Advancements related to the 4th industrial revolution is taking place all the time, even
as we speak.
From manufacturing to education...
robot usage is becoming incresingly prevalent.
Lee Unshin highlight how the smart technology is seeping into various sectors.
Some 60 million passengers pass through Incheon international airport every year.
With that number set to rise, and high global standards to maintain, South Korea's main
gateway is expanding its staff...and their newest employees are quite the attention grabbers."
Roaming around the airport is "Air star", a self driving robot that answers questions
and provides information to passengers...by means of a touch-screen monitor, and a voice
recognition technology.
"Where can I charge my phone?"
Whether you need to charge your phone before boarding, or look for a ticketing place, Airstar
can locate, and take you to the destination...carefully navigating through the crowds using a movement
sensor.
Developed by Korea's LG Electronics, Airstar is joined by another innovative robot.
"This map shows the areas the robot needs to clean.
If I select a certain area, the bot goes there and cleans it.
"We're showcasing 5 robots for cleaning and 5 robots for information guidance for 6 months
at the airport as a pilot program.
We'll find out what people really need and how robots can better assist them through
travelers' feedback, and we'll be able to enhance the technology."
For Korea to install robotic assistants at its main airport, was only a matter of time...
as the nation has the highest concentration of industrial robots in the world..with more
than 5-hundred multipurpose bots seen for every 10-thousand employees.
"Korea uses robot technology in a variety of sectors like car manufacturing, and electronics.
Another field is education.
Robot-assisted teaching can improve students' creativity and help them become more pro-active
learners."
In fact, a growing number of schools are jumping on board with the idea of expanding software
and IT classes...in line with the government's aim to prep students for the 4th industrial
revolution.
While not all schools have yet implemented robot-assisted learning..., these 10th graders
at Mapo High School, get to learn through a hands-on approach thanks to their teacher.
"The robot needs to tell colors apart to follow the black line.
When both left and right sensors detect white, the robot moves forward.
When one of the sensors detects black, the robot turns towards that direction."
He is one of the early birds to have realized the need to broaden software education.
"Artificial intelligence and the 4th industrial revolution have been making headlines for
sometime now, so teenagers are naturally interested in the field of software studies.
And students can learn better this way, because they realize how the information they learn
applies to technology by maneuvering the robots themselves."
And for some students, learning about robot software is not limited to the classroom.
"I got to study coding and programming at this class, and now with what I've learned,
I'm actually making a computer game software with my friend."
Korea is now facing an era when a variety of fields start to depend on robot assistance,
an era researchers describe as 'the beginning stage of the robotic revolution'.
However the full potential of what's about to be the new economic and technology frontier...is
yet to be unlocked.
"For a new technology such as robotics to become an industry, manufacturers can't just
produce goods according to market demand, because there's a lack of understanding of
the technology application among customers.
Now it's time for the nation to focus more on its marketing strategy and broaden the
knowledge of its application in the market."
The global robotics industry is expected to be worth some 135 billion U.S. dollars by
2019, almost doubling the amount from 2015.
In terms of skill development, experts agree Korea is one of the leading countries in robotic
technology, but as the world rapidly takes leaps toward the new industrial revolution,
maintaining its stronghold will be another level of challenge.
Lee Unshin, Arirang News.