Engineering Commons^™

Hypergraph-Based Multi-Robot Task And Motion Planning, James Motes, Tan Chen, Timothy Bretl, Marco Morales Aguirre, Nancy M. Amato

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 2

In this article, we present a multi-robot task and motion planning method that, when applied to the rearrangement of objects by manipulators, results in solution times up to three orders of magnitude faster than the existing methods and successfully plans for problems with up to 20 objects, more than three times as many objects as comparable methods. We achieve this improvement by decomposing the planning space to consider manipulators alone, objects, and manipulators holding objects. We represent this decomposition with a hypergraph where vertices are decomposed elements of the planning spaces and hyperarcs are transitions between elements. The existing methods …

Biologically Inspired Multi-Robot System Based On Wolf Hunting Behavior, Zachary Hinnen, Chance Hamilton, Alfredo Weitzenfeld

36th Florida Conference on Recent Advances in Robotics

Studies involving the group predator behavior of wolves have inspired multiple robotic architectures to mimic these biological behaviors in their designs and research. In this work, we aim to use robotic systems to mimic wolf packs' single and group behavior. This work aims to extend the original research by Weitzenfeld et al [7] and evaluate under a new multi-robot robot system architecture. The multiple robot architecture includes a 'Prey' pursued by a wolf pack consisting of an 'Alpha' and 'Beta' robotic group. The Alpha Wolf' will be the group leader, searching and tracking the 'Prey.' At the same time, the …

Alternatives To Reducing Aviation Fuel-Burn With Technology: Fully Electric Autonomous Taxibot, Denzil Neo

Student Works

Aircraft taxiing operations in the aerodrome were identified to consume the most jet fuel apart from the cruise phase of the flight. This was also well supported by various research associating taxi operations at large, congested airports, with high jet fuel consumption, high carbon emissions, and noise pollution. Existing literature recognised the potential to address the environmental issues of aerodrome taxi operations by operating External or Onboard Aircraft Ground Propulsion Systems (AGPS). Designed to power aircraft with sources other than their main engines, external Aircraft Ground Power Systems (AGPS) have shown the potential to significantly cut jet fuel consumption and …

Precision Grasp Using An Arm-Hand System As A Hybrid Parallel-Serial System: A Novel Inverse Kinematics Solution, Shuwei Qiu, Shuwei Qiu Ph.D., P.Eng.

Electrical and Computer Engineering Publications

In this letter, we present a novel inverse kinematics (IK) solution for a robotic arm-hand system to achieve precision grasp. This problem is kinematically over-constrained and to address the issue and to solve the problem, we propose a new approach with three key insights. First, we propose a human-inspired thumb-first strategy and consider one finger of the robotic hand as the “thumb” to narrow down the search space and increase the success rate of our algorithm. Second, we formulate the arm-thumb serial chain as a closed chain such that the entire arm-hand system is controlled as a hybrid parallel-serial system. …

Communications, Decision-Making, And Interactions Of A Multi-Agent Autonomous Vehicle System, Daniel Davis Smith

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Autonomous vehicles are becoming ever more common and offer many attractive benefits to society. They can operate for long periods of time unattended, operate in environments that may be dangerous to humans, perform time consuming or repetitive tasks and all with greater efficiency and lower costs than humans. For these vehicles to be able to do these things, algorithms need to be designed and optimized that allow them to interact with the real-world environment in safe, effective, and efficient ways.

