Robots are now doing everything that we, as humans, can accomplish. There is a fine line between what humans can do and what robots can do.
Robot playing an active role in modern society is no longer the stuff of fantasy films. This intelligence is now being used in many different ways, whether on an industrial output line or as a help desk in department stores and supermarkets.
Some refer to it as the Fourth Industrial Revolution! But the age of automation technology, bolstered by software robots and artificial intelligence, is finally upon us and is here to stay.
Table of Contents
Pros of robots
The upsides of robots are tremendous, and they have the potential to revolutionize the economy. Let’s take a look at some of the perks of robotic applications.
1. Greater Efficiency And Quality
When adequately programmed and assimilated into the physical environment, robots can complete particular work efficiently, with minimal mistakes and less squandering than humans.
The most promising part about robots is that they work day in and day out without making any blunders.
Unlike robots, the human operator gets exhausted and demands a break. As a result, this is one of the benefits of using robots on the work site.
Workplace or industrial robots have a higher degree of preciseness and consistency. They work simultaneously throughout the day with critical thinking; unlike humans, their vitality never fizzles.
Massive production sequences, and monotonous, harsh, and labor-intensive tasks, are well-suited for automated robots.
2. Available 24×7
A typical human will function for 4-6 hours per day, excluding rest periods. Human activities are structured, so they need time off to recharge themselves and prepare for a new day of physical labor. They even have weekly holidays to keep up with their work-life and private affairs.
But, unlike humans, we can use robots to make machines work 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Imagine the increase in productivity!
3. Improve Workplace Safety
Robots can perform tasks that are dangerous to the human body’s well-being. The potential hazardous tasks performing ability of AI robots can work alongside or even replace humans.
For example, 50% of construction companies that employed drones to examine roofs and other worrisome duties reported increased safety.
Robots can also assist armies and navies in dangerous missions. For example, they can monitor and instantaneously schedule safety or other training to ensure workers are up to date.
Robots can also inspect and correct ergonomics to avoid cumulative trauma, injuries, or worse. We can safeguard various workforces, such as firefighters or people functioning in life-threatening circumstances.
4. Zero Risk And No Loss Of Life
They can operate in any environment, including space, subsea, excessive temperatures or wind, etc. They can perform any dangerous or undesirable work that humans may refuse to do.
Many robotic probes have been launched into space but never recovered, although they can be coded to reach Earth’s surface.
They have the potential to be used in extraction under the Earth’s crust and ocean beds. Robots in warfare eliminate the need to put more people in danger and have proven highly effective. All in all, they have the potential to help humans overcome their practical limits.
5. Faster Decisions Making
By using a robot in conjunction with other technological innovations, we can make machines make accurate decisions and execute tasks faster than humans.
Humans consider many emotional and practical factors (along with biases) when deciding. Still, an AI-powered machine such as a robot functions on what it is programmed to do and delivers quicker results.
6. Improved Medical Applications
Medical applications of artificial intelligence and robotics have a broad implementation scope and life-changing advantages.
Doctors use automated robots to assess patients and their medical conditions. Robot-Assisted surgery simulators are now used to train healthcare practitioners.
It employs a robot that aids in the detection and monitoring of neurological disorders as well as the stimulation of brain functions and operation environment.
Robotic-Assisted surgery is also beneficial in radiosurgery, mainly to remove tumors without causing damage to the surrounding tissues.
Disabled people have extra benefits, as robotic arms and limbs can be the best alternative to fill the body’s void.
7. Advanced Digital Assistance
Some of the most technologically superior businesses interact with customers via digital assistants, eliminating the need for human employees.
Many websites use digital assistants to share content requested by users. We can have a dialogue with them about our search. Some chatbots are designed so we can’t tell whether we speak with a human or a robot!
We know businesses have a customer service team that must resolve the users’ questions and concerns. Thus, businesses can use robots to build a chatbot or voice bot that can respond to all of their clients’ concerns.
8. Space Exploration
Optical robots can become building blocks for analyzing mysteries of space. As space does not have any atmosphere adequate for human survival, optical actuation methods act as advantages of robots.
The robotic magnetic field generator technologies are beneficial in making space travel easier by creating an artificial magnetic field.
