The Role of AI in Engineering From a High School Student
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, has many very useful applications in todays world, from medicine to statistics. One such field is Engineering. Today you will hopefully learn more about what AI is, the role of AI in engineering, and find a few examples of AI in use.
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What is AI?
First, what is AI? Well, that is sort of complicated to answer. Artificial intelligence is defined as the development of computer systems able to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence. However, this isn’t very understandable, so lets break it down.
AI is, in essence, a machine's ability to think, or make decisions based on its environment. It is similar to a human in that a specific action in the environment causes a reaction from the machine. However, it is pretty hard to do this. If you are familiar with code, technically AI could be considered a bunch of if statements for PacMan ghost behaviour. This isn’t very scalable though, so this isn’t used very often.
In today’s world, when people think about AI, they are actually thinking about a subcategory of AI called Machine Learning. This is where, a machine attempts something and gets better and better by learning from its previous actions. This is much more useful, as it allows AI to become better at what it does and it requires less human interaction with the computer. There are many examples of this in todays world, from self driving cars to diagnosing medical conditions. Here, we will talk about it in engineering.
What is Engineering?
Engineering is, in essence, using science and mathematics to accurately and efficiently design and build machines and structures. Some examples of this range from bridges and buildings to planes and spaceships! However, they all have one thing in common. They all require large amounts of calculations to be done to create an optimal design.
Now, this begs the question; can AI help us here? The answer, in most cases, is yes.
APPLYING AI TO ENGINEERING PROBLEMS
AI, as we have learned, is able to make decisions based on its environment. How could this help us in engineering? If we wanted a plane that was light enough to fly at faster speeds, but also strong enough to be able to fly in thunderstorms, there are many tests different materials would have to undergo to get accurate results. Now, what if we took results from these tests and plugged them into an AI algorithm? Well, the AI could help process and sort this information, and even come up with a list of a few suggested materials that would work the best for the plane design! Now, can you see why AI is so helpful?
Example: Automobile Manufacturing
One of the most prominent uses of AI in engineering is the manufacturing of automobiles. In the past, only humans assembled cars. However, in todays world, cars are mostly assembled by robots and humans are only needed for more difficult jobs or to check that the robot assembled the car correctly. This both saves on time and costs of manufacturing the car, which ultimately affects the price of the car. Now, how do these robots work? With AI of course! They have a specific task they have to perform, with variables in the environment that could change, and they need to react to these changes. This was the definition of AI we learned earlier!
The Future of AI and Engineering
In conclusion, we've learned what AI is, the role of AI in engineering, and an example of AI already being used in car manufacturing! In the future, AI will become more and more noticeable, from self driving cars to personal assistants. You name it, AI is probably able to benefit it in a good way. So next time you buy something online, ask yourself; Was AI used to help make this? If not, what are some ways you can think of how AI could help with that product?
