Nowadays Trends in Robotics and Automation in Construction Industry: Transition from Hard to Soft Robotics

The actual research trends in robotics and automation in construction industry (RAC) are much different in comparison with the last decade. While during the 90s the R&D activities were focused in the development of new robotic systems (most of them teleoperated) and in existing machinery automation, the actual efforts are concentrated more in the software integration, sensory data acquisition and processing, safety and secure systems, sensor-based process control and construction industrialization. This paper deals with the short state-of-the-art in the actual and features RAC research areas, including representative examples.