Crime-fighting
robots with access to citizen
databases will be patrolling the streets by 2084, according to
an academic at the University of Sheffield.
Robotics expert Professor Noel Sharkey predicts that humanoid
robots, that are able to arrest people, will have access to
integrated databases of information on British citizens, including
bank accounts, tax and movements, to enable them to identify who
people are.
The "superior knowledge robots" will, according to Sharkey, be
able to use their "super strength and inability to feel pain" to
arrest criminals.
They will have human features and will be able to detect weapons
including guns, knives and explosives, and recognise drunks and
aggressive behaviour in large areas.
By 2070, police will also have the aid of autonomous police
cars, which will be able to recognise speeding cars, identify
license plates and automatically take fines from bank accounts and
add points on driving licences.
The
project
examined the future of the robot in the UK and how it will be
developed to aid police. The research was based on
recent robotic developments around the world, and on current
ideas and trends from robotics experts.
[Picture:
jlmaral on
Flickr]