Researchers at the University of Texas announced the creation of a “robot delivery network” for the school’s campus beginning next spring, the goal being to study interactions between humans and robots.
The five-year study will look at the logistics of a robot network and work on adapting it for everyday use with humans.
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“Robotic systems are becoming more ubiquitous,” Luis Sentis, the leader of the project said in a press release. “In addition to programming robots to perform a realistic task such as delivering supplies, we will be able to gather observations to help develop standards for safety, communication, and behavior to allow these future systems to be useful and safe in our community.”
The delivery program will allow students to order free supplies from an app and retrieve them from the robots at “certain pedestrian zones on campus” or “door-to-door.” The robots used will be the dog-like robots from Boston Dynamics and Unitree, per the university.
Researchers said the program is being funded by a $3.6 million grant from the National Science Foundation.
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Robot programs are being tested and researched in various parts of the country, with varying success. Last month, a delivery robot in Los Angeles, California, accidentally went into an area blocked off by police.