We designed and built a set of three homogeneous water-based autonomous surface vehicles equipped with appropriate sensors and communications ability …

Amazon Robotic Service (Ars), Patil Girija, John Mareena, Jin Fenny, Kandula Swapna, Ketsaraporn Kaewkhiaolueang

Engineering and Technology Management Student Projects

Warehouse robots are the most effective replacement to minimize the pressure and availability of manual labor. The warehouse robots are mainly used for heavy lifting, picking up packages, transporting, and other tasks in the facility. The growing market of Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, and machine learning in the warehouse industry is forecasted to grow in the robots market in the near future. In order to build the final product i.e technology roadmap our team did market research, analysed competitors for the company, identified target customers, analyzed market, product and pricing strategy and at the end came up with the …

Three Degrees Of Freedom Robotic Arm And Its Digital Twin Using Simulink – A Bibliometric Analysis, Bharath Suthar Mr., Arunkumar Bongale Dr, Satish Kumar Dr, Anupkumar Bongale Dr

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The 3-degree Digital Twin robotic arm for freedom can diagnose the joints off-board by placing a torque in the robotic arm joint. MATLAB, Simulink®, SimscapeTM, and Simscape Multibody were the basis of this model. Virtual space with a virtual robot arm was connected to a physical space that was a 3D printed replica of the virtual space and robot arm, built using Unity (a modern Game Engine). The arm in the Digital Twin model was created using the hardware prototype’s dimensions, which were then used to simulate a real-world situation. With its revolute joints, the arm has a certain degree …

Bibliometric Analysis On Hand Gesture Controlled Robot, Karthik Bankapur, Himmat Singh, Akshit Gupta, Hritik Mathur, Harikrishnan R, Shivali Amit Wagle

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This paper discusses about the survey and bibliometric analysis of hand gesture-controlled robot using Scopus database in analyzing the research by area, influential authors, countries, institutions, and funding agencies. The 293 documents are extracted from the year 2016 till 6^th March 2021 from the database. Bibliometric analysis is the statistical analysis of the research published as articles, conference papers, and reviews, which helps in understanding the impact of publication in the research domain globally. The visualization analysis is done with open-source tools namely GPS Visualizer, Gephi, VOS viewer, and ScienceScape. The visualization aids in a quick and clear understanding …

Vector Field Control Methods For Discretely Variable Passive Robotic Devices, Emma Treadway, R. Brent Gillespie

Engineering Faculty Research

Passive transmission-based robotic devices are capable of providing motion guidance while ensuring user safety and engagement. To circumvent some of the drawbacks associated with steering continuously variable transmissions based on rolling contacts, we are exploring a class of discretely variable devices, based on brakes and hydrostatic transmissions. Previously available control methods for discretely variable devices were built on velocity fields and only developed to stabilize a 1D target manifold. For n -DOF devices, methods to stabilize target manifolds of dimension 1 to n—1 are of interest. In this paper we contribute constraint field methods that stabilize n — 1 …

The Rise Of The Machine: How Industrial Robots Will Revolutionize U.S. Manufacturing, Alexander Koontz

Engineering: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

Automation has become a term to symbolize many different movements in today’s world. It could represent anything from the blind, preprogrammed robotic arm in an automotive assembly plant to the increasing prevalence of driverless cars on the road. It could be used as a word of praise in the chase of more efficiency and optimization, or as a curse against the aspect of the obsolescence of humans as their roles are rendered redundant by robotic laborers. However, the lack of clarity of the term stems from a lack of understanding about its historical connotations, precisely how it applies today, and …

The Impact Of Automation On Student's Career Decision, Muhammad Hizkil Imran, Arshveen Ramesh, T Rudran

Introduction to Research Methods RSCH 202

We study the impact of automation on employment and students’ career paths, by obtaining credible datasets from the Government of Singapore. The manufacturing and construction sectors were the most affected industries over the last 15 years. Along with the limited studies, we propose a survey to quantify and analyse students’ views on automation. The shift in employment rate in various sectors due to automation was found to be a contributing factor for students’ career decisions. Based on our findings, we observed that more students are acknowledging the impact of automation and finding the need for job securities and opportunities by …

Digital Tools And Robotics In Architecture: Envisioning The Future Ineducation And Practice, Marwan Halabi

Architecture and Planning Journal (APJ)