The other prime advantage of robots is that the metals or elements they are made of can resist extreme heat from the sun and other external energy sources.
Disadvantages of robots
Everything has advantages and disadvantages. There are several disadvantages to robotics, some of which are highlighted below.
1. High Investment
Purchasing robots and robotic machines is not a simple task. Not every business can afford the same.
Those who can access it benefit extensively but cannot contend with stiff opposition. This also places them behind, with no market presence.
The initial investment required to incorporate robotics into business can be substantial. Workers will also need the training to engage with new robotic equipment, which takes both money and time.
2. Mass Unemployment
Robots and other AI software and technology are getting less costly, and they do not require the same perks and services that human workers do, such as sick leave, tea breaks, medical insurance, salary increases, promotions, and performance appraisal, which causes problems for workers and civilization as a whole.
48% of experts predicted that robots and AI would replace many blue-collar and even white-collar jobs, increasing income inequality, joblessness, and the collapse of social order.
3. No Emotions And Ethics
While robots can perform their assigned tasks, they will inevitably lack the human component.
There is no denying that machines are far superior when it comes to efficiency, but they cannot substitute for the human relationship that binds the team together. Robots cannot form bonds with humans, a necessary characteristic of team management.
Ethics and morality are crucial human characteristics that can be challenging to integrate into artificial intelligence.
The rapid advances of AI have sparked worries that it will one day grow maniacally and wipe out humanity. It is referred to as the AI singularity.
4. Zero Creativity
Machines are incapable of being innovative. They can only do what they are taught or ordained to do. They can assist in design and creation but cannot match the human brain’s capacity.
Machines can only fulfill the tasks they were intended for or encoded; anything else causes them to crash or produce irrelevant results, which can be disastrous.
Humans are delicate, intellectual beings who are also very creative. Their opinions are guided by feelings, which machines do not have.
No matter how refined a machine gets, it cannot replicate the innate insightful abilities of the human brain.
5. Technology Dependency And Health Hazards
Robots can perform poorly or break down like any other automated device or machine. Let’s face it power is required for a robot to function.
While a robot may save hours and minutes, it may also result in latency. After all, it is a machine. If a robot goes haywire, you will need more time to repair it, necessitating reprogramming.
The last thing you want is a bug to cause the robot to do something risky. They are massive chunks of metal with enormous power. A malfunctioning robot can inflict serious harm on the helpless human standing next to it.
If robots do all the work and living beings sit around and oversee them, health risks will skyrocket. Being overweight will be at the top of the priority list, as well as less labor in the workplace.
6. Impacts On Human Interaction
As robots become a more significant part of our lives, social communication will encounter significant peril.
The proliferation of cell phones has already initiated this vicious spiral. Just look around you in any shared environment, and you’ll notice a swarm of people staring at their phones or tablets.
We are more integrated than ever but are also more secluded, solitary, and depressed.
We risk neglecting what it means to have genuine, in-person social contact, which will worsen as robots play a more significant role in daily life.
7. Social Gap Increases
Expensive goods and facilities are offered only to those who can claim them. Ordinary people will not be able to purchase robots and enjoy the benefits they may provide until they become mass-produced.
They will be the stockpile of society’s wealthiest individuals, giving them an advantage over the working class. If robots boost people’s assets and liabilities, the gap between rich and poor will only widen.
Summary (Pros and cons of robots)
| Pros |
|---|
| Greater Efficiency And Quality |
| Available 24×7 |
| Improve Workplace Safety |
| Zero Risk And No Loss Of Life |
| Faster Decisions Making |
| Improved Medical Applications |
| Advanced Digital Assistance |
| Space exploration |
| Cons |
|---|
| High Investment |
| Mass Unemployment |
| No Emotions And Ethics |
| Zero Creativity |
| Technology Dependency And Health Hazards |
| Impacts On Human Interaction |
| Social Gap Increases |
Today, robotics can be found everywhere, from food production to spaceships, colluding and flawlessly working alongside human workers.
Every discovery or game-changer will have both, but we as living beings must be mindful of this and use the good aspects of the invention to make the world a better place.
There is no denying that the possibilities for robotics are vast, and there are numerous benefits. However, there are a few drawbacks to consider. And the better you comprehend them, the better you will be able to deal with them.
(Last Updated on October 25, 2022)
