European Commission announces plans to boost region's robotics sector

Details of public-private partnership vague, though

The European Commission (EC) has launched a joint initiative with a number of academic institutions and companies to help develop and grow the region's robotics sector.

The new public-private partnership (PPP) in robotics was announced on Tuesday and is the latest part of the EC's ongoing Digital Agenda.

The partnership is set to launch in 2013 and is designed help European-based firms win a larger share of the growing robotics market, which it currently values at €15.5bn per year.

The EC forecast that the robotics market will continue to grow, predicting the domestic and professional service robot markets will increase by as much as 40 percent in the coming years.

It claims by 2020, service robotics market volumes will be worth more than €100bn a year.

Part of the plans unveiled by the EC include promoting the use of robotic tools to boost industrial competition across Europe and solve social challenges.

It also wants to encourage better networking among firms in the industry across the continent to help increase knowledge sharing.

European Commission vice-president for the Digital Agenda, Neelie Kroes boasted that the new PPP will also help create new jobs within Europe.

"A strong robotics industry is key to Europe's future competitiveness. Growing our robotics industry means new jobs and a strong European manufacturing sector," she said.

The details of which academic institutions and companies contained within the PPP remain unknown and at the time of publishing the EC had not responded to V3's request for clarification.

The move comes on the same day that American firm iRobot announced it has signed a deal to acquire Californian robotics firm Evolution Robotics for $74m, a handy proof point for the EC's desire to see this market grow in Europe.