No need to feel left out if there’s a robot about

Bristol Robotics Laboratory (BRL) is joining other leading research institutions in a new project looking at how remotely operated robots could enable people to take part in public spaces - without actually being there. Along with the universities of Bath , Exeter , Oxford and Queen Mary University of London , BRL researchers will look at how using remotely operated robots might enable people to participate in public spaces - a key aspect of developing successful citizenship and public cohesion - if accessibility or geography prevents them from being physically present in the space. BRL is collaborative partnership between  the University of Bristol and the University of the West of England (UWE Bristol). The £2 million three-year project, Being There: Humans and Robots in Public Spaces , funded by the EPSRC and led by Exeter University, will examine how robotics can help to bridge the gap between the way we communicate in person and online. It will look at the social and technological aspects of being able to appear in public in proxy forms, via a range of advanced robotics platforms. The robots will be controlled remotely, a method called tele-operation, and a tele-operator will be able to see through the robot's eyes and speak through its mouth, while directing where it looks and how it moves. Dr Paul Bremner, UWE Bristol Robotics Research Associate, said, "Public spaces play a valuable role in providing shared understanding and common purpose, but if you are ill or disabled, or live too far away, this can be a barrier to participation.