Introduction to Robotics in Modern Society
Although robots are becoming more evident today, do ourselves accept them or just ignore their presence, but what are they and where are they, are they walking around amongst us or are they something else. What does the term mean, what is and what is not a robot? Looking at today’s society, cars, home appliances all have embedded systems incorporated within them which control these various devices. What is the potential and indeed the current advantages of having these automated robots within today’s society? Where are they used and to what purpose and how do they benefit mankind, do they make our lives easier or do we just accept it’s the way it is. What are the advantages over the disadvantages of robots and the development and impact they may have on today’s society and the future of society?
Robotic Applications Across Various Industries
The advantages are quite intensive and can be seen in most industries. Many institutions such as the hospitality sector, schools, healthcare and homes need artificial intelligence to resolve previous problems. The areas where robots have been used now for a few years include agriculture, medicine, transport such as self-driving cars, security and industry also another future possibility telepresence shopping. In industry many workers where prone to accidents in their workplaces that came with heavy lifting and operating machinery. Using robots to do these kinds of jobs reduces risks at the workplace. These are just a few areas where robots and AI is most transparent, robots can operate under dangerous circumstances where humans are unable to do the same tasks.
Robots are used in hospital theatres aiding doctors with complex surgical procedures, this has changed the way surgeries take place with the use of robotic arms because they are faster and more accurate. Nanotechnology is being developed to send miniature robots into the human body to detect cancerous cells. In hospitals, for example, radioactive material can cause immense damage to human life and any direct exposure from these and other toxic materials are not harmful to the robots. Robots are used by the army for defense and the police for surveillance with the use of drones which can cover vast areas. Robots are used in agriculture especially in developing countries where they minimize time consumption and increase crop yields.
Enhanced Efficiency and Safety Through Robotics
Robots can be programmed and will continuously perform the same task without the need for a rest or food until they are programmed to stop, they are more reliable, faster and can function more effectively in many situations. Robots are not conscious living beings but use algorithms to process data. Research is moving forward at a very rapid pace to try and replicate the human mind through advanced algorithms to produce a robot that can self-learn. Robots can be sent to dangerous hostile environments such as the deep-sea exploration, space exploration war zones or bomb disposal eliminating the potential risk to human life. They are extremely accurate and precise and are used in most car factories on assembly lines producing, assembling car and plane parts. Because of the increase in production, industries need the robots to take over some of the work, while creating new jobs for the human labor force. Robots mostly handle the hard part of the job like lifting and moving bulky and heavy items around while humans can do other tasks like the uphold and maintenance of the robots. Many companies make losses every year due to human errors, but with the use of robots, the problem goes down tremendously. If company has an all-human labor force, there is bound to be problems in production because of repetitive breaks and other issues. Robots can work continuously for 24 hours throughout the year without requiring a break, the only break needed would be the servicing and upgrading when required. Doing repetitive work, every day can be boring for anyone this could lead to lack of interest and dedication and the monotony of doing the same thing repeatedly can lead to carelessness, causing accidents and ultimately machine malfunctions. Robots do not need benefits, wages, leave and all the other overheads that come with running an organization and no productivity is lost due to no staff shortages and other downtimes. The overall cost of the product reduces as the work is done by robotic machines, products are made through machines, assembled, packaged and then distributed from one department to another. This way the overhead costs, including the maintenance costs are reduced. Robots have much smaller and versatile moving parts than people, they have performed medical surgeries because they can be faster and more precise than people.
