Features / at bristol
The rise of the robots
The scene is like something out of a science fiction film. Robots roam a network of underground corridors, working autonomously around the clock to perform a variety of essential tasks. But this is not the latest Spielberg creation, but rather a behind-the-scenes glimpse inside Southmead Hospital.
Operating largely out of public sight, 12 Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) are a key feature of what is thought to be the first hospital in the UK to embrace this cutting edge system – with robots capable of working independently, collecting, transporting and delivering loads and assisting in everything from catering to carrying waste.
“No jobs have been lost by the introduction of the robots, but they have reduced the manual handling and increased our efficiency so porters can spend more time with patients,” says the hospital’s assistant general manager Paul Jenkins, the man who oversees the network of robotic workers.
is needed now More than ever
His enthusiasm for the technology is apparent and so far he sees no downside to the introduction of robots to Southmead’s workforce.
Staff members programme a card with all of the information the robot needs and the AGVs go about their business, calling specially programmed lifts when they need to go up a level, answering job requests and putting themselves into charging bays when their energy is running low.
There is a real sense of pride in these mechanical team members, which also includes one of the largest pharmacy robots in Europe that dispenses drugs for patients.
And the robots’ work does not stop in the corridors. Entirely different cutting edge robotic technology is at work in the operating theatres of Southmead – one of the largest urological centres in the country – performing life-saving surgery on prostate cancer patients.
Operated by surgeons, the surgical robots provide more scope of movement so that smaller incisions can be made, making procedures and recovery times shorter. The technology is used to carry out around some 400 prostate removals every year.
Lead consultant urologist Anthony Koupparis said: “We have been at the forefront of robotic surgery for nearly a decade now and it has made a massive impact to our patient care.
“The robot is just a piece of equipment – just like a scalpel, albeit a very complex one. We have a very experienced team and we are very proud and feel very humble to be providing this for men in the South West.”
At the forefront of developing the science and technology that is revolutionising the way society works, is the Bristol Robotics Laboratory at UWE’s Frenchay campus.
Here, robots are designed and developed for a range of purposes – from crossing nuclear waste sites to driverless vehicles – and a key feature of the work is inventing robots that can play a crucial role in elderly care and enabling people to maintain their independence for longer.
Laboratory director Professor Tony Pipe said the scientists are constantly treading a delicate ethical line in the advancement of robotics.
“We always consider very carefully what and how we get involved in,” he said. “Almost all of the robotics we do focuses on robots and humans working together to achieve something that the human could not achieve by themselves.
“I’m in favour of getting us in a state where we can maintain independence as long as possible. There are not enough people of working age available, able and willing to look after elderly people so something has to happen. One of the possible promising options is some kind of robot that can help. There is a delicate ethical line to take here though.”
Inside the centre’s living laboratory, experiments take place between human volunteers and robots, to help fine-tune technology designed to help elderly people remain independent.
The aim is that robots will live inside the homes of elderly people – with their blessing – to help with everyday tasks. They could be capable of reminding someone with dementia to eat, drink and take correct medication.
When it comes to health care, Pipe is in little doubt of the potential beneficial power of robots, but he says it is essential that the wider public continue to ask questions on ethics.
“There is fear of robots in the community at large and I think that’s good,” he says. “Some of the scare element may be overplayed, but it’s still better to be exposed to this doubt. I do not think it will go the wrong way, I‘m an optimist.”
Steering away from the experts of today and towards the inventors of tomorrow, At-Bristol plays a key role in helping to encourage inquisitive minds.
It is the UK’s leading interactive science centre, and also plays host to a group of robots in its new Tinkering Space – a permanent exhibition that enables visitors to turn their ideas into something they can touch, design, modify and rebuild.
Among the technological toolkits within At-Bristol are the larger-than-life Baxter and pint-sized Nao robots, a swarm of Thymio robots and a pair of 3D-printed bionic hands – all looked after by resident robot whisperer Beth Cotterell.
At-Bristol’s creative director Anna Starkey says: “Bristol is an incredible city full of creative makers and thinkers and The Tinkering Space has grown from that energy – it’s a ‘what if’ kind of a space, where we welcome everyone to unleash that very human instinct to lift the lid, poke around inside the box, pull apart and create.”
It’s worth remembering, though, that not all robots need a practical use. As fans of Robot Wars will be all too aware, the show is back, bigger and badder than ever and has recently attracted some of Bristol’s top technological talent.
A family from Yate appeared on the latest series programme, where bots designed by amateur enthusiasts battle it out in an arena ‘warzone,’ with their homemade creation known as High 5.
The message from team captain, aerospace engineer Dave Smith, was an inspirational one, as he called for more young people to be encouraged in fields of science and robotics to help create the engineers of tomorrow.
Whether on screen, or in surgery, supermarkets or science labs, robots are infiltrating most elements of society. And, as Bristol proves, when it comes to robotic technology, almost anything is possible.