Mapping out research focus for robotics and automation research in construction-related studies

Abstract

Purpose The adoption of robotics and automation (R&A) within the construction industry has been adjudged as slow, despite the possibility of it reducing the high risk posed on health and safety of humans by the activities of the industry. The call for research and development in this area of technology to improve its adoption in the delivery of construction projects is evident in past studies. Thus, this paper aims to conduct a review of R&A in construction-related fields with a view to revealing the area of focus of past studies. Design/methodology/approach A bibliometric approach was adopted for this study, and data used were gathered from the Scopus database. Keywords such as “robotics”, “automation” and “construction” were used to extract papers from the database. VOSviewer was used to prepare a co-authorship and co-occurrence map based on the bibliographic data gathered. Findings The findings revealed that focus is placed on construction automation, industrial robots and application, robots’ systems and designs, robotics in earthworks, and robots’ control and information system. Furthermore, currently, research focus in this area is tending towards a more digitalised application of R&A especially in the areas of 3D manufacturing. Research limitations/implications The findings of this study are limited due to the use of a single database. Practical implications Despite its limitations, the findings open a knowledge gap that can be explored in developing countries particularly in Africa to improve construction delivery in the continent through R&A. Originality/value The study adopted the bibliometric approach in mapping out research focus in R&A – an aspect of digital technology that has not been given considerable attention in recent bibliometric and scientometric studies.

Building Information Modelling Diffusion Research in Developing Countries: A User Meta-Model Approach

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A bibliometric review of the status and emerging research trends in construction safety management technologies

“…In this study, the VOSviewer software was used to analyse statistical evidence obtained from the data source and develop a co-occurrence map. VOSviewer has gained widespread usage in the review of construction literature and has been adopted in previous construction health and safety research Liang et al 2018;Jin et al 2019;Akram et al 2019;Aghimien et al 2019;Vigneshkumar and Salve 2020).…”

“…With the emergence of novel technologies, various types of technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), online databases, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Building Information Modelling (BIM), Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), 4 D Computer-Aided Design (4 D CAD), robotics and automation, laser scanning, photogrammetry and sensor-based technologies which have been around for some time have proven to provide a lasting solution to the problem of construction health and safety to prevent workers' injuries, accidents and improve construction job site health and safety Welch et al 2015; Dodge Data and Analytics 2017; Zhang et al 2017;Aghimien et al 2019;Bansal 2020).…”

An Analysis of IHC and HCII Publication Titles: Revealing and Comparing the Topics of Interest of their Communities

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