In a world advancing at a vertiginous speed, technology is directly affecting almost every single aspect of contemporary human life. It is therefore crucial nowadays for both the professional and the educational sectors to constantly update themselves with the latest trends in their fields. Once students graduate, they should first be familiar with the needs of the highly competitive market, and at the same time to be prepared for challenges facing the practice in order to improve it and stand at a higher level from competitors. For such reason, students need to be aware that high tech tools are vital …

Demand Response Of Hvacs In Large Residential Communities Based On Experimental Developments, Huangjie Gong, Evan S. Jones, Rosemary E. Alden, Andrew G. Frye, Donald G. Colliver, Dan M. Ionel

Power and Energy Institute of Kentucky Faculty Publications

Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems contribute the largest electricity usage for a residential community. Modeling of the HVAC systems facilitate the study of demand response (DR) at both the residential and the power system level. In this paper, the equivalent thermal model of a reference house was proposed. Parameters for the reference house were determined based on the systematic study of experimental data obtained from fully instrumented field demonstrators. The aggregated HVAC load was modeled based on the reference house while considering a realistic distribution of HVAC parameters derived from data that was provided by one of the largest …

The Concept Of The Mathematical Description Of The Multi-Coordinate Mechatronic Module Of The Robot, Temurbek Omonboyevich Rakhimov

Acta of Turin Polytechnic University in Tashkent

The article deals with the concept of mathematical de- scription of multi-coordinate mahatronic modules of robots. The main results of the work are a generalized structure of a multi- coordinate mechatronic module of motion, a kinematic diagram of an electromagnetic multi-coordinate mechatronic module with three independent coordinate linear and angular movements is proposed, consisting of four electromagnets, controlled couplings designed to transmit the reciprocating motion of the moving parts of electro- magnets to the output rods and a cable, which are associated with the links of work and bringing them into linear and angular mo- tion. A simulation model of …

Teaching Approximations Of Mechanical Engineering Practice Through Designing And Building Robots: An Approach Inspired By Monozukuri, Kevin Delaney, Ger Nagle

Conference Papers

Engineering design is a complex subject and undergraduate students, having learnt to quantify the performance of specific elements of engineering objects, often find it difficult to integrate these elements into quite basic design concepts. Upon entering the workforce engineering graduates must be able to do a great deal more than solve the technical problems taught in engineering school. To help students develop real-world engineering skills as part of their engineering education, the Mechanical Engineering Discipline in Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) introduced Problem Based Learning (PBL) for Third Year Mechanical Engineering students in 2005.

A recent review of this teaching …

Chatbots: Conversation Killers Or Makers?, Jing Jiang

MITB Thought Leadership Series

Whether you’re aware of it or not, the chances are you’ve been chatting to robots of late. While these bots are faceless and unseen, don’t be fooled into thinking they aren’t there. In fact, chatbots, have been around since the 1960s at least, but with the progress in artificial intelligence, cloud computing and voice recognition, they’ve received both a functionality and a popularity boost. From the cosmetic to the life-changing, nowadays, chatbots can do anything from helping a person lose weight to assisting refugees applying for asylum.

Robust Impedance Control Of A Four Degree Of Freedom Exercise Robot, Santino Joseph Bianco

ETD Archive

The CSU 4OptimX exercise robot provides a platform for future research into advanced exercise and rehabilitation. The robot and its control system will autonomously modify reference trajectories and impedances on the basis of an optimization criterion and physiological feedback. To achieve this goal, a robust impedance control system with trajectory tracking must be implemented as the foundational control scheme. Two control laws will be compared, sliding mode and H-infinity control. The above robust control laws are combined with underlying impedance control laws to overcome uncertain plant model parameters and disturbance anomalies affecting the input signal. The sliding mode control law …

Exposing Students To Stem Careers Through Hands-On Activities With Drones And Robots, Vukica M. Jovanović, George Mcleod, Thomas E. Alberts, Cynthia Tomovic, Otilia Popescu, Tysha Batts, Ms. Mary Louise Sandy

