Robot Talk

This week, Claire chatted to Gopal Ramchurn from the University of Southampton about artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and renewable energy.

To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we're running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! To enter, either share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we've got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.

Sarvapali (Gopal) Ramchurn is a Professor of Artificial Intelligence, Turing Fellow, and Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology. He is the Director of the UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems hub and Co-Director of the Shell-Southampton Centre for Maritime Futures. He is also a Co-CEO of Empati Ltd, an AI startup working on decentralised green hydrogen technologies. His research is about the design of Responsible Artificial Intelligence for socio-technical applications including energy systems and disaster management.

Find out more about the Trustworthy Autonomous Systems hub here: https://www.tas.ac.uk/

This week, Claire talked to Mickey Li from the University of Bristol about aerial robotics, building inspection and multi-robot teams.

To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we're running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! To enter, either share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we've got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.

Mickey Li is a Robotics and Autonomous systems PhD researcher at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory and the University of Bristol. His research focuses on optimal multi-UAV path planning for building inspection, in particular how guarantees can be provided despite vehicle failures. Most recently he has been developing a portable development and deployment infrastructure for multi-UAV experimentation for the BRL Flight Arena inspired by advances in cloud computing.

This week, Claire talked to Dr Iveta Eimontaite from Cranfield University all about psychology, human-robot interaction, and industrial robots.

To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we're running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! We've expanded and extended the competition and there are now two ways to enter - share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we've got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.

Iveta Eimontaite studied Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of York and completed her PhD in Cognitive Psychology at Hull University. Prior to joining Cranfield University in June 2019, Iveta held research positions at Bristol Robotics Laboratory and Sheffield Robotics. Her work mainly focuses on behavioural and cognitive aspects of Human-Technology Interaction, with particular interest in user needs and requirements for the successful integration of technology within the workplace/social environments.

This week, Claire chatted to Sean Katagiri from The National Robotarium all about underwater robots, offshore energy, and other industrial applications of robotics.

To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we're running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! For a chance to win, all you have to do is share the latest episode of Robot Talk on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of October to receive a free t-shirt – we've got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.

Sean Katagiri is a robotics engineer who has the pleasure of being surrounded by and working with robots for a living. His experience in robotics mainly comes from the subsea domain, but has also worked with wheeled and legged ground robots as well. Sean is very excited to have recently started his role at The National Robotarium, whose goal is to bring ideas from academia and turn them into real world solutions.

To find out more about The National Robotarium, visit their website: https://www.hw.ac.uk/uk/research/the-national-robotarium.htm

This week, Claire talked to Dr Paul Dominick Baniqued from The University of Manchester all about brain-computer interface technology and rehabilitation robotics.

To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we're running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! For a chance to win, all you have to do is share the latest episode of Robot Talk on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of October to receive a free t-shirt – we've got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.

Paul Dominick Baniqued received his PhD in robotics and immersive technologies at the University of Leeds. His research tackled the integration of a brain-computer interface with virtual reality and hand exoskeletons for motor rehabilitation and skills learning. He is currently working as a postdoc researcher on cyber-physical systems and digital twins at the Robotics for Extreme Environments Group at the University of Manchester.

In the first episode of the new season, Claire chatted to Roopika Ravikanna from the University of Lincoln all about farm robots, fruit-picking and human-robot interaction.

To celebrate the new season, we're running a competition to win one of our awesome Robot Talk t-shirts! For a chance to win, all you have to do is share the latest episode of Robot Talk on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of October to receive a free t-shirt – we've got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.

Roopika Ravikanna is a second year PhD student at the University of Lincoln pursuing research under 'AgriForwards' Centre for Doctoral training. Her research interests include Human Robot Interaction and Multi Robot Systems. She focuses on developing a fully autonomous system of agricultural transportation robots for assisting farm workers in horticulture and commercial fruit growing environments. She is passionate about taking part in STEM outreach activities, to help inspire young people take up a main stream education in Science.

The first robots went into space over 60 years ago and robotics have become a familiar sight in many industrial settings, but it took a bit longer for robots to make their way into our homes. Robotic vacuum cleaners first started to make an appearance in homes about 20 years ago now, and according to a recent survey by the UK-RAS Network, 28% of people say that robots are now an occasional part of their everyday lives while 13% say they are fully integrated into their day to day lives. But home robots can do a lot more than clean the floors. Social and assistive robots can offer company and help around the home which can be game-changing for people with limited mobility or dementia.

In this special live recording for the UK Festival of Robotics, Claire chatted to Dr. Patrick Holthaus (University of Hertfordshire / Robot House), Prof. Praminda Caleb-Solly (University of Nottingham) and Dr Mike Aldred (Dyson).

Patrick Holthaus researches how robots can socially engage with humans letting them interact with each other in a special research facility, the Robot House at the University of Hertfordshire. He is particularly interested in non-verbal communication like body movements, gestures, and gaze and how they can influence the social credibility and trust of assistive and companion robots. At the same time, he maintains the robots and all the interactive technology in the house and coordinates and advises other users of the house as the Robot House manager.

Praminda Caleb-Solly is Professor of Embodied Intelligence at the University of Nottingham where she leads the Cyber-physical Health and Assistive Robotics Technologies research group. Prior to joining Nottingham, she led research in Assistive Robotics at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory for over ten years. In 2020 she co-founded Robotics for Good CIC, a 'robots-as-a-service' start-up which is currently supporting the deployment of telepresence robots.

