Registration now open for International Robotics Showcase – Grand Finale of UK Robotics Week

Registration is now open for the International Robotics Showcase, the pinnacle event of UK Robotics Week 2017! Jointly organised by the EPSRC UK-RAS Network and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), the International Robotics Showcase will take place at IET Savoy Place in London from 9.00am – 6.30pm. The full-day programme includes exclusive talks by world-renowned experts in science and technology, panel discussions, exhibitions, robot demonstrations and an award ceremony for competition winners demonstrating cutting edge robotics innovation.

The UK-RAS Network will also launch four new White Papers, providing an overview of the current research landscape:

1. Resilient Infrastructure Robotics

2. Artificial Intelligence and Robotics

3. Robotics for Emergency Response, Disaster Relief and Resilience

4. Robotics in Social Care: A Connected Care EcoSystem for Independent Living

Early-bird tickets cost from £75 (£40 discount for senior citizens and students; children under 16 go free if accompanied by paying adult) and can be booked online now at The IET website. The cost covers entry, talks, publication copies, lunch and an early evening drinks reception.

At the showcase event, academics, industry and the public will have the opportunity to enjoy a host of presentations from key international robotics and autonomous systems developers (academic and industry) as well as displays of the very latest robotic technologies by network partners and industry sponsors. Delegates will be able to engage in a discussion forum and attend talks by speakers such as Professor Andrew Blake (Director, Alan Turing Institute); Professor Philip Nelson (CEO, EPSRC); Dame Mary Archer (Director, Science Museum); Dr Lester Russell (Intel); Dr James Kell (Rolla Royce Plc); and Dr Rob Buckingham (RACE), among many others. Speakers will share their vision on the key technological and socio-economic challenges and opportunities for the future, including robot ethics and the law, emotionally-intelligent robots, social care and independent living, and global robotics.

UK Robotics Week, held annually during the last week of June, is a unique opportunity to learn about the current state-of-the-art robotic technology, discuss the role of robots and artificial intelligence in our lives, and to inspire the next generation of designers and engineers.  The event includes five competitions in the areas of surgical, extreme environments, resilient infrastructure and social care robotics, plus a special School Robot Challenge, open to all UK schoolchildren aged 4-18 years old.

Activities this year also include the premiere of an Autonomous Systems film on emergency resilience and disaster response, starring local school students and showcasing robotics and autonomous systems research in this area. For more information on the over 100 activities featured as part of UK Robotics Week, have a look at the website: www.roboticsweek.uk/ and follow on Twitter (@UKRobotics, #UKRW17).

Timeline of key UK Robotics Week events:

• May 28th  2017: School Robot Challenge – deadline for entries

• June 24th – June 30th 2017: UK Robotics Week – core week

• June 24th 2017: Robotic & Automation Open Day, Queens University Belfast

• June 24th – 30th : Social Care Robot Challenge, Sheffield & Bristol Robotics Labs

• June 24th 2017: Surgical Robot Challenge, Imperial College London

• June 25th – June 28th 2017:  Hamlyn Symposium, Imperial College London

• June 26th 2017: Film Premiere: Emergency & Disaster Response, Southampton University

• 26th June 2017: Sheffield Robotics Open Labs, Sheffield University

• 27th – 30th June 2017: EDT Engineering Summer School, University of Leeds

• 27th June 2017: ‘A Fatal Attraction?’ Robotics & Society, Liverpool University

• June 27th – June 28th 2017: Resilient Infrastructure Challenge, University of Leeds

• June 28th 2017: Robots At The Movies, Loughborough University

• 29th June 2017: Robotics for Society: Open Day, Queen Mary, University of London

• June 30th 2017: International Robotics Showcase, IET, London

• June 30th 2017: ‘A Robots’ World?’ The Science Museum & Guardian Live

• July 19th – July 21st 2017: TAROS, University of Surrey, Guildford