On the ethical governance of swarm robotic systems in the real world

Winfield, Alan F. T.; Swana, Matimba; Ives, Jonathan; Hauert, Sabine

Abstract

In this paper, we address the question: what practices would be required for the responsible design and operation of real-world swarm robotic systems? We argue that swarm robotic systems must be developed and operated within a framework of ethical governance. We will also explore the human factors surrounding the operation and management of swarm systems, advancing the view that human factors are no less important to swarm robots than social robots. Ethical governance must be anticipatory, and a powerful method for practical anticipatory governance is ethical risk assessment (ERA). As case studies, this paper includes four worked examples of ERAs for fictional but realistic real-world swarms. Although of key importance, ERA is not the only tool available to the responsible roboticist. We outline the supporting role of ethical principles, standards, and verification and validation. Given that real-world swarm robotic systems are likely to be deployed in diverse ecologies, we also ask: how can swarm robotic systems be sustainable? We bring all of these ideas together to describe the complete life cycle of swarm robotic systems, showing where and how the tools and interventions are applied within a framework of anticipatory ethical governance.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Nov 25, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jan 30, 2025
• Publication Date: Jan 30, 2025
• Deposit Date: Feb 4, 2025
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 6, 2025
• Journal: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
• Print ISSN: 1364-503X
• Electronic ISSN: 1471-2962
• Publisher: Royal Society, The
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 383
• Issue: 2289
• Article Number: 20240142
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2024.0142
• Keywords: Swarm Intelligence, Swarm Robotics, Ethical Governance, Ethical Risk Assessment, Responsible Robotics, Humans, Risk Assessment, Robotics
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/13717657
• PMID: 39880033