Threats in Robotics

Robotics is one of the field of Engineering where it deals with the design , construction and use of robots. Robots are the machines which perform tasks autonomously according to the human instructions. Robots often have ability to sense and interact with the environment.

Principle of Robotics:

The working principle of a robotics is based on the idea of electrical, mechanical and computer systems to perform specific tasks.?

The components involved in the functioning of robot is mechanical structure, sensors and systems.

• Mechanical structure: Mechanical structure generally represents body of the robot which contains arms and wheels. To move the body of this, some sort of electricity is required.
• Motors: Various types of motors are required to provide power to robots. It is used to move with various programmed motions. DC motors, AC motors, stepping motors and servo motors are the one which are used to provide power supply to it.

Mechanisms:

Gears and chains are mechanical parts which are used to move from one place to another place. The working of pulleys and belts also same as gears and chains with groove around edge and belts are the rubber loops which fix in that groove. Gearboxes also working on the same principle as gear and chain, but without chain.

Sensors:

Sensors generally interact with external environment and it transforms the energy that is associated with to another form of energy. Major used sensors in robotics are sound sensors, light sensors, touch sensors, sound and acceleration sensors.

Power Supply:

Generally power supply can be provided into 2 types of sources: one is batteries that are used once and discarded and other one is batteries that operate from a reversible chemical reaction.

Control System:

Control robots generally contains two main systems one is logic circuit and other one is microcontroller. Logical circuit controls the mechanical system. Microcontrollers are electronic devices used inside robots.

Advantages of Robotics:

• Robots can work more efficiently than humans and thus increasing the productivity rate exponentially.
• Robots can be deployed in hazardous environments or perform dangerous tasks, reducing the risk of injury to human workers
• Unlike humans, robots are capable for 24/7 operations.
• Robotics technology can have a large upfront cost, but it can also result in significant long-term cost reductions.
• For various exploration and research applications, such as space exploration, deep-sea exploration, and hazardous environments, robots are used.

Disadvantages of Robotics:

• The implementation of robotic systems can be expensive.
• An over dependence on robotic systems may put users at risk in the event that technology malfunctions or fails.
• It requires regular maintenance and repairs cause additional ?cost.
• While robots may find it difficult to adapt to unexpected or unstructured conditions, humans are able to switch between different tasks with ease.
• Unauthorized access to robotic systems could result in data breaches, manipulation of robot behavior, or even physical harm.

Threats in robotics can be described as risks or dangers related with the use and development of robotic systems. Robots are continuously increasing and new threats and challenges emerge over time.

AI in Robotics:

We all heard of Facebook shutting down its Artificially Intelligent robots. After two artificially intelligent algorithms seemed to be conversing with each other in a weird language that only they could understand, Facebook decided to end the experiment. The two chatbots came to modify English according to their own preferences, which enabled them to function more easily. However, the humans who were supposed to be looking after them were unaware of these modifications.

There are other instances where artificial intelligence has created new languages besides Facebook's experiment. Google disclosed earlier in 2017 that the AI behind its Translate feature had developed a native tongue that it would translate text into and then out of. However, the business approved of that development and let it go forward.

Can robots be a threat to humans?

Definitely robots can cause threat to humans. As the technology advances they come with a specific challenges.

Physically:

One major concern with robotics is that may cause errors or accidents. Apart from Intelligence robots can make mistakes, which cause severe damages.

For example, if autonomous vehicle malfunction, it cause accidents.

Malicious use:

AI Robots can be used for malicious purpose . Manipulation in navigation of robots, decision making algorithm and disruption of communication network and more can be caused by robots under malicious use.

Job displacement :

AI robots may reduce the jobs particularly in manufacturing industries. Their speed and accuracy often surpass human capabilities. Industry experts such as Fortune have stated that “robots will replace 40% of jobs in the next 15 years”.

Malfunction:

If suppose any failure occurs such as hardware, sensor inaccuracies these can lead to unintended behavior. Industrial robots helps in increase of production rate, but a malfunction in such machines can cause lot of damage economically and physically.

Environmental Impact:

The components and disposal of robotic systems may have environmental consequences, which cause electronic waste and resource consumption.

Security:

Security concern is the main threat which cause when there is unauthorized access to robotic systems. Cybersecurity threat, including hacking.

Some of the threats that cause from robots include:

• Weapon Automation- a 2016 open letter, over 30,000 individuals, including AI and robotics researchers, pushed back against the investment in AI-fueled autonomous weapons.?
• Privacy - Sensitive personal data about persons can be collected by robots with cameras and microphones without their knowledge or agreement.
• Unauthorized access to the robot's network can lead to the exposure of personal data or even remote control of the robot, posing serious privacy risks.
• Robots can’t adapt to the environmental conditions.
• Lot’s of mechanism is needed to validate the data.

However, when we are finding something easy it may have several disadvantages and there may be a lot of problems. So, to overcome these problems we need to follow certain safety measures:

• AI robots should undergo testing and certifications to work perfect by reducing the risks.
• Cyber security measures reduce hacker attacks.
• Implement strong mechanisms to prevent unauthorized access.
• Implementation of backup systems.
• We should provide adequate training to users to have sufficient knowledge to operate.
• Regularly we need to check the condition of it before it become serious.
• Implementation of systems to regularly monitor robotic performance.
• Need to maintain virtual private network and multi-factor authentication.
• Take sufficient measures to separate critical components from uncritical components.

Conclusion:

Robots are the one which makes our work easy. Though, there are many advantages, we can suffer a lot because of this. As they create lot of problems like strictly following an instructions which can harm humans. It takes a lot of money to make them, and fixing hardware problems makes them expensive to operate correctly. To operate it, users need possess a great deal of operational expertise. Taking into account that there aren't many more robots than these. However, when we consider some of the safety measures we can handle the robots and it replace humans.

Written by,

Yamuna Tirampuram

Department of Computer Science & Engineering, K L University.

Kognitiv Club