With the intention of learning for the use of Robotic and Autonomous Systems (RAS) in the UK civil nuclear sector, a review of literature and selected RAS aspects has been carried out. The other sectors studied are civil nuclear, military aviation, civil aviation, maritime, and automotive. The UK nuclear regulations from the Office of Nuclear Regulation (ONR), are goal-setting, rather than prescriptive, and do not appear to be hindering the deployment of RAS. ONR has expressed positive views about the potential for RAS to bring benefits to the UK nuclear sector. In order to encourage further use and development of RAS, it is recommended that ONR work with other stakeholders to develop guidance for explicit classification of RAS. It is suggested that classification of RAS according to their degree of autonomy should be considered more prescriptively e.g., similar to what has been proposed in the UK maritime sector. This study has covered the level of autonomy, the technological and regulatory aspects, and verification, validation, certification and assurance (VVCA) aspects. Some of the on-going initiatives for RAS especially in maritime and automotive sectors are given. We also briefly discussed the complexity that brings to RAS in conducting VVCA with the introduction of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Finally, we have provided a number of recommendations towards developing certifiable RAS considering the common aspects of verification and validation (V&V) for certification and assurance purposes.
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