Adoption Of Robots Research Articles

Multi-actor perspectives on human robotic collaboration implementation in the heavy automotive manufacturing industry - A Swedish case study

Implementing an industrial collaborative robot for Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) in the automotive manufacturing industry is an emerging technology-driven solution aiming to increase production efficiency and reduce the human operator's ergonomic load. Successful implementation of innovative technology depends on technical feasibility and on the acceptance by the affected actors. Many studies exist that focus on the technical aspects of HRC, however, research that focuses on understanding the multi-actor concerns of HRC adoption is rare. In an effort to support the successful adoption of industrial collaborative robots, this study aims to understand the concerns of the various actors who work at the operational and management levels influencing future HRC adoption in the heavy automotive manufacturing industry.A literature review was conducted to understand the HRC implementation challenges and the methods used to investigate multi-actor involvement in advance of, and during, the implementation stage. After reviewing existing studies, the actor analysis method was selected to present the actors' perceptions using the action, factor, and goal (AFG) list to understand different actors’ opinions of HRC adoption, using a Swedish heavy vehicle manufacturing company case study.The case study results showed that the actors from the same organization had different concerns but mostly positive expectations for future HRC adoption. The actors’ perception map shows the details pertaining to Actions, Concerns, and Goals as well as the logical flow between these elements in regards to HRC future adoption. The involvement of different actor groups prior to new solution implementation contributes to a holistic view of potential implementation influences and challenges in the organization. Actor analysis can provide a set of analysis processes that comply with multi-actor perceptions to understand future adoption challenges from different perspectives. In the next step, safety-related issues and under-development standardization are the key challenges of HRC implementation.

Automation or globalization? The impacts of robots and Chinese imports on jobs in the United Kingdom

In this paper, we examine how robot adoption and Chinese import competition shaped employment patterns in 352 cities across the United Kingdom. We find that cities whose initial industry composition exposed them to industrial robots and China’s integration into the world economy experienced significant employment declines. When pitched against other capital and technologies, the impact of robots remains distinct. Our findings suggest that one more robot per thousand workers reduced the employment-to-population ratio by 0.5 percentage points, while an increase of $1,000 imports from China per worker reduced the employment-to-population ratio by 0.11 percentage points. We also show that while these are sizable effects, penetration of both robots and Chinese imports are too small to account for Brexit.

The rise of robots and the fall of cost stickiness: Evidence from Chinese manufacturers

AbstractIndustrial robots are increasingly used to perform tasks traditionally assigned to humans. Using a sample of Chinese manufacturers, we examine the impact of robot adoption on firm cost stickiness. We find that robot adoption is associated with less sticky costs. The negative impact of robot adoption on cost stickiness is particularly meaningful for state‐owned enterprises and firms with higher labour costs, and becomes significantly stronger after the enactment of China's Labour Contract Law, which significantly increases labour adjustment costs. These findings are consistent with the conjecture that the adoption of robots allows firms to reduce their overall labour adjustment costs.

Optimal Taxation of Robots

Abstract I study the optimal taxation of robots, other capital, and labor income. I show that it is optimal to distort robot adoption. The robot tax (or subsidy) exploits general-equilibrium effects to compress wages, which reduces income-tax distortions of labor supply, thereby raising welfare. In the calibrated model, when robots are expensive, a robot subsidy is optimal. As robots get cheaper, it becomes optimal to tax them. Yet, when reforming the status-quo tax system, most welfare gains can be achieved by adjusting the income tax. The additional gains from taxing robots differently from other equipment capital are close to zero.

Assessing the Influence of Collaborative Technology Adoption—Mediating Role of Sociotechnical, Organizational, and Economic Factors

The study investigated the factors that influence the adoption of collaborative robots in the manufacturing sector in Russia from sociotechnical, organizational, and economic point of views. The study was driven by the increasing technological innovation in the manufacturing sector, especially in the use of robots and collaborative robot applications in daily manufacturing, flexibility, and operations activities. The study was a quantitative, descriptive survey that relied on primary data from respondents with varied experiences in the manufacturing sector in Russia. The study employed a total of 351 respondents selected for their insights into the application of robotics in the manufacturing process in Russia. The model adopted for the study was tested using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), reliability, and validity analysis. The hypotheses of the study were evaluated using partial least-squares analysis. The results revealed that the adoption of collaborative robots was influenced by organizational factors and economic factors. Perceived performance improvement was significantly influenced by collaborative robot adoption and sociotechnical systems. The study recommended that the stakeholders in Russia’s manufacturing sector should improve their training, management support, perceived innovativeness, and prior experience to enhance the adoption of collaborative robots and flexibility in design.