Challenges and Limitations of Robotic Integration
It is evident that robots play an important part in all fields within society, but what are the drawbacks or the reservations about this artificial intelligence that is present in all aspects of society, explicit or not. There are disadvantages as robots cost much money in maintenance, replacement parts or new upgraded robots and costly repairs. The programs need to be updated to suit the changing business requirements and the future requirements which can only be through feasible studies. In case of breakdowns, the cost of repair may be very high, the procedures to restore lost code or data may be time-consuming and very costly to business organizations. Robots can store large amounts of data but the storage, access, retrieval is not as effective as the human brain. They can perform repetitive tasks for a long time, but they do not get better or smarter with experience such as the human brain can do. Robots are not able to act any different from what they have been programmed to do. With the heavy application of robots, human beings may become too dependent on the machines, losing their mental capacities and getting too complacent. If the control of robots falls in the wrong hands, who knows what the outcome could be.
Robots are not intelligent or sentient but that may change with new technological advancements, they can never improve the results of their jobs outside of their predefined programming. They do not think for themselves and do not have emotions or conscience at this present time, this limits how the robots can currently help and interact with people. But presently, Raj Bhasin said, “robots are still very slow and deliberate. But even so, we’re not going to need a hundred thousand years to make these things as capable as humans are”. Robots can take the place of many humans in factories, so people must find new jobs be retrained or lose their jobs. They can take the place of the humans in some situations but not all roles of society and or when that day happens the future of mankind is certainly uncertain. If human workforce is replaced by robots, there is a high possibility of an increase of illegal and crime activities in the society because of the increased unemployment population. If the human workforce is replaced by robots, the employees which have been kept on the organization will began to think the employer is only concerned about the efficiency and productivity of the work not the relationships between employer and employee. Robots can’t be friendly or emotional like human workers at present and as a result of that there will not be a pleasant working environment filled with employee friendly relationships. Humans fear robots, could it be possible that they could totally take over our jobs and that inevitably they could take over the world. Robots will steal our jobs, but on the other hand robots have the effect of increasing productivity rather than eliminating jobs.
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Robotics become increasingly present in our everyday life in households, medical institutions, industry, production lines, not to mention airports, banks, and hotels does this mean Robots may indeed already dominate the human species. Robots can operate based on information through programming but when something goes wrong with the source code or potential hacking of a system this could potentially affect an entire company or endanger life. Ken Goldberg said, “The way we have to start thinking about robots is not as a threat, but as something that we can work with in a collaborative way”. He added: “A lot of it is changing our own attitudes”. Robots can save time, but it can also result in a lag, If the robot or system has malfunctioned, you need extra time to fix it, which would require reprogramming. If robots did all the work and humans just sat and monitor them, there will be increased potential health risks. Cost of robots, they are expensive, power hungry, potentially heavy machines that require regular routine maintenance. Not all countries can equip their factories with modern systems and robots in their workplace causing these countries to fall behind in the tech world. Robots are starting to take care of a lot of things that humans are used to doing, including precise medical procedures, transactions and e-commerce, and even military action. The more and more powerful a technology becomes, the more it could be used for nefarious reasons as well as good. This applies not only to robots produced to replace human soldiers, or increasingly more autonomous weapons, but to AI systems that could cause catastrophic damage if used maliciously. These fights won't be fought on the traditional battleground only, cybersecurity will become even more important causing increased demand to protect critical systems and future robotic technologies. With the increasing use of robots and AI pushing the boundaries of future advances, but what are the implications and what could be the fate of mankind?
The development of transhuman technologies is clearly aimed at changing the human condition to the point where the capabilities of incredible superhuman feats are possible, where we no longer age or experience any negative emotions. With future technologies and the possible effects on society raise the prospects of what will our role be alongside new technological advances. Will it be the case of being totally reliant on technology destined to live a life of feeling threatened, worried, resentful and angry that machines are replacing humans in every way possible, would society change so much that it would become totally unrecognizable. The psychological implications of all these questions raised cannot only be answered predictably, but as technology advances, they will have both negative and positive consequences for society.
