Robots have a near endless list of applications, from helping manufacture cars to assisting staff at hospitals by lifting patients and transporting materials. Now, engineers hope to add another skill to that already lengthy list: bricklaying.
Meet Hadrian, a robot that gets its name from the Roman emperor who constructed Hadrian’s Wall. Its Australian-based developer claims the device will be capable of laying up to 1,000 bricks per hour (the average house has approximately 15,000 bricks). That’s 20 times faster than a human bricklayer. Once completely developed, Hadrian will reportedly be able to create a property’s entire brick framework in a matter of two days.
The robot features a 92-foot articulated telescopic boom and relies on a 3D CAD rendering of the home for brick placement. Perth Now reports the device cuts bricks in sequence from a single, fixed location. The robotic laying head receives mortar or adhesive under pressure. The developers say the device is capable of measuring and even routing for electrical and other components.
According to Mashable, developer Fastbrick Robotics spent $7 million in research and development. The robot will still require a machine operator, along with an actual bricklayer for quality assurance purposes.
"The machine will fill the void that exists due to shrinking numbers of available bricklayers, whose average age is now nearly 50 in Australia," Fastbrick Robotics CEO Mike Pivac, an aeronautic and mechanical engineer, told Gizmag. "[Hadrian] should attract young people back to bricklaying, as robotics is seen as an attractive technology."
While this robot could without a doubt impact the homebuilding industry, there are still a number of questions that remain unanswered: What will the device cost for companies interested in purchasing it? How much does it weigh and what speed can it move?
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