I N D U S T R I A L
A C T I V I T I E S
Road Maps for Robotics and Automation Hadi Moradi
Y
ou may wonder what a technology road map is and what purpose it would have. A technology road map is a plan to meet the short- and long-term goals with specific technology. The major benefits of a technology road map would be to 1) help funding agencies reaching a consensus on the set of future needs and the required technologies to meet them 2) devise a mechanism in forecasting technology development 3) develop a framework for planning and coordinating the technology development 4) inform the general public and society about where the robotics and automation is heading. Newcomers to robotics research area, particularly developing countries and new companies, are potential beneficiaries of a technology road map, to plan their activities and investments.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MRA.2009.933632
The technology road map consists of three phases: preliminary activity, development of the technology road map, and follow-up activity. The promising future of robotics and the successful examples of technology road mapping in other fields have made the players in robotics and automation to start their own road-map activities. Currently, there are few technology road maps being produced by the major players in this field. Most of these activities are in the phase of preliminary activities. For instance, Japan started its own road map in 2005 [2] anticipating the next 20 years in their analysis. In this road map, it is predicted that the domestic robot market in Japan reaches 6.2 trillion yen (approximately US$50 billion) by 2025. Also, it is predicted that robots assisting elderly would be the main theme till 2015, followed by robots assisting jobs at home or companies till 2025. The United States has recently started its road-map activities in four areas: manufacturing and automation, medical and health care, service robots, and emerging technologies [1]. These road maps suggest the robotic technologies required to fulfill the national needs, such as assistive robots for the aging population and robot for assisted recovery and rehabilitation, for the next 15 years. Furthermore, the road maps suggest technologies, such as robust high-fidelity sensing for humanlike dexterous manipulation and nanomanufacturing, to revitalize American manufacturing and improve the US standing in the global market. Europeans have started their own version of road map in robotics. A specific activity has been guided toward predicting the application of robotics in medicine and health care till 2025 [3]. In this road map, the Europeans considered six most relevant innovation areas: smart medical capsules for endoscopy, biopsy, and targeted drug delivery; intelligent prosthetics; robotized patient monitoring systems; robotized surgery; robotized motor coordination analysis and therapy; and robot-assisted mental, cognitive, and social therapies. Another effort in Europe is coordinated through the European Robotics Technology Platform [4]. Their latest strategic research agenda would be published by 7 July 2009. The tracking of international road maps is sponsored by the Industrial Activities Board. The latest activities and results would be gathered on its Web site [5]. For further information, please contact Dr. Hadi Moradi at
[email protected].
References [1] Available: http://www.us-robotics.us/ [2] Available: http://www.nedo.go.jp/roadmap/ [3] Available: http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/newsroom/cf/itemdetail. cfm?item_id=4624 [4] Available: http://www.robotics-platform.eu/cms/index.php [5] Available: http://www.ieee-ras.org/industrial/roadmap
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IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine
SEPTEMBER 2009
