WIA1004/WAES 1102

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 Topics
 Why are robots important?
 Types of robots
 Future growth areas
 Technologies used in robotics
 Technical disciplines needed in robotics
 Sensing and Sensors

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What do you think of when you
hear the word “robot”?

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 Why Robotics?
 Areas that robots are used:
 Industrial robots
 Military, government and space robots
 Service robots for home, healthcare, laboratory
 Why are robots used?
 Dangerous tasks or in hazardous environments
 Repetitive tasks
 High precision tasks or those requiring high quality
 Labor savings
 Control technologies:
 Autonomous (self-controlled), tele-operated (remote control)

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 Industrial Robots
 Uses for robots in manufacturing:
 Welding
 Painting
 Cutting
 Dispensing
 Assembly
 Polishing/Finishing
 Material Handling
 Packaging, Palletizing
 Machine loading

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Industrial Robots - Automotive

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Industrial Robots - Packaging

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 Military/Government Robots
 iRobot PackBot

 Remotec Andros

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 Military/Government Robots

Soldiers in Afghanistan being trained how to defuse a landmine using a PackBot.

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 Space Robots
 Mars Rovers – Spirit and Opportunity
 Autonomous navigation features with human remote
control and oversight

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 Service Robots
 Many uses…
 Cleaning & Housekeeping
 Rehabilitation
 Inspection
 Agriculture & Harvesting
 Lawn Mowers
 Surveillance
 Mining Applications
 Construction
 Automatic Refilling
 Fire Fighters
 Search & Rescue iRobot Roomba vacuum cleaner robot

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 Medical/Healthcare Applications
DaVinci surgical robot by Intuitive Surgical. Japanese health care assistant suit
St. Elizabeth Hospital is one of the local hospitals using this robot. You (HAL - Hybrid Assistive Limb)
can see this robot in person during an open house
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiVY-htgRUY)

Also… Mind-controlled
wheelchair using NI LabVIEW 13
 Laboratory Applications
Drug discovery Test tube sorting

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Technologies Used in Robotics
 Drivetrain – servomotors, gear reducers
 Hydraulics (oil), pneumatics (air)
 Electrical controls – motor drives, computers
 Lightweight materials – aluminum, carbon fiber, titanium
 Sensors
 Photoeyes
 Encoders/position measurement sensors
 Proximity switches
 Laser scanners
 Vision systems
 Navigation systems/GPS

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 Disciplines Used in Robotics
 Robotics merges many technical disciplines:
 Bio-Medical Engineering
 Ethics and Legal Issues
 Mechanical Engineering
 Electrical Engineering Mechatronics
 Computer Science
Intelligent
 Latest advancement: Agents
 Artificial Intelligence

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Sensing and Sensors

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 Human Sensing
Sense: Sensed what? Sensor?
 Vision • EM waves • Eyes
 Audition • Pressure waves • Ears
 Gustation • Chemicals - flavor • Tongue
 Olfaction • Chemicals - odor • Nose
 Tactile • Contact pressure • Skin
 Thermoception • Heat • Skin
 Nociception • Pain • Skin, organs, joints
 Equilibrioception • Sense of balance • Ears
 Proprioception • Body awareness • Muscles, joints

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 Robot Sensors
Sense: Sensor:
 Vision • Camera
 Audition • Microphone
 Gustation • Chemical sensors
 Olfaction • Chemical sensors
 Tactitions • Contact sensors
 Thermoception • Thermocouple

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 Robot Sensors
Sense: Sensor:
 Equilibrioception • Accelerometer
 Proprioception • Encoders
 Magnetoception • Magnetometer
 Electroception • Voltage sensor
 Echolocation • Sonar

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Sonar Sensor
 How does it detect distance?
 The sensor send out a high-frequency sound pulse and
times how long it takes for the echo of the sound to be
reflected back.
 The speed of sound is known, 341 m/s in air, the sensor
uses rate and time to calculate distance
𝑡 × 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑
 𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑜𝑏𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡 =
2

 Reference:
 http://learn.cs2n.org/solt/lessons/nvt2.0/content/resou
rces/helpers/nxt_sensors/ultrasonic.html 21
Sonar Sensor
 Factors that might limit the accuracy of sonar reading:
 Object too far away
 Flat object is not facing sensor
 Object is too small
 Object is too soft

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Sample of robot sensors

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Robot Sensory
Architecture

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B21 robot’s
real world
interface

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Robart II,
by H.R.
Everett

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 BibaBot, BlueBotics SA, Switzerland

