关键词： Assumed modes   flexible   parallel robot   prismatic joint   vibration  

摘要： In this research, first an analytical model is presented for dynamic and vibration analysis of a 3-PSP parallel robot with a flexible moving platform. Next, the presented analytical model is solved using an approximate analytical method. The moving platform is assumed to be made of three Euler-Bernoulli beams joined together to form a star. Each of the three beams of the star slides through a passive prismatic joint. Then, three-dimensional vibration analysis of the flexible moving platform, star, with three passive prismatic joints is the main subject of the present research. Only vibration during free motion is considered. Therefore, it is assumed that only inertia forces of the star are the main source of its vibration. First, direct kinematics is used for acceleration analysis of the rigid robot and inertia forces are obtained. For dynamic modeling, the passive prismatic joints and junction point of the three beams are modeled using a new set of geometric constraints. Additionally, a previously developed constrained motion equation for a planar Euler-Bernoulli beam having a prismatic joint is further developed for the three beams of the star. Next, an approximate analytical solution method, called the constrained assumed modes method, is used for inverse dynamics and vibration analysis of the robot. Furthermore, the developed model can be used for direct dynamics analysis of the robot. Finally, several input trajectories and two different groups of mode shapes are considered to investigate the model efficiency. The results of the presented model are compared with the results of a commercial finite element method software.

关键词： Supervisory control theory   Swarm robotics   Formal methods   Kilobot   e-puck   Automatic code generation  

摘要： Currently, the control software of swarm robotics systems is created by ad hoc development. This makes it hard to deploy these systems in real-world scenarios. In particular, it is difficult to maintain, analyse, or verify the systems. Formal methods can contribute to overcome these problems. However, they usually do not guarantee that the implementation matches the specification, because the system's control code is typically generated manually. Also, there is cultural resistance to apply formal methods;they may be perceived as an additional step that does not add value to the final product. To address these problems, we propose supervisory control theory for the domain of swarm robotics. The advantages of supervisory control theory, and its associated tools, are a reduction in the amount of ad hoc development, the automatic generation of control code from modelled specifications, proofs of properties over generated control code, and the reusability of formally designed controllers between different robotic platforms. These advantages are demonstrated in four case studies using the e-puck and Kilobot robot platforms. Experiments with up to 600 physical robots are reported, which show that supervisory control theory can be used to formally develop state-of-the-art solutions to a range of problems in swarm robotics.

摘要： Assistive technologies are important tools for helping older people to live independently. Praminda Caleb-Solly, Associate Professor in Independent Living Systems at Bristol Robotics Laboratory (BRL) and Institute of Bio-Sensing Technologies, University of the West of England, provides an introduction as to how assistive robotics can address care needs. Intelligent robots, integrated with smart home sensors and healthcare databases, can provide the ability to realise autonomous assistive care solutions to support independent living for an ageing population. Assistive robots, working in conjunction with smart home sensors, can enable proactive initiatives to prompt and support a person wherever they are in their home, thus offering increased availability, awareness and access, as compared to a static telecare system. The assistance provided by a robot could include lifting and carrying, support with dressing and rehabilitation, or to monitor health with early detection of problems, using an interactive robot to provide guidance for taking remedial action.

关键词： Special issues of periodicals   Robots -- Control systems   Information processing   Robots -- Kinematics   Computer science -- Periodicals  

关键词： ARTIFICIAL intelligence   AUTONOMOUS vehicles   ROBOTS -- Design & construction   RESEARCH institutes   UNITED States  

摘要： The article reports on the announcement of automotive manufacturer Toyota Motor Corp. to invest in autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence, and robot development with its research subsidiary Toyota Research Institute. Topics include the culmination of DARPA’s high-risk Robotics Challenge in 2015 led by Gill Pratt and the plan to Toyota to devote to artificial intelligence and robotics research at Stanford University in California and Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Massachusetts.

关键词： robotic-assisted hysterectomy   da Vinci surgical system   laparoscopy   abdominal   vaginal   learning curve  

摘要： BackgroundThe impact of robotics on benign hysterectomy surgical approach, clinical outcomes, and learning curve is still unclear. MethodsReview of abdominal, vaginal, laparoscopic, or robotic cases in 156 US hospitals in the Premier Research Database. ResultsOf 289 875 hysterectomies, abdominal cases decreased from 2005-2010 (60-33%) and minimally invasive approaches increased (40-67%). Conversion rates were: 0.04% for vaginal, 2.5% for robotic, and 7.2% for laparoscopy (P<0.001). Robotic surgery time was longest (3.4h vs. 2.2 vaginal, 2.5 abdominal, 2.7 laparoscopy, P<0.001). Robotic complication rate was lowest (14.8% vs. 16.2% vaginal, 18.6% laparoscopy, 28.9% abdominal, P<0.001). Hospital stay was longer following abdominal surgery (3.5days vs. 1.8 robotic, 1.9 vaginal, 1.8 laparoscopy, P<0.001). Robotic surgery times and conversion and complication rates improved with experience (2.8h, 2%, and 13.9%, respectively), even with increasing complexity. ConclusionsRobotics was successfully incorporated without jeopardizing patient outcomes and increased the overall use of minimally invasive approaches. Copyright (c) 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

摘要： Prior to language, human infants are prolific imitators. Developmental science grounds infant imitation in the neural coding of actions, and highlights the use of imitation for learning from and about people. Here, we used computational modeling and a robot implementation to explore the functional value of action imitation. We report 3 experiments using a mutual imitation task between robots, adults, typically developing children, and children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. We show that a particular learning architecture - specifically one combining artificial neural nets for (i) extraction of visual features, (ii) the robot's motor internal state, (iii) posture recognition, and (iv) novelty detection - is able to learn from an interactive experience involving mutual imitation. This mutual imitation experience allowed the robot to recognize the interactive agent in a subsequent encounter. These experiments using robots as tools for modeling human cognitive development, based on developmental theory, confirm the promise of developmental robotics. Additionally, findings illustrate how person recognition may emerge through imitative experience, intercorporeal mapping, and statistical learning.

关键词： 机器人竞赛   青少年   重庆市   国际   马来西亚   少年选手   渝北区   新加坡  

摘要： 1月26日，国际青少年机器人竞赛在重庆市渝北区正式开幕。来自中国、韩国、马来西亚、新加坡等7国的近500名青少年选手参与了竞赛。