How will robots change our lives?

Will robots change the way people work, live and
learn in the future? This question will be explored during European
Robotics Week, which this year will be hosted by the Bristol Robotics
Laboratory (BRL), a
collaboration between the University of Bristol and UWE Bristol. The week, which runs from
23 to 29 November, aims to connect the robotics community to the public and
engage young people in fun and educational activities. Free events will
be held in Bristol on Tuesday 24 and Wednesday 25 November.

Over the two days, there
will be a
public debate by leading European and UK experts on the role of robots in
society, people will be able to take part in a full-day workshop on translating
latest research in robotics to market and children will have the opportunity to
visit the science centre,
At-Bristol,
to help researchers build 100 nanoparticle robots to “treat cancer”.

Robots & Society Night
on
Tuesday 24 November at 7pm will launch European Robotics Week.
Dr
Paul Bremner from
BRL
will give a live demonstration of a Nao robot, which will be followed by a
debate about the role of robots in society with key experts from Europe and the
UK.

On Wednesday 25 November, from 9am to 5pm, the Robots: From Imagination to Market
event aims to bridge the gap between cutting-edge research in academia and
robotic start-ups.

Starting with an introduction to robots in
science fiction, people will have the opportunity to hear speakers talk about
the latest state-of-the art research, hear from up-and-rising start-ups, and
learn from successful companies. The day includes a tour of the BRL, an
overview of legal and ethical questions, and a panel discussion on how to go
from imagination to market.

The two-day robotics event will culminate on Wednesday 25 November from 6 to 8pm with a
Robot Buildathon.
Children
from 5- to 15-years-old will help researchers build 100 robots to treat
artificial cancer cells. They will also interact with researchers, educators,
and students at four robot stations. The stations will showcase a swarm of 200
coin-sized robots, Thymio and TiddlyBot robots they can program, and the latest
robots from the
Robogals
team and students from Digimakers,
which is a collaboration between the University of Bristol and the
CharteredInstitute for IT (BCS).

Professor Chris
Melhuish, Director of the Bristol Robotics Laboratory (BRL), said: “We are delighted that
Bristol is hosting European Robotics Week. BRL leads the way in Europe,
bridging the gap between industry and the latest research in robotics,
exemplified by our extensive research and development programmes, Robotics
Innovation Facility (RIF), Technology Business Incubator, and UWE’s co-located
University Enterprise Zone, which specialises in robotics, medtech and related
high tech areas.

“BRL is committed to
research that has a positive impact on society, industry and the economy, and
the European Robotics Week is an opportunity for us to share latest thinking,
develop further links between research academia and industry, and enable the UK
to compete more effectively.”

The European Robotics Week is organised by euRobotics AISBL, and brings
together hundreds of robotics events across Europe. Over the past five years,
the event has attracted over 200,000 robot enthusiasts of all ages.

Members of the public can register for the free Bristol events at http://brl.ac.uk/euroboticsweek and follow the event on social media #ERW2015.