Omnidirectional Camera

Pan-Tilt Camera
IMU
Inertial Measurement Unit
Sonar Sensors

Emergency Stop Button

Laser Range Scanner

Wheel Encoders
Bumper

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Evolution Robotics’
 Logitech QuickCam Pro 3000
Scorpion
 640 X 480 video; 1.3 MP
still mode
 Built-in microphone for
sound/voice recognition
applications
 IR Sensors
 4 ledge detection sensors
 3 up-facing sensors
 13 horizontal facing sensors
 Bump Sensor

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Activmedia
Robotics’
PeopleBot

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 Classification of Sensors
 Proprioceptive (internal) sensors
 Measure values internally to the system (robot)
 E.g. motor speed, wheel load, heading of the robot,
battery status
 Exteroceptive (external) sensors
 Information from the robots environment
 Distances to objects, intensity of the ambient light,
unique features

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 Sensor Performance
Measurement in real world environment is error prone

 Basic sensor response ratings

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 Sensor Performance
 Mobile robots have to perceive, analyze and interpret
the state of their surroundings
 Measurements in real world environments are
dynamically changing and error prone
 Examples:
 Changing illuminations
 Specular reflections
 Light or sound absorbing surfaces
 Non adaptive to environment changes (climate
(heat/damp), surface, texture, etc)
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Wheel/Motor Encoders

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 Heading Sensors
 Heading sensors can be proprioceptive/internal
(gyroscope, inclinometer) or exteroceptive/external
(compass)
 Used to determine the robots orientation and
inclination (slope/gradient descent)
 Allow, together with appropriate velocity information,
to integrate movement to a position estimate
 This procedure is called dead reckoning (ship
navigation)

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 Gyroscope
 Heading sensors, that keep the orientation to a fixed
frame
 Absolute measure for the heading of a mobile system
 Gyroscopes are used in aeroplanes, Segways and the
space shuttle and affect how yo-yos and bicycles work!
 Two categories of gyroscopes
 Mechanical gyroscopes
 Optical gyroscopes
(not covered in this lecture)

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 Gyroscope
 Concept: inertial properties of a fast spinning rotor
 Gyroscopic precession
 Angular momentum associated with a spinning wheel
keeps the axis of the gyroscope inertial-ly stable
 Reactive torque t (tracking
stability) is proportional to
the spinning speed w, the
precession speed W and
the wheels inertia I

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 Compass
 The compass has been
around since at least 2000
B.C.
 The Chinese suspended
a piece of natural
magnetite from a silk thread and used it to
guide a chariot over land
 Magnetic field on earth
 Absolute measure for orientation

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 Compass
 There are a large variety of ways to measure the earth’s
magnetic field
 Mechanical magnetic compass
 Direct measure of the magnetic field (Hall-
effect, magneto-resistive sensors)
 Major drawback
 Weakness of the earth’s magnetic field
 Easily disturbed by magnetic objects or other
sources
 Not feasible for indoor environments
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 Beacons (ground based)
 Elegant way to solve the localization problem in
mobile robotics
 Beacons are signaling guiding devices with a precisely
known position
 Beacon base navigation has been used since humans
started to travel
 Natural beacons
(landmarks) like stars,
mountains or the sun
 Artificial beacons like
lighthouses

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 Beacons (ground based)
 The recently introduced Global Positioning System
(GPS) has revolutionized modern navigation
technology
 Already one of the key sensors for outdoor mobile
robotics
 For indoor robots GPS is not applicable
 Major drawback with the use of beacons in indoor:
 Beacons require changes in the environment
-> costly
 Limit flexibility and adaptability to changing
environments
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 Range Sensors
 The traveled distance of a sound or electromagnetic
wave is given by
 d=c.t
 Where
 d = distance traveled (usually round-trip)
 c = speed of wave propagation
 t = time of flight.

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 Range Sensors
 It is important to point out:
 Propagation speed of sound: ~0.3 m/ms
 Propagation speed of of electromagnetic signals: ~0.3
m/ns
 3 meters
 Takes 10ms for an ultrasonic system
 Only 10ns for a laser range sensor
 Measuring time of flight with electromagnetic signals is not
an easy task
 Laser range sensors are expensive and delicate

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 Range Sensors
 The quality of time of flight range sensors mainly
depends on:
 Uncertainties about the exact time of arrival of the
reflected signal
 Inaccuracies in the time of fight measure (laser range
sensors)
 Opening angle of transmitted beam (ultrasonic range
sensors)
 Interaction with the target (surface, specular
reflections)
 Variation of propagation speed
 Speed of mobile robot and target (if not at rest)
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 Sensors Summary
 Robots use sensors to sense what is going on in the
world around them
 Sensors can be broadly categorised as proprioceptive or
exteroceptive and active or passive
 Sensor error can be a serious issue that we need to take
care of
 There are many kinds of sensors that offer different
levels of performance, error, price, etc

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