics-related research, bringing it into a leadership position. This funding is gratefully acknowledged by the European robotics community. “Academic and industrial key players are aware that
now the time is ripe to significantly accelerate innovation by strengthening the ties between academia and industry and by making public funding available for testing and validating the excellent research results in industrial settings. On a national level, robotics has also come into the focus and governments are well aware of the challenges and chances lying ahead for robotics.” In terms of European manufacturing companies investing
in robots for production, it is interesting to review how the situation is evolving. Only a few years ago a company might have invested in robotics to avoid losing business to competitors from low-wage economies. But now China, Brazil and other emerging economies are also investing in robots, though the driver here is more likely to be quality than productivity. Dr Sakakibara’s view is that “Consumer
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