11 Robot Development Trends

· 4 min read
11 Robot Development Trends

The development of robotics will largely rely on related industries: the science of materials and advances in computer technology. Analysts have identified the key trends in the market for the following 5 years.

People often overestimate the impact with the latest technology soon and underestimate its impact in the long term.

But this doesn't negate the belief that the expert community, their state and business require a roadmap for the development of innovative industries in the future.

The authors of the annual survey in the home and industrial robots market discussed with experts the primary trends in this region plus the report for 2021 presented 11 areas that within the next 5yrs can have the highest influence on the growth and development of robotics on earth.

1. New materials

Even if we take into account the simplest industrial manipulators, in 2019 roughly 3.5 thousand people per robot, this also ratio isn't likely to cultivate without radical adjustments to the science of materials from where robotics is done, the authors of the review are sure. They pay special awareness of two promising materials:

   gallium nitride (GaN), which may successfully replace silicon for transistor manufacturing;
   graphene, a super-thin and super-strong material that it's possible to produce actuators for robots, new batteries plus more.

2. New sources of energy, technologies because of its collection and storage

Considering the amount of heat generated through the combustion of gasoline along with the human need for energy, it is easy to calculate when individuals were eating gasoline, they might really need 150 g of fuel every day. In turn, electric motors have become even less energy-efficient than an internal combustion engine. In  Unitree H1  for robots to be able to tackle humans in their capabilities, breakthrough technologies are required in their energy supply.

For example, here is the improvement of current lithium batteries, the development of new batteries determined by hydrogen, etc. Also, we must not forget about alternative, renewable energy sources. Finally, a technology could be carried out to recharge the robot remotely, as an example, from energy sources built into the ground or walls.

3. Interaction of groups of robots and people

These are unmanned traffic management systems. To avoid accidents and accidents, transport robots must have a channel of communication both with humans along with the other person.

4. Navigation in extreme conditions

Robots should be aware what they're doing and where they may be moving not just under normal human conditions, but in addition where people just cannot get there: for instance, in high altitude or on the seabed.

In addition, situations cannot be excluded once the robot will remain completely without communication (as an example, underground or perhaps in case of a satellite breakdown). In this case, you will need to produce a fully autonomous navigation system for unmanned devices. Similar developments already exist both abroad and in Russia.

5. Machine learning

The continuing development of artificial intelligence is important to create truly useful and "smart" robots. Over the next few years, Sberbank analysts identify four fundamental vectors of development in this area:

increasing the efficiency of utilizing neural networks start by making their architecture more complicated or reducing power consumption;

teaching algorithmic procedures as an alternative to hard programming, that may simplify and, therefore, improve the operation of acquiring skills from the machine;

mass adoption of cloud services for machine learning;

improvement of motional actions of robots because of artificial intelligence technologies.

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6. Human-machine interaction

The robot economy, like all other innovative technologies, is about increasing productivity. That is, automation isn't a conclusion itself, but something to increase economic efficiency. The authors of the review tend to believe that the most effective result will be shown not by replacing people with robots, but by their cooperation. According to them, the interaction of robots and humans will establish in four main areas:

a robot as a power tool that repeats human capabilities (for example, exoskeletons and prostheses);

robot as a tool that expands human capabilities;

an avatar robot, that is, a device remotely controlled with a part of hard-to-reach places;

social interaction which has a person, including voice assistants and chat bots.

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7. Manipulation robotics

The authors in the Sberbank report believe that within the next five-years were unlikely to see a breakthrough in hardware technologies for robots ("hardware"), though the development of software will increase the capabilities minimizing the costs of manipulation technology.

First of all, were referring to increasing the feedback of sensors. Robot, grabbing an item, may have to inform the operator at length about the weight, dimensions, compression force, etc. Also, new computer technologies can make it possible to program more advanced trajectories of movement of manipulators.

8. Sensorics

One in the definitions in the thought of "robot", that this analysts of Sberbank adhere to, says that it is a device which is capable of perceive the globe around it by making use of sensors, process the signals received like this and react accordingly. Reducing the cost, simplifying and helping the capabilities of sensorics is one from the key trends in the development of robotics inside future years.

9. Robosimulators

Large levels of data are needed to practice robots. To receive them, it is just not necessary to build a model of the robot - often it could be economically unprofitable, occasionally dangerous for a person. Therefore, the quantity of coming of computer simulators of the robot will simply increase while using expansion of automation.

10. New drive

Fundamentally, the principles of making drive mechanisms are unlikely to alter, but even here the authors in the review locate a field for innovation. In addition to the new super-strong materials specified inside the first paragraph, these may be new motors and gearboxes.

11. Design and production

Again, this can be primarily about software innovation. Libraries of electronic components, high-quality digital diaries, virtual reality tools can simplify the product design process.

At the production stage, the progress of robotics will likely be stimulated by the emergence of new materials, their lowering of price, along with the development of 3D printing. It also requires optimization of software, that will make it easier and faster to generate new machines.