Delivery robots are already operating around the world, with plans in place to rate city footpaths to ensure the most efficient operation.
Researchers from Cornell Tech have developed a “robotability score” and rated every street in New York City on how hospitable it would be to robots.
Associate Professor Wendy Ju said not all footpaths were the same, with many uneven and clogged with people and bus shelters.
Associate Professor Ju said the first-of-its-kind rating system could help urban planners and robotics companies plan for future robot deployments that wouldn’t disrupt existing footpath environments.
“I don’t know that everybody wants robots in their neighborhood, but if they do, the robotability score can help them think about, the features we’ve built in to help welcome robots.”
She said delivery robots had already hit the streets in Los Angeles and were roaming some university campuses and airports.
“But most communities are currently unwelcoming places for robots.”
Associate Professor Ju said researchers were inspired by neighbourhood walkability and accessibility scores and developed the robotability score to compile multiple features affecting robot navigation into a single number.
She said it included 24 features, including pedestrian density, crowd dynamics, pedestrian flow, sidewalk quality, street width and density of street furniture.
“When applied across the city (in New York), areas with highest robotability were 4.3 times more ‘robotable’ than areas with the lowest score.”
Read the full study: The Robotability Score: Enabling Harmonious Robot Navigation on Urban Streets.
