The University of Manchester's centre for robotics and AI, which includes work on robots for nuclear clean-up through the RAICo partnership in Cumbria.
The Centre for Robotics and AI at the University of Manchester brings together the university's robotics and artificial intelligence work. Its website has sections on research, the robots it uses, and the people involved, and it invites businesses, funders and user groups to work with it. The pages we read do not set out research themes in detail, so we describe here only what they and a 2022 university news story say.
The centre says building partnerships with the robotics and AI community is key to realising its vision. An external launch was being planned on the page we read, with details to follow. A 2022 university story describes Manchester experts designing AI-powered machines that can work safely in places too dangerous for people, in a programme called RAICo, the Robotics and AI Collaboration. Professor Barry Lennox leads Manchester's work with RAICo and said the goal is to build automated systems that can operate much more efficiently than if people ran them.
The centre is at the University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL. RAICo itself was established in Cumbria and is a joint programme with the UK Atomic Energy Authority, Sellafield Ltd, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the National Nuclear Laboratory. Its aim is to develop robotics and AI that can be used across the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's sites, to improve robot autonomy for cleaning up old nuclear power stations, and to pilot robots for other sectors. A UKAEA director said the next generation of robotics will be essential to delivering fusion power.
Manchester researchers Professor Michael Fisher, Dr Louise Dennis and Dr Matt Luckcuck wrote a white paper on how to develop autonomous systems for hazardous places safely, which shows a strong interest in trust and safety as well as in building the machines. Beyond that, we did not find descriptions of the centre's size or daily culture, so we have not guessed at them.
Roles in a centre like this include academic researchers, research engineers and technicians, software and AI developers, PhD students, and staff who manage industry partnerships and events. Starting subjects are engineering, computer science, maths and physics. The centre can be reached at RAI@manchester.ac.uk, and the University of Manchester lists its own vacancies.
Website: www.robotics.manchester.ac.uk
PURPOSE helps school and university students explore 62 sectors and over 1,000 entry-level careers in the UK, then connects them directly with employers.
Explore PURPOSE