Building a Future with Robots (FutureLearn)

Building a Future with Robots (FutureLearn)

Explore the role of robots and autonomous systems in the factories, homes, hospitals, schools and cars of our near future. In the near future, many of us will work alongside robots. Knowledge of robotics and autonomous systems will be a helpful skill for a surprising number of today’s careers. On this course, we’ll look at current and future developments in the field of robotics that could shape many different aspects of our daily lives.

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We’ll build up a picture of the principles and the fundamental challenges of robotic design, and demonstrate how research here at The University of Sheffield is working to overcome some of these challenges.

What topics will you cover?
This course looked at current and future developments in the field of robotics that could shape different aspects of people’s daily lives. It built an understanding of the principles and fundamental challenges of designing robots including:

  • What a robot needs to be able to sense the world using drones, youBots and autonomous cars as examples.
  • Current and future developments in robotics and how and where they are being applied.
  • How robotics can take inspiration from nature looking at swarm robots and biomimetics.
  • How robots work with others for example, a robot surgeon and a robotic arm.

What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you'll be able to...

  • Describe the main challenges of working with autonomous systems and the ways in which we might meet these challenges.
  • Explore some basic principles of robotic design.
  • Apply knowledge of where developments in robotics are heading and their potential effect on our future.
  • Explain existing and potential real-life robotic applications.
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