Robot adoption and green productivity: Curse or Boon

Recent studies demonstrated that robotics has improved efficiency in several fields, but they seem to ignore the fact that replacing human labor with robots may lead to extra energy consumption, which will raise concerns about more serious environmental problems. In this paper, we use a combined data set to explore the relationship between robot adoption and green productivity. The result shows that the adoption of robots in production does lead to new pollution sources, but there is no direct evidence that the rebound effects will threaten green productivity, and the existence of scale compensation is instead conducive to a transformation towards cleaner production modes. More importantly, using robots to replace human labor means improvements in energy efficiency and positive market selection effects, all of which can help to boost green productivity. Therefore, robot adoption is a boon for green productivity rather than a curse, and they have been proved to be beneficial even in regions dominated by high pollution industries despite green productivity gains inequality. Our findings provide new evidence for the green-biased character of robotics and new thoughts for understanding the environmental outcomes of robot adoption.

Ergonomics in construction robotics and human-robot teams in the AEC domain: a review

Over the last decade, the potential and prospects for using robotics for various construction activities have increased, particularly for dangerous work areas such as roof construction, construction in hazardous environments, and improving productivity while shielding construction workers from strenuous work and accidents. As there have been concerns about human factors in collaborating robotics with humans on construction worksites, ergonomics in human-robot teams’ research is critical to enhancing the advantages and adoption of collaborative robots in improving the productivity of construction workers and the competitiveness of construction organisations. This study reviews the emerging trends in human-robot teams and ergonomics in robotics, focusing on addressing the grey areas in human-robot teams’ body of knowledge. A systematic review of publications from similar industries with extensive studies on human-robot teams and factors applicable to the built environment were identified. The study summarises articles that have emerged over the last decade and highlights the emerging nature of robotics collaboration, ergonomic development and the interplay between robotics design and construction robotics ergonomics. Its outcome benefits AEC research and practice in building knowledge in construction human-robot collaboration, guiding practice and design in robotics by focusing on critical ergonomic issues.

Adoption of autonomous robots in the soft fruit sector: Grower perspectives in the UK

The effects of changing geopolitics, demographic change, and COVID-19 have caused significant disruption to labour in the agricultural sector around the world. In the UK, the challenges to free movement of labour and safe working conditions caused by COVID-19 have exacerbated the labour shortage caused by Brexit. In these circumstances, the use of autonomous robots in those sectors hardest hit by labour shortages, such as soft fruit, is being considered as a potential solution. Autonomous robots for use in the high value crop sector, including soft fruit, are at varying stages of technology readiness with robots for disease treatment, packhouse, and logistic support already commercially used and robots for picking approaching a demonstration phase. However, the pathway to implementation is not determined by technology readiness alone, but rather by the intention and ability of growers to adopt. To date, there has been limited investigation of the views of soft fruit growers towards the introduction of autonomous robots in the sector. We used a mixed methods approach, utilising a grower survey and qualitative interviews conducted in the UK, to explore the factors affecting adoption of autonomous robots on soft fruit farms. In general, the survey shows that growers are optimistic about the prospects of autonomous robots on soft fruit farms, although not necessarily in the short-term and there are several factors affecting uptake, particularly cost and infrastructure, as well as issues such as data ownership, cybersecurity, skills, and trust. We reflect on our findings in the context of existing research on technology adoption by growers and make a series of industry and policy recommendations which have global relevance.

Can robots reshape gender role attitudes?

In this paper, we study the impact of robotization on gender role attitudes in China. We show that robot adoption promotes egalitarian gender role attitudes; and the impact is statistically larger for women, urban, and younger generation subsamples. We provide evidence to show that the reshaping of gender role attitudes is mainly due to the improvement and rationalization of women's employment performance: robot adoption increases females' non-agricultural employment opportunity and their wage, and also improves females' relative economic status both in the workplace and in the household.

Employees’ perception of robots and robot-induced unemployment in hospitality industry under COVID-19 pandemic

The impact of the pandemic is driving the recent upsurge in service automation and the adoption of service robots in the hospitality industry. As service paradigm and customer expectations shift from conventional customized and personalized services towards a digitalized service environment, such customer orientation may favor using service robots at scales that could render service employees redundant. This study aims to answer the above question by investigating service employees’ perceptions of service robots. Data solicited from 405 service employees in the United States of America via Amazon’s MTurk were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The result revealed that employees’ awareness of adopting and using service robots significantly impacts their perception of robot-induced unemployment. Further, results indicated that the perception of robots’ social skills significantly influences service employees’ perception of robot-induced unemployment. Employee status was found to moderate the relationships mentioned above. Specifically, entry-level employees perceive the unemployment risk more than managers.

