Robotics Reading

The two articles that I read were:
·“Automation and Robotics in Construction: Opportunities and Challenges”
·“Intelligent Inhabited Environments: Cooperative Robotics & Buildings”
These articles related the ideas of robotics and construction and how we are moving towards a future in which buildings will be designed and maintained through the collaboration between people and robots.
The assigned reading gave a general synopsis of how robotics works and the different aspects important to robotics as a whole. Although this was important to read, the other two articles that I read only related to this article on a general level. The assigned article gave more of a background of robotics, and discussed terms and concepts important in the robotics field. The articles above give more of an idea of how robotics can be integrated into the construction and engineering field to create intelligent buildings.
The first article, “Automation and Robotics in Construction: Opportunities and Challenges,” discussed how robots can be used in the actual process of construction to speed up and create a more efficient environment for building. It talked about the advantages and disadvantages of the development of robots and how they are being used to help with construction. Within the article, the idea of robots working with humans to improve safety conditions and work processes is discussed as well as how robots could be used to improve precision within a project. There are disadvantages to having robots on a construction site though, which is an important point to keep in mind. For example the article talked about how a robot might not being able to interpret sites the way a human would, which could cause problems and set back the construction process.
The second article, “Intelligent Inhabited Environments: Cooperative Robotics & Buildings,” was about how robots are being used to create intelligent buildings. An experiment was conducted using robots to create economically proficient environments within buildings as well as to improve the safety and comfort of the building occupants. The robots were able to learn and gain knowledge from certain experiences they had within the building and output a solution to the experience itself. For example, if a robot sensed a room was unoccupied, it could reduce the ventilation and heat into a room to create an economically proficient space. The robots used sensory and fuzzy logic, an idea discussed in the assigned article, to make its decisions. From the article it seems like robotics can in fact be used to create intelligent buildings.
After reading both of the articles, I believe robotics will in fact help in the process of creating intelligent buildings. I agree with both John and Monika saying that robots will never be able to construct entire buildings, but I do believe they will be able to help. I also think that they will not only be useful in the construction process, but also in the maintenance of a building. I think eventually buildings will be labeled intelligent in correlation to robotics being used within buildings as was described in the second article I read.

Robotics reading_R2

        One of the papers I read, “Chapter 1. Challenges and Solutions in Robotics,” discussed some of the major challenges with software development in robotics. One of the complications the authors pointed out was the difficulty with synchronizing tasks and coordinating multiple tasks (Kang et al, 4-5). I do not think that the Access Science assigned reading addresses this challenge outright. However, there is a chart under the “Multisensor systems” section of the Access Science reading that indicates the processes involved and the cyclical time intervals at which each process works. Still I think this is an ongoing problem in which the robots have difficulties simultaneously sensing and reacting to a constantly changing environment. Another challenge mentioned was in unifying the software platforms, and I think that that is a major concern particularly for intelligent building design and construction in the long run (Kang et al, 5). However, the authors were writing about robotics in a general sense, so for small mechanical designs I do not see as a significant problem. For large construction projects, where millions if not billions of dollars are involved and collaboration between clients and corporations and engineering firms is involved than I can see a potentially large problem.
        The other article, “Construction Robots and Constructing a Robotics Community,” discussed construction robotics and ideas that are on the table as well as ideas that are being practiced. One example given was a dual six-axis directional robot which is used for arc welding structural steel with a precision of around 0.16 mm (Brumson). A Forum held by the Robotic Industries Association was also discussed with the goal of establishing a more connected robotics community. I thought that this article could have gone into more detail with some of the ideas about the future in construction robotics however.

Robotics Reading Assignment

Besides reading the assigned article "Robotics", I read two other papers:

• The influence of automation and robotics on the performance construction
• Breaking down brick walls: Design, construction, and prototype fabrication knowledge in architecture

I personally am interested in robotics as it relates to architecture and construction industries. The assigned article talks about the technical aspects of robotics, and a more generalized applications. I had a hard time reading this article, because there were several term and concepts I did not fully understand, and therefore it did not hold my interest.
The other two article I chose talk about some specific applications of robotics in AE industry. The first article discusses the direction robotics should take in construction industry, more specifically, premanufacturing (off site manufacturing and assembly) as well as large construction component on-site assembly. This article also discusses how robotics, systems automation, intelligent buildings, and real-time information sharing is becoming more critical in construction speed, cost, and safety. John, in his blog mentioned that we will never have building constructed entirelly using robotics, which I absolutely agree with. However, we are moving to towards manufacturing at a much larger scale, and soon, construction teams instead of assembling building from scratch will assemble large (premanufactured) building systems.
The second article talks about a niche market - architectural model prototyping using robotics. Their idea is to develop an intelligent computer modelling software, accepting user input in English, which then will translate the input into a programming language, which a robot will use to build a physical model of the design. I think the idea is great, but it seems like the authors are re-inventing the wheel a bit. Their idea is a much more advanced computer modeling program combined with an advanced 3D printer. I believe it would be much more productive from their research and development side, if they used an already existing modeling softwarea and incorporated their "common sense" intelligence and language translation capabilities, without creating a brand new platform.

Robotics Reading

In addition to the assigned source I found an article through the library's website entitled "Construction Robotics". It provided information mostly on the application of robotics in prefabrication in Germany and Japan, but also touched on their use on-site in both construction and for providing services such as painting. While the AccessScience article detailed the mechanics of how robotics worked in their different forms, this article focused more on the applications and what areas show promise.
While robotics have been shown to greatly increase the productivity of construction, this still only applies when there are repeated operations. On projects or parts of projects where there are increasingly complex and unique construction requirements, robotics are still greatly lacking, and I am skeptical as to how practical they will ever be in this respect. I don't foresee a day when a building can go from inception to move-in-ready entirely automatically. However, the advantages of automation are clearly evident in reduction of waste and increased speed of construction.
I believe that robotics will reach their fullest potential not by creating robots which can adapt to any situation, but by making inexpensive robots that are designed specifically for its purpose and project, wherein a major building would commission custom robotics which are uniquely designed for that specific building.

What’s Important in using this blog

Read the course requirements for posting – in VistaBB

Each week that there is a reading assignment you are to submit a short discussion of all the articles you’ve read.  Here are suggestions about what you want to include.

• The title of the articles you’re referring to – you can assume that students may look them up in the reference database in GDocs – Submission form – results.
• Connections between the articles.
• Relationship of these articles to what other students have written (remember you’re supposed to read at least three).
• How what you’ve read illuminates what else we’ve done in the class or your own field.

Mechanics of Posting

• Be sure to apply “categories” (often called tags or labels) to your posts to make it easy for others to look at related topics.
• Make liberal use of links to other blog posts and sources (e.g. Here’s a link to the “welcome” post and one to the other “official” course blog)
• Windows Live Writer is a very good, free, tool for posting to blogs.

Welcome to AE-510 - Student Version

In this blog you can all post and comment on what others have written.  Since it’s an experiment we may change what I ask you to do over the course of the term.

Jim Mitchell