Technology

Robot Swarms and Humaniods: The Future Drivers for Construction

Robotic machines in construction have increased because they can handle tedious, repetitive and risky tasks.
By Ed Williams
June 7, 2022
Topics
Technology

Presently, technological advancements have become vital in making our lives easier. Several industries benefit from these advances to boost their overall productivity and efficiency. Likewise, the construction industry has also begun to transform as technology continues to offer detailed insights, streamlining processes with great ease.

Typically, the construction process involves multiple development stages, and each stage needs to be accomplished with utmost accuracy. In addition, construction business owners must prioritize the safety of workers. This is where technology comes into action.

Today, the demand for robotic machines in the construction industry increases because they can handle tedious, repetitive and risky tasks. They allow project managers to execute projects in environments that prove to be challenging for humans to work in—for instance, holding off floodwater with the support of dikes during natural disasters. With the assistance of robotics, it’s feasible to create various structures through machines.

Nowadays, robotics and humanoids are being implemented to create one unit of intricate machinery to manage a specific task. As business owners assign tasks to laborers individually, they can do the same with robots. But with robots, they can expect greater accomplishments.

Let’s dive into these technologies to understand how they can transform the construction industry.

Robotic Swarms

As we know, nature offers unlimited resources for providing creative ideas—as there are multiple aspects we still can’t present when it comes to mechanisms that regulate it. For instance, several researchers have focused on termites, desiring to use their discoveries to build something exceptional that construction owners haven't seen before.

It has been a few years since scientists created a little construction robot with the goal to work with others as a swarm and perform construction tasks. The ultimate concept behind it is simple: to use multiple robots to build a project as per plan, without foremost guidance.

These robots can work independently and cooperate with others like termites - constructing immense structures without any central command. This is to ensure that it stays in harmony with the other surrounding robots. The built-in sensors are smartly installed to detect other robots; it's possible to follow a set of rules to sidestep collisions and work efficiently.

Robotic swarms can be designed from various materials beginning with standard bricks and finishing with fibers. Contractors can use them in digital fabrication for creating small robots that work efficiently to develop fiber-based structures.

However, swarm-bots are still more enticing than popular tools, but their benefits are immense. Even being the cutting-edge smart technology, swarms are said to be easy to use, cost-effective and highly productive. Moreover, it helps with risk reduction for employees and provides better safety.

Humanoids

Futuristic technologies are forever famous and thrilling to explore, but we are primarily used to keeping them in the mythical "future-land" that may never come. Even worse, some of them are here and are being developed with full engagement.

Robots are used in most sectors to support humanity in multiple ways, from 3D printing and assembly lines to easy home chores (like robotic vacuum cleaners). In the construction industry, these robots are being used:

  • Cartesian robots;
  • Articulated robots;
  • Collaborative robots; and
  • Self-driving vehicles.

Created to mimic the human body, these humanoids are capable of performing simple tasks on-site. They are not highly advanced yet, but the chances are that they will be highly useful to construction.

Transform the Construction Site Smartly

The technology mentioned above will empower construction companies to go the extra mile and overcome all the limitations, and attain goals they have yet to even consider. As with all unique solutions, there is always anxiety and hesitation to be the foremost, but we can only acquire growth by keeping an open mind to new opportunities. So, in a nutshell, the future of construction ultimately depends on how we respond to innovations and manipulate the resources given.

by Ed Williams
Ed Williams is the Director at ProjectPro, an integrated construction accounting software. He holds tremendous industry experience and is a Microsoft Dynamics expert focused on successful implementations. He is a visionary leader and always aims to deliver the best to the construction and project-oriented industries.

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