Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
sharing and cooperative working and learning. On the other hand there are risks. In
particular, these include data security and privacy issues resulting from the notable
insecurity of the Internet (Cohen 2001 ), including the ability to track all operations
of the robot. As in the case of the Internet, once they are readily available, it is likely
that many individuals and organisations will become dependent on networked
robots. This would lead to serious problems in the event of server or robot malfunc-
tion. In the case of the provision of primary services, it is important that non-robot
options are available both as a back-up in the case of robot malfunction and to avoid
the exclusion of people who do not want to use robots. The social and psychological
impacts are still unpredictable and require further research, including the possibili-
ties of technology addiction, changes in behaviour or psychological problems from
constant interaction with robots.
5.7
Search and Rescue Robots
Robots can be used for exploration, search and rescue, particularly in diffi cult and
dangerous terrain or after a fi re, structural collapse or other accidents or disasters
both within and outside (large) buildings. They could also be used to support human
rescuers through the use of swarms of small fl ying robots, which are able to monitor
the area, maintain contact with a controller and warn human searchers of potential
dangers in time for them to depart safely or to take other effective action. If small
amphibious, swimming or underwater robots with similar capabilities are devel-
oped, then they could carry out similar monitoring or rescue operations in and
underwater, for instance, on a capsized ship. Robots built from suffi ciently fi reproof
materials could be used to support fi re fi ghters and to rescue people trapped in burn-
ing buildings which fi re fi ghters are only able to enter at great risk to themselves.
The use of robots in this way would have signifi cant advantages in terms of
improving safety and reducing the risks to human search and rescue personnel and
fi refi ghters, as well as reducing the time required to locate and rescue trapped indi-
viduals. This could lead to an in increase in the percentage of trapped individuals
located and rescued and reduce the time to rescue. This would improve survival
rates by reducing both the time individuals are trapped in diffi cult conditions and
the time until they receive medical care. This type of application in which robots are
used to support humans or enter areas which are too dangerous for them raises few
ethical issues. However, care will be required in the use of the sensor data from such
rescue operations to avoid security and privacy violations. At the current state of the
art, such search and rescue support robots require human supervision (Beer et al.
2012 ). However, in the future such robots could become more autonomous and pos-
sibly start to replace people, giving rise to the possibility of job losses and deskill-
ing, as well as putting trapped individuals at risk in the case of robot breakdown.
Search WWH ::




Custom Search