Public acceptance of robots is rising in workplaces, but it is not expanding to caregiving sites such as hospitals and schools, the report showed.

A survey by robot company Hexagon cited by IT outlet TechRadar on Monday found robots were viewed relatively positively only for practical tasks that are physically demanding or dangerous.

The survey covered 1,000 UK adults. Some 56 percent said they support introducing robots for carrying heavy objects. Another 38 percent said they could accept robots for carrying goods and delivery, and 34 percent for monitoring hazards and dangerous environments. With robots already used at airports, some supermarkets and public places, 31 percent also voiced support for cleaning shared spaces.

Resistance was clear in areas requiring empathy, judgement and human interaction. Some 82 percent said caring for patients, older people and children should be done by humans. Only 5 percent said they would choose a robot caregiver service, the lowest figure among tasks included in the report.

A survey of people under 18 showed a similar pattern. They showed higher acceptance than adults for carrying heavy objects, but 79 percent still preferred humans for care services and only 8 percent said they could choose robots.

Experts said perceptions can vary widely depending on how questions are asked. Hexagon technology ethicist Blay Whitby (블레이 휘트비) said most people answer no when asked whether they want to be cared for by a robot, but most answer yes when asked whether robots should help humans live independently. That suggests people may view robots less as replacements for care overall and more as assistive technology that supports autonomy.

Moral psychology associate professor Jim Everett (짐 에버렛) also viewed robots in nursing homes and classrooms as closer to assistive devices than substitutes for people. It shows acceptance can differ depending on how far the robot role is defined.

The public currently tends to see industrial sites as robots' natural arena. Some 53 percent picked factories and warehouses as suitable spaces for robots, compared with 34 percent for hospitals and clinics and 30 percent for classrooms. The survey also found a psychological barrier to accepting robots as colleagues. Among UK adults, 28 percent said it would be interesting to have a robot co-worker, but 46 percent said it would be scary.

A robot's appearance also influenced perceptions. Respondents preferred designs closer to machines than human-like forms. Some 27 percent said they preferred machine-like robots, about twice the 14 percent who said they preferred humanoid robots.

Calls for regulation were also strong. Some 88 percent of UK adults said clear rules should govern what robots are allowed to do. Burkhard Boeckem, Hexagon's chief technology officer, said the work robots take on is most suitable for industrial sites, where safety systems are more mature and governance is visible to the public. He said it helps explain why robot adoption has been relatively fast in manufacturing and logistics.

Differences in experience by country also aligned with gaps in acceptance. Some 30 percent of respondents said they had encountered robots in real life, but the figure was 75 percent in China. Willingness to accept robots at home was also higher in China at 63 percent, compared with 32 percent in Britain. The survey also found that a sense of distance from robots may stem less from the technology itself than from lack of experience and unfamiliarity.

In that situation, the key issue for robot adoption is increasingly likely to be role boundaries and institutional design rather than technical performance. Adoption could be faster in fields with clear task boundaries, such as logistics, cleaning and hazard monitoring. Care and education, however, are expected to depend on how much trust robots earn at the level of supporting humans.