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Autonomous robots have been used in a variety of ways from collecting specimen in hazardous environments to space exploration. These robots can be found in various manufacturing systems as Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) to transport parts and assemblies throughout the manufacturing system. They have also been used as a vehicle to convey design thinking and other STEM-related concepts in mechanical engineering/mechanical engineering technology, electrical engineering/electrical engineering technology, computer science, and computer engineering. Various outreach events have included robotics based activities that engage students in building and programming autonomous robots for the purpose of achieving a specific task. These events are …

Comparison Of Emotion Evaluation Perception Using Human Voice Signals Of Robots And Humans, Vesna Kirandziska, Nevena Ackovska

International Journal of Business and Technology

Emotion perception is the process of perceiving other people’s emotions. It can be based on their facial expression, movement, voice and other biosignals people emit. The evaluation of human’s emotion is one characteristic of emotions. One of the research areas in Robotics is adapting humanistic behavior in robots. Today many robots are constructed. Some of them can even perceive emotions. In this paper a custom built emotion aware robot that perceives emotion evaluation is used to investigate the similarity and differences of the robot's and human's emotion perception. Voice signals from real human were recorded and the information for the …

“New” Subjects In Mechatronics Management Education, Peter Kopacek

International Journal of Business and Technology

Process – and manufacturing automation as well as robotics are currently one of the fast growing fields in automation. Advanced process control, cyber-physical systems, industry 4.0 and “advanced robots” are no longer a headline. They are in realization. As a consequence of these developments new social, ethical and human questions appear.

Therefore this contribution is a first report about the continuous “modernization” of the Mechatronics Management BSc and MSc programs which are successful running at UBT. Both programs were developed in the framework of two TEMPUS projects from an international consortium from 2006 to 2009. Since that time new “buzzwords” …

Development Of Mr Clutch For A Prospective 5-Dof Robot, Sergey Pisetskiy, Mehrdad Kermani Ph.D., P.Eng.

Electrical and Computer Engineering Publications

This paper presents an improved design approach for the construction of a Magneto-Rheological (MR) clutch intended to be used in a prospective 5 degrees of freedom robot. The MR clutch features embedded Hall sensors for intrinsic torque control. After a brief description of the MR clutch principles, the details of the mechanical design are discussed. Simulation and preliminary experimental results demonstrate the main characteristics and advantages of the proposed MR clutch.

Implementación De Un Robot Armable Para El Desarrollo De Habilidades Motrices Fina, Ana María Moreno Salgado

Ingeniería en Automatización

No abstract provided.

Life Is A Lab: Developing A Communication Research Lab For Undergraduate And Graduate Education, Autumn P. Edwards, Chad Edwards, Patric R. Spence

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

Tips offered center on classroom discourse, curriculum choices, and potential assignments. In this article, we present tips for creating a thriving undergraduate and graduate communication research lab. Based on our experiences developing and co-directing the Communication and Social Robotics Labs (CSRLs), we offer 10 best practices for acquiring resources and recognition, building a strong lab community, and attaining faculty and student goals for scholarship and beyond. Our overarching approach is framed by Dewey’s (1916) pragmatist educational metaphysic, which stresses student- and subject-centered learning, enlarging experiences, and the co-construction of meaning and knowledge. Although our labs are focused on human-machine communication …

Reconstrucción De Robot Manipulador Industrial Utilizando Sistemas De Visión Por Computador, Karoll Viviana Cárdenas Valderrama

Ingeniería en Automatización

El proyecto titulado “Reconstrucción de robot manipulador industrial utilizando sistemas de visión por computador”, se encuentra enmarcado dentro del campo de la reconstrucción de entornos 3D, que permite registrar el movimiento de los cuerpos en interacción, dentro de tareas que involucren manipulación de materiales, ensamble de piezas, soldadura y/o inspección. La implementación de un sistema de visión por computador permite muestrear la escena y reconstruir solidos con el fin de recrear virtualmente la realidad. Finalmente, se desarrolla una interfaz amigable con el usuario donde se puede visualizar las capturas laterales RGB de la cámara Kinect, la reconstrucción del robot industrial …

