Public Funding for Cyberselves Universal Limited

Bettering Our Worlds (BOW) Ltd. is working on developing software that will provide explainable, trustworthy and easy to use AI for commercial and domestic applications of robotic technologies. The goal of this feasibility study is to establish test-beds for this new technology in three different domains: domiciliary healthcare, dynamic manufacturing and hazardous environment operations. Within this project we will develop a hybrid machine learning approach that is capable of learning directly from skilled workers and provide explainability of decisions and actions. The system will not only feature training by skilled human operators but also integrates human-operated teleoperation as a failsafe for tasks that are too difficult or unpredictable for the AI. BOW believes that this approach will increase trust in automation, and overcome barriers to entry such as cost and deployment time. This project and its trust-centric approach is aligned with the long term vision and technological roadmap for BOW Ltd that has so far delivered a software development kit that enables anyone to code once and deploy to any robot. With the help of iUK we are bringing our expertise in democratising complex technologies and applying it to AI and ML to empower anyone to use these powerful technologies.

This project will generate a beyond-state-of-the-art robot telepresence system that will enable people to visit remote locations and interact with others by operating a robot body using virtual reality and wearable computing interfaces. Users will see through the robot's eyes, hear what the robot hears, and will be able to control the robot's movements in its environment, including the movement of arms and hands. This technology will make use of cloud computing and low-latency 5G communications to provide a compelling, immersive and user-friendly experience that will be as close to 'being there' as is possible without actual travel. We are targeting market opportunities in property management, exhibitions and conferences, and telecare, all three of which are sectors that have been substantially affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and its ensuing impacts on travel and personal contact. These industries are also facing increasing challenges in order to become more environmentally sustainable. Immersive telepresence can provide alternative ways to view and manage properties, meet people and attend public events, and provide forms of healthcare that are safe, low-carbon, and sustainable. We are committed to inclusive technology development and will consult with users with physical and sensory impairments in to order to create accessible and affordable solutions to immersive telepresence that operate across a range of commercially available robots.