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44 U GVs are becoming a familiar sight in some areas of day-to-day life, be they factory AGVs (automated guided vehicles), intelligent home vacuuming robots or automated lawn-mowers. In addition, trials of self- driving taxis could soon make such vehicles ubiquitous in public transport (regulations permitting). Against that backdrop, and as machine intelligence capabilities improve, technology companies are increasingly identifying ways to develop and deploy UGVs in more niche applications, such as transport, last-mile delivery and sanitation. Construction security The construction sector in the UK suffers about £400 million in losses through theft and vandalism, with the Chartered Institute of Building suggesting that 20% of construction firms have one such incident each week. In parallel with being deployed for everyday tasks, UGVs are also moving increasingly into specialised applications. Rory Jackson reports Niche markets April/May 2020 | Unmanned Systems Technology Ziva Robotics’ Ziva UGV can enable more intelligent, mobile and cost-effective security for construction sites than CCTV and security guards (Courtesy of Ziva Robotics)