DLR Visit, Germany 2019

On 19 August 2019, three of my colleagues and I had the opportunity to visit the Mechatronics and Robotics Institute at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Cologne, Germany. This was the first of our professional visits leading to attending the IFLA WLIC Preconference Satellite Meeting. DLR is believed to be a world leader in the development of humanoid robots. This was the main reason for visiting the Institute as we had recently introduced our own humanoid robot, called Libby. As we are the first university library in the country to employ a client-facing service robot, we believed that it would be beneficial to visit the Institute to gain insights, vital information, and guidance from experienced and knowledgeable robotics experts. Using this experience, we intended upon our return to make significant updates to Libby so that we could utilize more of her inherent abilities to serve clients in more enhanced ways.

DLR does not develop or utilize robots such as Libby. However, their researchers are said to be developing new techniques to enable robots to become aware of their own abilities by leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI). Libby also utilizes AI, so this is research that we believe will lead to discoveries of value to us as well. However, DLR warns that AI is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Bearing this in mind, we intend to use AI for our specific purposes in the context of the library.

As for my personal experience of the visit and their facilities, let me say I was thoroughly impressed and blown away by the work that they are doing. I was also fortunate to meet DLR’s star robot which is named Rollin’ Justin which is used in various areas of application, from household work to even assisting astronauts on space missions. I am grateful to the Department of Library Services for providing me with the opportunity to visit DLR. I work on Libby’s development daily and the experience at DLR has opened up my mind to the numerous opportunities we can pursue in terms of robotics and 4IR in the library. Also, as an MSc Technology and Innovation Management student, I gained from the visit to DLR first-hand experience of what I’ve learned in my coursework, particularly, New Product Development.