Ethical and Societal Implications of Robotics
The development of civil robotics and artificial intelligence also requires reflection on the big ethical questions they raise. In this regard, it is essential that these ethical principles which will come to govern robotics, develop in perfect harmony with human values. Is there a need for legislation in the face of these new emerging technologies? Debate has surfaced around the ethical use of robots in drone technology, particularly in drones that are used to kill people in wars. A clear rule to follow in robotics technology is the rule of responsible use. We can see robotics as a type of functional technology designed to get things done in a more efficient way than humans can. Robotics in this way function as a tool that benefits mankind, and just as with any tool, we must use them or at least be aware that they must be used responsibly and carefully to avoid any consequences. A big factor behind robot ethics is the fact that robotics is increasingly taking on human qualities. People are sometimes quick to assume that there isn’t too much difference between the two or to project human traits onto machines. But when we equate humans and machines, ethical considerations start cropping up.
As mentioned, the use of drones in war, for example, could quickly start to look like human suicide bomber missions. Robotics technology and technology has mainly come about generally to advance human interest and abilities. Technology makes things easier, improves human health, and encourages innovation. Robotics is no different than how we regard cellular phone or transportation technology. They should be viewed as tools for advancing human interest and for the better good of all society. But what if a robot is programmed to harm humans intentionally, ethically is the machine responsible for its actions or the programmer, who specifically programmed that robot-machine to commit the act, or could it be a malfunctioning machine, who is ethically responsible for its actions. If a robot in any way harms human interest or doesn’t cater to the overall global good, it is not being used responsibly or ethically. This rule goes hand in hand with the one previous about using robotics technology to improve society. Robotics are primarily designed for a function or a use, they should have a clearly identified function and should be approached as functional machines. In this light, using a robot intentionally means using it for a specific purpose. A lot of robots exist for fun like children’s toys, but the difference is that these types of robots a have a specific purpose to entertain and do nothing else. We must keep in mind when using robotics ethically to respect them but does this mean we have to respect treat them as humans and give them certain rights or protection within society. Or does it mean using them responsibly and respecting what they offer society. Robotics have saved lives in the medical field and within the transport industry and reduce costs, bring new jobs within so many different sectors of society. Because they offer so much potential to make our lives better, robots need to be used carefully and indeed mindfully so humanity can evolve by making appropriate globally recognized ethical, moral guidelines and appropriate legislation, that can evolve with the increasing human traits and abilities of robotics in the future. Foundational respect will inform wise decisions so that humanity can continue to evolve in the best way possible.
The Future of Robotics and Human Interaction
Robotics are machines and functional tools at the end of the day, and they should be used to advance human interest and improve society. This means using robotics with intention and respect, it also means continuing to discuss ethical considerations and updating legislation and code of conduct globally. Currently there are no rules in place within the advancement of artificial intelligence robots. Existing laws have not been developed with AI in mind, however, that does not mean that AI-based product and services are unregulated. When machines are used in wars, human lives, privacy and security will be invaded and as a result the code of conduct is getting violated. Avoiding injuring others, their property by false or malicious action or inaction is mentioned under Professional Competence and Integrity section of BCS Code of Conduct. When robots are used to destroy human life and property in wars, the associated code of conduct is invaded.
Policymakers, researchers and professionals should work together to make sure that AI provides a benefit to humanity. Organizations and individuals should implement suitable policies when using new robotic inventions in their business that is transparent to ensure negative effects of the technology has been controlled and prevented in todays and future society.
References
- ‘What are the benefits of using Robots?’. [online] Available: www.techwalls.com
- Heba Soffar (2016, May). ‘Advantages and disadvantages of using robots in our life | Science’. [online] Available: www.online-sciences.com (2020,April).
- Unquestionable Advantages and Disadvantages of Robots ‘Wise, Healthy 'n' Wealthy’ [online]. Available: www.wisehealthynwealthy.com
- Joseph (2019, August). ‘Impact of Robotics: What It Is and How It Benefits the World | Robots.net’ [online]. Available: robots.net
- Julia Bossmann (2016, October). ‘Top 9 ethical issues in artificial intelligence | World Economic Forum’ [online]. Available: www.weforum.org
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