Having gained a PhD in robotics from the University of Kent, Mike Aldred left in 1998 to be part of the original team of 5 roboticists at Dyson. He spent 15 years taking the company's first robot vacuum cleaner from technology research right the way through to a manufactured product. He has worked on pretty much every area of domestic robotics from developing vision based navigation systems, to helping define international robot standards and ensuring the production line runs smoothly. The common theme running across all his roles at Dyson has been turning academic theory into practical reality.

In many areas of robotics, scientists and engineers are taking inspiration from nature in their designs. Bioinspired robotics now encompasses a huge number of different research fields and applications that we've discussed before, from sensing to locomotion and from medical to agricultural robotics. This month, I'm chatting to three roboticists who've taken a leaf out of nature's book to develop innovative new robots.

Robot Talk Live will be back again for the UK Festival of Robotics in June, so if you'd like to join us for a live recording of the podcast, click here to book free ticket: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/robot-talk-live-home-robotics-tickets-325690317507

Valentina Lo Gatto is a PhD student in Robotics and Autonomous Systems at the Bristol Robotics Lab, where she is part of the SoftLab and the Morphological Computation Group. The main goal of her research at BRL is to investigate the application of the concepts of Bioinspiration, Soft Robotics and Morphological Computation to space probes design, specifically probes that will need to be able to autonomously explore delicate marine environments such those hidden under the icy surfaces of some of the moons of the outer solar system (e.g., Europa, Enceladus, Ganymede).

David Hardman is a PhD student in the Bio-Inspired Robotics Lab at the University of Cambridge, where he works on the design and development of soft, flexible sensors and sensing materials. After receiving his MEng in mechanical and materials engineering from Cambridge in 2020, he began focussing on including stretchy, bendy, and compliant sensors into robotic systems, where they function as artificial skins which conform to and sense a robot's surroundings.

Adrian Thomas is Professor of Biomechanics in the Zoology Department, Oxford University. He founded the Oxford Animal Flight Group in 1996, and led that group until 2015 when he founded his Oxford Spinout company Animal Dynamics. Animal Dynamics works on bio inspired autonomous vehicles and systems, mainly cargo delivery in air or underwater. Animal Dynamics has raised over £20 million from venture capital. Its main product is a large cargo delivery drone 'Stork' capable of carrying 135kg over 400km.

One of the most dangerous and unpredictable Earth environments we can send robots into are disaster zones – sites devastated by natural disasters or conflict — but here they can play some of their most impactful roles, such as surveying, search and rescue, even detecting land mines or defusing bombs. To find out more about these daring rescue robots, I'll be chatting to two roboticists who've worked on disaster response: Russell Buchanan (University of Oxford) and Dr. Mario Gianni (University of Plymouth).

Robot Talk Live will be back again for the UK Festival of Robotics in June, so if you'd like to join us for a live recording of the podcast, click here to book free ticket: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/robot-talk-live-home-robotics-tickets-325690317507

Russell Buchanan is a PhD student in robotics at the University of Oxford. He is originally from Canada and has a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from McGill University and a Master of Science in Robotics from ETH Zurich. His current work at the Oxford Robotics Institute is focusing on perception for legged robots in challenging environments such as underground mines and sewers.

Mario Gianni is an Associate Professor of Robotics at the University of Plymouth. His knowledge and expertise mainly focus on the development of methods combining AI, machine learning, control theory and optimization to robotics for extreme environments. He is working to enhance automation and situational awareness of robotic systems for mapping nuclear sites, explosive ordinance disposal and inspections in offshore wind farms. In 2012 and 2016 he deployed a team of ground and aerial robots to support rescue responders in two earthquakes that occurred in Italy.

Robots are becoming a more and more important part of our home and work lives and as we come to rely on them, trust is of paramount importance. Successful teams are founded on trust, and the same is true for human-robot teams. But what does it mean to trust a robot? I'll be chatting to three roboticists working on various aspects of trustworthiness in robotics: Dr Anouk van Maris (University of the West of England), Faye McCabe (University of Birmingham), Daniel Omeiza (University of Oxford).

Anouk van Maris is a research fellow in responsible robotics. She received her doctorate at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, where she investigated ethical concerns of social robots. She is currently working on the technical development and implementation of the robot ethical black box, which will be used to generate explanations of the robot's decision-making process. She is a member of the committee on Ethics for Robots and Autonomous Systems at the British Standards Institute, where she uses her insights and knowledge to support the progress of a standard for ethical design and implementation of robots.

Faye McCabe is a member of the Human Interface Technologies team at the University of Birmingham. She received a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Computer Systems Engineering from the University of Birmingham in 2017. Her PhD focuses on how to design interfaces which support rich, dynamic and appropriate trust-building within Human-Autonomy Teams of the future. Faye's main area of focus is autonomous maritime platforms, with her research focusing on sonar analysis, and how this could be aided through the use of autonomous decision-aids.

Daniel Omeiza is a PhD student in the department of computer science at the University of Oxford. He is a member of the responsible innovation group and the cognitive robotics group. As part of the RoboTIPS and SAX project, he is investigating and designing new techniques for effective explainability in autonomous driving. Before joining Oxford, he obtained a masters degree from Carnegie Mellon University and conducted research at IBM Research as an intern.