Introduction to Robotics

Introduction to Robotics
“Robot”s – A historical perspective
What is in a name?
How does one define ROBOT?
Oxford American Dictionary: A machine
capable of carrying out a complex series of
actions automatically, especially one
programmed by a computer
Merriam-Webster Dictionary: 1. A machine that looks and acts
like a human being. 2. An efficient but insensitive person. 3. A
device that automatically performs repetitive tasks. 4. Something
guided by automatic controls.
What is in a name?
The robot rage currently is BIOMIMICRY.
Biomimicry is the study of nature’s designs and
processes in search of inspiration for creating
machines and process that solves human
problems.
So does copying nature
DEFINE what robots are?
Robot Institute of America
RIA presents its definition of a robot as:
A reprogrammable,
multifunctional manipulator
designed to move material, parts,
tools, or specialized devices
through various programmed
functions for the performance ofa
variety of tasks.
Japanese Industrial Robot
Association (JIRA)
JIRA’s chiefly concerned with industrial robots but
has created a robot classification system.
Manipulators (Manual, Sequential,
Programmable)
Numerically Controlled
Sensate
Adaptive
Smart
Intelligent mechantronic
Manipulators
Manual – Machines slaved
to a human operator
Sequential – Device that
perform a series of tasks
in the same sequence
every time they are
activated. (Phone
switching system)
Programmable – An
assembly line robotic arm
Numerically Controlled
These are also known as
Playback robots.
Robots that are instructed to
perform tasks through the
receipts of information on
sequences and positions in the
form of numerical data.
These types of robots are
often used to make precision
machinery.
Sensate Robots
Robots that incorporate
senor feedback into their
circuitry – touch sensors,
proximity sensors, vision
systems, and so forth.
The HelpMate trackless robotic hospital courier uses sensors to
deliver materials within a hospital or medical facility so that the
staff can focus on patient care instead of running around taking
care of errands. It includes laser scanners for object detection and
touch bumper sensors for movement control.
Adaptive Robots
Robots that can change
the way they function in
response to their
environment.
KASPAR (Kinesics and
Synchronization in Personal
Assistant Robotics) is a child-sized
humanoid robot . This robot has
been used to investigate the
possible use of robotic systems as
therapeutic or educational tools to
encourage social interaction skills
in children with Autism.
This program works with
children who are prevented
from playing, either due to
cognitive, developmental or
physical impairments which
affect their playing skills, and is
investigating how robotic toys
can empower children with
disabilities to discover the range
of play styles from solitary to
social and cooperative play.
Smart Robots
Robots that are considered
to possess Artificial
Intelligence (AI). Whether
or not AI exists is still
debated.
Frontline and White Box Robotics has created a robots called
PC-BOT. The idea is based on collaboration. Teams of these
small robots can be used at factories, plants, & shopping malls.
The software is designed in layers where the first controls the
movement of the robot and its own sensor function which looks
for anomalies in its environment. Once an anomaly is detected a
second layer of programming has the team of robots
communicating, converging on location, sharing information,
and assigning a robot leader.
Intelligent-Mechatronic Systems
“Mechatronics” a fancy
word coined by the
Japanese refers to the
intersection of
Mechanical/Electrical
and computer control
systems. It refers to
“smart devices” that are
embedded into systems
already in place.
iLane™
An intelligent, portable device that lets you control your
smartphone using simple voice commands when you're inside
your vehicle. Now you can open, listen to, and respond to email
entirely hands-free simply by speaking aloud.
So how would you respond if you
were asked what is a robot?
Carlo Bertocchini (Battlebots Champion) –”Deciding if a
machine is or is not a robot is like trying to decide if a certain
shade of greenish blue is truly blue or not blue”.
Roger Gilbertson (owner of THE ROBOT STORE) – “I
define a robot as any autonomous sensor-processor-actuator
system that functions in a specific world.”
Fred G. Martin ( professor of computer science a UMASS)
– “The term ‘robot’, while accurate, is too mentally confining.”
Rodney Brooks (Director of MIT’s AI lab) – “A robot is a
machine which senses the world, computes, and then decides
on some action in the world which has a physical reach beyond
itself.”
Gordon McComb (amateur robotics guru) –” I can’t really
define robot. I just know one when I see it.”
So why the confusion?
Part of what constitutes a robot has to
do with the many types of popular
media which has led robots to infamy.
The term ROBOT comes to us from the Czech word , robota,
which means forced labor or servitude.
The term was first introduced in Karel Capek’s play R.U.R
(Rossum’s Universal Robots). Written in 1920, it centers around
a mad-scientist type who tries to usurp the powers of God by
proving that man has acquired the technology and intelligence
to create life.
R.U.R
In the play, Rossum’s industrialist
nephew sees the artificial
humans as the perfect worker,
a tireless laborer who doesn’t
complain, doesn’t need health
insurance, and doesn’t demand
a paycheck
Karel himself didn’t coin the term
robot but rather his brother, Josef.
Prior to 1920, the term automaton
was used.
Issac Asimov
Throughout the 1940’s ,
Issac, wrote many short
stories depicting robots for
various popular sci-fi
magazines.
In 1950, I-Robot was
published.
In 1942, he used the word
Robotics in a short story
called Runaround and is
therefore credited as the
author of the word.
Engleberger meets Devol
In 1956, Joseph Engleberger, an
aerospace engineer met George
Devol, an inventor and
entrepreneur, for cocktails. They
discovered they both loved the
stories of Asimov and sci-fi. Devol
told Engleberger about a patent
he was trying to get involving a
programmable manipulator.
Engleberger immediately saw the
potential and founded
UNIMATION with Devol, the
worlds first robot maker.
UNIMATION
Universal Automation was
born ad General Motors
became the first company
to install a UNIMATE in
1962. The Unimate was a
robotic arm used to
extract hot parts from a
die-casting machine, a
dangerous job for a
human worker.
Significant moment in
robot history #1
Dr. W. Grey Walter
In 1948, Grey
conducted some
experiments on a
mobile, autonomous
robot. He was
interested if they could
model brain functions.
He built 2 small robots
he called tortoises and
named them Elmer
and Elsie. They were
crude by today’s
standards but a
marvel of the day.
Elmer and Elsie
The most revolutionary
thing about Elmer and
Elsie is that they didn’t
have any brains or preprogramming. They had
basic analog circuits, 2
vacuum tubes, a touch
sensor, a light sensor,
and they could even
recharge their own
batteries.
Significant moment in
robot history #2
SRI’s Intelligent Robot
In the late 1960’s, researchers
at the Stanford Research
Institute (SRI) began work on
the first “intelligent robot”. The
robot, named SHAKEY, was
designed to be mobile and
reason on it’s own. It was built
on a 4 wheel base with 2 wheel
drive. It had a tall camera,
laser range finders, and a radio
mast where it received
information over a radio link
from computers.
SHAKEY
1.
2.
3.
Shakey was the world first mobile,
autonomous, & programmable robot
in that its programming used 3
layers.
Basic moving, turning, and
navigating.
Information it strung together to
build routines
Receive instructions and plan the
best course of action to execute the
plan.
Problem: SHAKEY took TOO much time
to contemplate the action needed
(hours). When it finally moved it
swayed and shaked to do its task.
Significant moment in
robot history #3