Industry 4.0 implementation: Environmental and social sustainability in manufacturing multinational enterprises

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly proposed to address deficiencies across water systems, which currently leave about 25% of the global population without clean water, about 50% without sanitation services and about 30% without hygiene facilities. AI is poised to enhance supply insights, catchment management and emergency response, improve treatment plant and distribution network design, operation and maintenance, and advance service availability, demand management and water justice. However, proliferation of this nascent technology could trigger serious and unexpected problems, including system-wide compromise owing to design errors, malfunction and cyberattacks as well as exposures to cascading socio-ecological, water–energy–food nexus and coupled critical infrastructure failures. In response, we make three recommendations for safe and responsible deployment of AI across potable water supply and sewage disposal systems: address gaps in foundational infrastructure and digital literacy; establish institutional, software and hardware mechanisms for trustworthy AI; and prioritize applications based on our proposed systematic benefit and risk assessment framework. In this Perspective, the authors survey potential water-system-wide benefits of AI applications from catchments to end-users and then highlight potential systemic barriers, direct risks and exposures to cascading failures, which may prove catastrophic for communities. In response, they make three recommendations for safe and responsible deployment of AI across potable water supply and sewage disposal systems. 

/pdf/rewards-risks-and-responsible-deployment-of-artificial-2b44rnw5.pdf

Rewards, risks and responsible deployment of artificial intelligence in water systems

Numerous studies have been conducted to investigate the potential effect of educational robots, but what appears to be missing is an up-to-date and thorough review of the learning effectiveness of educational robots and the various influencing factors. In this study, a meta-analysis was conducted to systematically synthesize studies’ findings on the effects of educational robots on students’ learning outcomes. After searching for randomized studies describing educational robots interventions to improve learning outcomes, 34 effect sizes described in 17 articles met the selection criteria. The results of our work evidence a moderate but significantly positive effect of educational robots on learning outcomes (g  =  0.57, 95% CI [0.49, 0.65], p  <  0.00001). Moreover, moderator analyses were conducted to investigate important factors relating to the variation of the impact, including educational level and assessment type. Based on the findings of this study, we provide researchers and practitioners with insights into what characteristics of educational robot interventions appear to benefit students’ learning outcomes and how pedagogical approaches can be applied in various educational settings to guide the design of future educational robot interventions.

/pdf/the-effectiveness-of-educational-robots-in-improving-r60j8dta.pdf

The Effectiveness of Educational Robots in Improving Learning Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis

Robotics has the power to help our society in managing many current and foreseeable challenges, and contribute to a responsible future, as formally structured in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) initiative. Prior work has already investigated the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on the SDGs, using a systematic consensus-based expert elicitation process. However, the existing literature has not focused on the intricacies of robotics and the unique dynamics this domain has regarding the SDGs. In this vein, this work adapts an established approach, to focus on and dive deeper, into the field of robotics and social responsibility. We present a multidisciplinary analysis of both the enabling and disabling roles of robotics, in achieving the SDG-presented, major economic, social and environmental priorities. The United Nation's 17 SDG and the 169 Targets, were individually examined within the context of state-of-the-art robotics already documented in scientific literature. The significance and the quality-of-evidence of enabling/inhibiting impacts, were assessed by an international panel of experts, to quantify the positive or negative effect of the applied robotic systems. Results from this study indicate that robotics has the potential to enable 46 % of the Targets, particularly for the industry and environment-related SDGs, forecasting a huge impact on our production systems and thus on our entire society. Inversely, robotics could inhibit 19 % of the SDG Targets, mainly through exacerbation of inequalities and tensions in the SDGs. The objective of this paper is to assess and grade the current impact of the robotics megatrend on the SDGs, provide comparable data, and encourage the robotics community, to work on these targets, in a unified way and eventually improve the quality of the related outcomes. 

Robotics: Enabler and inhibitor of the Sustainable Development Goals

In the pursuit of optimizing the efficiency, flexibility, and adaptability of agricultural practices, human–robot interaction (HRI) has emerged in agriculture. Enabled by the ongoing advancement in information and communication technologies, this approach aspires to overcome the challenges originating from the inherent complex agricultural environments. Τhis paper systematically reviews the scholarly literature to capture the current progress and trends in this promising field as well as identify future research directions. It can be inferred that there is a growing interest in this field, which relies on combining perspectives from several disciplines to obtain a holistic understanding. The subject of the selected papers is mainly synergistic target detection, while simulation was the main methodology. Furthermore, melons, grapes, and strawberries were the crops with the highest interest for HRI applications. Finally, collaboration and cooperation were the most preferred interaction modes, with various levels of automation being examined. On all occasions, the synergy of humans and robots demonstrated the best results in terms of system performance, physical workload of workers, and time needed to execute the performed tasks. However, despite the associated progress, there is still a long way to go towards establishing viable, functional, and safe human–robot interactive systems. 

Human–Robot Interaction in Agriculture: A Systematic Review

Abstract Robotics and autonomous systems are reshaping the world, changing healthcare, food production and biodiversity management. While they will play a fundamental role in delivering the UN Sustainable Development Goals, associated opportunities and threats are yet to be considered systematically. We report on a horizon scan evaluating robotics and autonomous systems impact on all Sustainable Development Goals, involving 102 experts from around the world. Robotics and autonomous systems are likely to transform how the Sustainable Development Goals are achieved, through replacing and supporting human activities, fostering innovation, enhancing remote access and improving monitoring. Emerging threats relate to reinforcing inequalities, exacerbating environmental change, diverting resources from tried-and-tested solutions and reducing freedom and privacy through inadequate governance. Although predicting future impacts of robotics and autonomous systems on the Sustainable Development Goals is difficult, thoroughly examining technological developments early is essential to prevent unintended detrimental consequences. Additionally, robotics and autonomous systems should be considered explicitly when developing future iterations of the Sustainable Development Goals to avoid reversing progress or exacerbating inequalities. 

/pdf/meeting-sustainable-development-goals-via-robotics-and-14rgmivr.pdf

Meeting sustainable development goals via robotics and autonomous systems

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Meeting sustainable development goals via robotics and autonomous systems