A Review of Robotic Applications in Hospitality and Tourism Research

Recently, robots have been widely adopted in the hospitality and tourism industry. Efficient robots can help hoteliers and tourism suppliers with their repetitive or manual labor. Due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, there is an increasing number of publications on robotic applications in hospitality and tourism. However, a comprehensive literature review of this realm remains lacking. Therefore, to provide a holistic view of the existing literature on robotic applications in hospitality and tourism, this study reviewed 86 extant robotic application-related articles by conducting descriptive analysis and content analysis. The findings of this study showed that most of the existing relevant studies were conducted from the perspective of consumers in the hospitality context. Potential future research directions for academics are identified herein. Practical implications on robotic adoption are also provided for industry practitioners.

Investigating the differences between females perceive same-gender and heterogender sex robots regarding adoption and intentions.

The market for sex robots is on the rise with the development of human–computer interaction. However, most sex robots on the market are presented as male-friendly products. This issue may limit and hinder females' adoption and utilization of sex robots. This paper was to take females as the research subjects exploring and verifying several concerns based on previous theories and to conduct primary research and quantitative method to investigate: (i) how females differently perceive same-gender and heterogender sex robots; (ii) their attitudes and the knowledge or definition of sex robots; and (iii) their intention of adopting heterogender robots. This study confirmed several previous theories and provided new findings and insights. Females are more likely to feel threatened by the presence of same-gender sex robots. Their negative attitudes are related to the way that sex robots exist. They are jealous of same-gender sex robots; nevertheless, this should not be attributed to their negative perception of sex robots since they also have positive perceptions and intentions to adopt a sex robot. They define sex robots more as sexual products than as engaging in the prostitution industry.

Transitioning towards human–robot synergy in agriculture: A systems thinking perspective

AbstractDigital transformation has unveiled new prospects for increased performance and productivity in the agricultural sector to meet rising food security needs. Continuous industrialization and unexpected disruptions (e.g., workforce mobility restrictions due to the COVID‐19 pandemic) call for the adoption of agricultural robots. However, automated solutions could be associated with societal challenges in rural areas; unemployment growth has been perceived as a major threat that jeopardizes societal welfare, potentially hindering the implementation of digital technologies. In this context, human–robot synergistic systems could act as a promising socially viable alternative. Through systems thinking, this research investigates the complex interconnections and key feedback mechanisms of automation diffusion (conventional and human–robot interactive) under the socio‐economic perceptions (drivers and barriers) of agribusinesses and rural communities. Overall, this study contributes towards eliciting the mental models that underpin the transition from agricultural robots to human–robot collaboration by transforming automation‐related societal risks into opportunities for sustainable rural development.

Autonomous robot-driven deliveries: A review of recent developments and future directions

The adoption of autonomous delivery robots (ADRs) across various delivery applications has rapidly accelerated in recent years. This growth can be attributed to advancements in technology and legislation, exacerbated conventional delivery challenges, and pandemic-mediated need for contactless deliveries. A growing number of studies have investigated the various aspects pertaining to ADR-based delivery operations. Nevertheless, there is a lack of extensive literature review that holistically reports on various problems in ADR-based delivery operations, adopted methodologies, novel findings, and future needs. This paper aims to systematically survey the existing research on ADR-based delivery systems and associated operations. Foremost, we discuss various technology, design, and legal factors that impact ADR operations. Subsequently, we are the first to review the state-of-the-art research in ADR-based deliveries concerning the following areas—routing, infrastructure and fleet planning, factors affecting efficiency, technology acceptance, and social intelligence. Finally, we anticipate potential challenges from an operations management perspective, identify research gaps, and delineate future research opportunities for ADR-based deliveries.

Study on Robot Veterinarians

Abstract: Today’s sensor-driven revolution is reworking robots from rote machines into cognitive collaborators. They have got grow to be a key link in a dynamic continuum that encompasses humans, different machines, and the digital environments in which they perform. Robots have contributed massively to our industries, allowing maximum gadgets, home equipment, transportation and processed foods to be made successfully and affordably. There's no denying that the twenty first century has introduced extraordinary improvements and breakthroughs. Robotics has pop out from fictional films to actual-international eventualities, acting elaborate responsibilities and converting the world we stay in. Current improvements in robotics have supplied several methods wherein robots may be included into human existence. Robot adoption will likely be an important determinant of commercial enterprise productiveness. Robots have the potential to reshape the manner organizations are carried out and are intended to deliver extra automation competencies to the company. The aim of this paper is to review the ideas that how robots can beimplemented and introduced in Veterinary field in India.

The effect of industrial robots’ adoption on urban income inequality in China

ABSTRACT This paper empirically investigates the effect of the utilization of industrial robots on income inequality in urban China. By employing the data of imports of industrial robots and income inequality at the city level in China, we find that the adoption of robots has a positive effect on urban income inequality. This positive effect remains robust when we use instrumental variable estimation to tackle the potential endogeneity problem. In addition, this positive effect is more salient in cities with below average national income per capita. The results have important policy implications for achieving common prosperity in China.

