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Description
This talk explores the development and deployment of robotic systems designed to operate in environments that are hazardous, inaccessible, or otherwise unsuitable for human intervention. It examines the technical challenges associated with developing robotic solutions for radiation environments, safety-critical applications, autonomous operation, mobility, communication, and manipulation. The discussion will focus on applications in fusion energy facilities, large-scale scientific research infrastructures, and space exploration.
The presentation will also highlight a recent development programme centred on the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, where an autonomous mobile robotic system has been developed to perform inspection tasks within one of the world's most complex and challenging scientific facilities. Through this case study, the talk will demonstrate how advances in robotics and artificial intelligence are enabling safer, more efficient, and more reliable operations in environments where human access is restricted or impractical.
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Biographies of the speakers:
Nick Sykes: As the Executive Director for Robotics division within UK Atomic Energy Authority, he is leading over 300 engineers and technologists focusing on developing and deploying specialised robotic solutions for challenging and hazardous environments. He is one of the leaders in this sector and a very experienced mechanical engineer by training with decades of experience in the field.
Lushan Weerasooriya: As a Principal Cybernetics Engineer and a Group Leader for Cybernetics Unit, Lushan is leading multiple projects as a lead engineer, and he is the lead engineer who is involved with the CERN LHC inspection project from its conception. Lushan has a background in Control Systems engineering and he has been working in this sector for the past 15 years.