Humanoid Robots Supporting Children’S Learning In An Early Childhood Setting, Helen Crompton, Kristen Gregory, Diane Burke

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

This qualitative study explored the affordances provided by the integration of the NAO humanoid robot in three preschool classrooms. Using the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework as a lens, the researchers qualitatively analyzed data from focus groups, observations, field notes and student artifacts, using grounded coding to uncover language and communication, physical, cognitive and social–emotional learning experiences for children. The researchers also examined interactions between the robot, children and teachers to identify successes and challenges experienced during the integration. Findings indicate the robot provided opportunities for student development in all learning domains. Students were intellectually curious about the robot; …

Development Trends In Robotics, Peter Kopacek

UBT International Conference

Robots are always a frequently used as an example for Mechatronic Systems. Currently the field of robotics is very fast growing. Therefore the overview is definitely not actual and have to be improved. The main goal of this contribution is to make some additional remarks to the existing kinds of robots and introduce some new with special emphasis to Mechatronic Systems like manufacturing automation by Production 4.0.

Event And Time-Triggered Control Module Layers For Individual Robot Control Architectures Of Unmanned Agricultural Ground Vehicles, Tyler Troyer

Department of Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations and Theses

Automation in the agriculture sector has increased to an extent where the accompanying methods for unmanned field management are becoming more economically viable. This manifests in the industry’s recent presentation of conceptual cab-less machines that perform all field operations under the high-level task control of a single remote operator. A dramatic change in the overall workflow for field tasks that historically assumed the presence of a human in the immediate vicinity of the work is predicted. This shift in the entire approach to farm machinery work provides producers increased control and productivity over high-level tasks and less distraction from operating …

Grasp Evaluation Method For Applying Static Loads Leading To Beam Failure, Mahyar Abdeetedal, Mehrdad Kermani Ph.D., P.Eng.

Electrical and Computer Engineering Publications

This paper deals with the problem of purposefully failing or yielding an object by a robotic gripper. We propose a grasp quality measure fabricated for robotic harvesting in which picking a crop from its stem is desired. The proposed metric characterizes a suitable grasp configuration for systematically controlling the failure behavior of an object to break it at the desired location while avoiding damage on other areas. Our approach is based on failure task information and gripper wrench insertion capability. Failure task definition is accomplished using failure theories. Gripper wrench insertion capability is formulated by modeling the friction between the …

Inter-Joint Coordination Deficits Revealed In The Decomposition Of Endpoint Jerk During Goal-Directed Arm Movement After Stroke, Jozsef Laczko, Robert A. Scheidt, Lucia Simo, Davide Piovesan

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

It is well documented that neurological deficits after stroke can disrupt motor control processes that affect the smoothness of reaching movements. The smoothness of hand trajectories during multi-joint reaching depends on shoulder and elbow joint angular velocities and their successive derivatives as well as on the instantaneous arm configuration and its rate of change. Right-handed survivors of unilateral hemiparetic stroke and neurologically-intact control participants held the handle of a two-joint robot and made horizontal planar reaching movements. We decomposed endpoint jerk into components related to shoulder and elbow joint angular velocity, acceleration, and jerk. We observed an abnormal decomposition pattern …

Hands-On Learning Environment And Educational Curriculum On Collaborative Robotics, Ana Djuric, Jeremy L. Rickli, Vukica M. Jovanovic, Daniel Foster

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

The objective of this paper is to describe teaching modules developed at Wayne State University integrate collaborative robots into existing industrial automation curricula. This is in alignment with Oakland Community College and WSU’s desire to create the first industry-relevant learning program for the use of emerging collaborative robotics technology in advanced manufacturing systems. The various learning program components will prepare a career-ready workforce, train industry professionals, and educate academicians on new technologies. Preparing future engineers to work in highly automated production, requires proper education and training in CoBot theory and applications. Engineering and Engineering Technology at Wayne State University offer …