With the advent of technology and how fast the pacing of improving them is, it would not come as a surprise that robots will one day be just a normal sight in every sector. For the housing industry, researchers dream of developing robots that would ultimately help build affordable houses for the people.
According to Domain, this year's global conference from March 15 to 19 called ROB/ARCH in Sydney will feature the latest developments of robotics as used in design and building. The conference, bringing together experts from China, Korea, the United States and the United Kingdom, will also tackle the possibilities of including robots in the construction sites.
A Perth company is currently developing a robot that can lay bricks 24 hours a day, which can significantly speed up housebuilding. But they are not being developed to replace human because craftsmen and builders have expert skills and knowledge that cannot be transferred to robots, at least not in the immediate future.
For now, the goal is to be able to develop machines that can parallel works of carpenters and builders and speed up architecture and building.
"We need to get them to move in space and pass by things and people safely. But the mobile robot for on-site function is something everyone is working on," said Dr. Dagmar Reinhardt, the co-chair of the bi-annual conference, per Domain.
"But it could potentially be a win-win because robots and carpenters working together could do something that potentially, neither could achieve on their own," Reinhardt added.
Having robots in the construction can save time and costs and so Reinhardt says they "might be able to do affordable housing for more people. So it's not just about architecture and building but about society."
The ROB/ARCH 2016 at Pier 2/3 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay will have an open for public exhibition on March 18 from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
