“Maybe we have to risk more”
The mechanisation of our everyday life continues apace. What role will robots play in this? How can they support us in the challenges that the future will bring? A conversation with Prof. Dr. Elsa A. Kirchner from the University of Duisburg-Essen about great leaps – by man and machine.
Professor Kirchner, what do you see as the primary purpose and benefit of robotics?
Robots can support people and relieve them of heavy and monotonous work, for example in the classic assembly in the car industry. They can also be used in areas that humans cannot or cannot yet reach or that pose too great a risk for humans. The so-called robot rovers on Mars are well known. But there are also robots for defusing bombs and for mapping areas on Earth, for example the ocean areas under the ice shelf, to which humans have no access. Depending on the area of application, these robots have different competencies or a different degree of autonomy.
Among other things, you are working on robotic solutions in medicine, especially so-called exoskeletons, which make life easier for patients with limited mobility. What exactly is behind the idea?
Exoskeletons can be passive technical systems or active systems driven by motors. Active exoskeletons are ultimately robots that you wear on your body. They can adapt their behaviour or even learn. They are able to apply forces to the human body in order to support it during movements. We distinguish here between relieving and compensatory support, for example of patients after a stroke. Exoskeletons can, for example, move the arm or legs in a targeted manner. A certain intelligence of the system is necessary to provide appropriate support depending on the patient’s needs. Leg movements that are more rhythmic need to be supported differently than a targeted movement of the arm, for example when grasping a cup. The exoskeleton must therefore have the capabilities of autonomous systems, but at the same time know exactly when and how the person needs support. This requires very advanced human-robot interfaces. That’s what I’m researching.
Dem Rätsel unseres Daseins auf der Spur: Roboter, die eingesetzt werden, um die Gegebenheiten im Weltall zu erforschen.
What is currently possible in the industrial sector, for example, to make work easier for people?
Exoskeletons are often used here to support people in movements or postures that are performed frequently or are otherwise physically stressful. The aim here is to prevent damage to the musculoskeletal system. For cost reasons and also because of the lower complexity, these are often passive systems. For example, there are exoskeletons that support the arms during overhead work or the lower back. The latter is important in logistics, for example, for packers, but also for nurses. We see the initial steps towards application, but more research and development is needed in this area.
What are other areas of application for robotics?
I am thinking, for example, of sport, the Paralympics ...
In sport, we are often dealing with purely technical systems, for example the well-known prostheses that replace the lower leg and foot and allow powerful sprints or even long jumps. This could be seen, for example, in the case of track and field athlete Markus Rehm, who won the gold medal in the long jump for a third time in a row at the 2021 Paralympics. In other areas, however, there are also robots that become active themselves. Such self-acting technical systems, which can in principle take on universal work, are now in use in many areas. Think, for example, of the robotic lawnmower or the robot that vacuums and mops our homes.
“Active exoskeletons are ultimately robots that you wear on your body. They can adapt their behaviour or even learn.”
Let’s think a bit further: To what extent can robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) perhaps even help us to minimise the impact of climate catastrophe? How can we use them to enable us to live well on this planet?
Many algorithms used in AI recognise patterns very well. This helps us, for example, in earth observation to automatically recognise forest fires or strong emissions from satellite images. These can in turn serve as a basis for identifying and, at best, stopping environmental damage. AI-based robots can also help where large devices cannot reach. They are able to harvest raw materials gently under water, for example to “pick” manganese
nodules. This would not require the use of giant bulldozers that would destroy the seabed for decades. Autonomous robots can explore the earth further, for example the areas under the ice shelf. In this way, they could help us better understand the system Earth, understand dangers and combat them. AI-based autonomous robots can also be used to inspect and maintain, for example, wind turbines in the sea or dams for hydroelectric power generation. You see: There are many possible applications. It is important to assess the benefits and the added value for the environment carefully and – where necessary – to invest in new developments.
What ethical problems could arise from robots? And what can be done to counteract them?
I see an ethical problem when humans are replaced in their social function. Today, the use of smartphones is changing the way we interact with people in real life. That is – already! – problematic. But if I start with systems that can help people, I see completely different ethical problems: Research shows that with a lot of effort we can efficiently help patients after a stroke with robotic systems – there are enough studies on this. Unfortunately, the leap into application is very expensive. I see an ethical dilemma here. I am repeatedly asked by patients when they will be able to use such a system, and unfortunately I have to say that these are currently only research systems. Research on technical systems is very expensive, as is the development into a product. People in need are thus deprived of possible solutions. Maybe we need to be more courageous here and take more risks. •
About Dr. rer. nat. Elsa A. Kirchner
Professor Dr. rer. nat. Elsa A. Kirchner took over the professorship for “Systems of Medical Technology” at the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) in August 2021. She also heads the “Interactive Machine Learning” team at the “Robotics Innovation Center” of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and currently leads the “Intelligent Healthcare Systems” team in cooperation. She was head of the “Brain & Behavioural Lab” in the robotics group at the University of Bremen until 2021.
Words Elena Winter
Pictures DFKI GmbH, Finn Lichtenberg & Meltem Fischer, UDE, Frank Preuß, Felix Amsel Zeitakademie