A joint robotics centre of the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University that trains robotics researchers and works on robots that operate safely alongside people.
The Edinburgh Centre for Robotics is a partnership between two Scottish universities: the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University. Each brings different strengths. A 2015 Times Higher Education profile said Heriot-Watt contributes engineering and industry links while Edinburgh adds informatics and artificial intelligence. The centre is sponsored by UK Research and Innovation and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, and it is linked to the National Robotarium at Heriot-Watt.
Professor Sethu Vijayakumar of the University of Edinburgh is its director. In the 2015 profile, the centre's goal was to become one of the world's leading robotics centres, and he said that building critical mass is essential because the work needs teams and equipment. At that time the centre and its doctoral training programme had won 13.2 million pounds from the research council. The programme aimed to bring in 60 to 70 students over five years, combining science, maths, programming and mechanical engineering with more specialised study.
The centre is based in Edinburgh across the two universities. Its work at the time included sensors and navigation so that robots can work safely beside people, for example in warehouses; joints with variable stiffness for wind and tidal power; an exoskeleton to help physiotherapy; and, as a possibility, nanorobots to deliver medicine. The professor also spoke about ethical and legal questions, such as who is responsible if a driverless car has an accident, and argued that the debate must develop alongside the technology.
The pages we could read say little about daily culture. What they do show is a centre that treats robotics as a team sport across disciplines, mixing engineers, computer scientists and, in the work described, physiotherapy and energy specialists. It has a training section for students and, through the Robotarium link, access to larger industry partnerships. Its website lists industry partners only as logos, so we cannot name them.
The people who work in a centre like this include researchers and PhD students, research engineers and technicians who build and care for the robots, programmers, and managers who organise projects, training and events. Starting subjects include engineering, computer science, maths and physics. The Edinburgh Centre for Robotics website has People and Training sections, and the two universities list their own vacancies.
Website: www.edinburgh-robotics.org
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