Robot-Assisted Minimally Invasive Surgery—Surgical Robotics in the Data Age

Telesurgical robotics, as a technical solution for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RAMIS), has become the first domain within medicosurgical robotics that achieved a true global clinical adoption. Its relative success (still at a low single-digit percentile total market penetration) roots in the particular human-in-the-loop control, in which the trained surgeon is always kept responsible for the clinical outcome achieved by the robot-actuated invasive tools. Nowadays, this paradigm is challenged by the need for improved surgical performance, traceability, and safety reaching beyond the human capabilities. Partially due to the technical complexity and the financial burden, the adoption of telesurgical robotics has not reached its full potential, by far. Apart from the absolutely market-dominating da Vinci surgical system, there are already 60+ emerging RAMIS robot types, out of which 15 have already achieved some form of regulatory clearance. This article aims to connect the technological advancement with the principles of commercialization, particularly looking at engineering components that are under development and have the potential to bring significant advantages to the clinical practice. Current RAMIS robots often do not exceed the functionalities deriving from their mechatronics, due to the lack of data-driven assistance and smart human–machine collaboration. Computer assistance is gradually gaining more significance within emerging RAMIS systems. Enhanced manipulation capabilities, refined sensors, advanced vision, task-level automation, smart safety features, and data integration mark together the inception of a new era in telesurgical robotics, infiltrated by machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions. Observing other domains, it is definite that a key requirement of a robust AI is the good quality data, derived from proper data acquisition and sharing to allow building solutions in real time based on ML. Emerging RAMIS technologies are reviewed both in a historical and a future perspective.

Control Techniques for Safe, Ergonomic, and Efficient Human-Robot Collaboration in the Digital Industry: A Survey

The fourth industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, is reshaping the way individuals live and work while providing a substantial influence on the manufacturing scenario. The key enabling technology that has made Industry 4.0 a concrete reality is without doubt <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">collaborative robotics</i> , which is also evolving as a fundamental pillar of the next revolution, the so-called Industry 5.0. The improvement of employees’ safety and well-being, together with the increase of profitability and productivity, are indeed the main goals of human-robot collaboration (HRC) in the industrial setting. The robotic controller design and the analysis of existing decision and control techniques are crucially needed to develop innovative models and state-of-the-art methodologies for a safe, ergonomic, and efficient HRC. To this aim, this paper presents an accurate review of the most recent and relevant contributions to the related literature, focusing on the control perspective. All the surveyed works are carefully selected and categorized by target (i.e., safety, ergonomics, and efficiency), and then by problem and type of control, in presence or absence of optimization. Finally, the discussion of the achieved results and the analysis of the emerging challenges in this research field are reported, highlighting the identified gaps and the promising future developments in the context of the digital evolution. <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Note to Practitioners</i> —The design and development of manufacturing systems are experiencing substantial changes towards full automation. This ongoing challenge is being tackled by academia and industrial practitioners with the adoption of collaborative robots, where the skills and peculiarities of humans (e.g., intelligence, creativity, adaptability, etc.) and robots (e.g., flexibility, pinpoint accuracy, tirelessness, etc.) are combined to better perform a variety of tasks. Nevertheless, due to their different characteristics, there is an emerging need for designing suitable decision and control techniques to ensure a safe and ergonomic HRC, while keeping the highest level of productivity. Against this background, the aim of this paper is to provide researchers and practitioners with a reference source in the related field, which can help them designing and developing suitable solutions to control problems in safe, ergonomic, and efficient collaborative robotics.

AHP를 이용한 중소기업의 제조용 로봇 도입 성공요인 분석

The purpose of this study is to analyze the success factors for adoption of industrial robots in small and medium-sized enterprises(SMEs). We identified the perceptional differences of success factors between industrial robot suppliers and buyers. In this study we derived factors for adoption of industrial robots from literature review and developed questionnaire for the Analytic Hierarchy Process(AHP). Forty seven responses were collected and analyzed success factors. As a result of this study, technical factors were the most important factor as a critical success factor for adoption of industrial robots. Specifically, the competence of robot system integrators was analyzed as the most important factor, and robot product quality, top management support, automation level, and work standardization were important in order. The difference in perception of success factors between industrial robot suppliers and buyers was not statistically significant.

Linking artificial intelligence to service sabotage

ABSTRACT The widespread use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in the service industry has made the conflict between service robots and frontline employees a hot topic. While research shows that the adoption of service robots may have a negative impact on employees’ psychology and behavior, little is known about its effects on frontline employee’ service sabotage. The current study explores the influencing mechanism of service sabotage in the context of AI introduction based on the STARA theory and conservation of resource theory. The results reveal that: (1) Frontline employee’s AI awareness direclty affects service sabotage; (2) Organization-based self-esteem plays a partial mediating role between AI awareness and service sabotage; (3) Perceived organizational support weakens the effect of AI awareness on service sabotage.