关键词： Social robots   Ethics   Robotics  

摘要： This article investigates the social significance of robotics for the years to come in Europe and the US by studying robotics developments in five different areas: the home, health care, traffic, the police force, and the army. Our society accepts the use of robots to perform dull, dangerous, and dirty industrial jobs. But now that robotics is moving out of the factory, the relevant question is how far do we want to go with the automation of care for children and the elderly, of killing terrorists, or of making love? This literature review attempts to provide an engaged but sober (non-speculative) insight into the societal issues raised by the new robotics: which robot technologies are coming;what are they capable of;and which ethical and regulatory questions will they consequently raise?

关键词： LTE   Robot   Cloud computing  

摘要： Although the robots integrated with communication module can provide various functions, there is intrinsic limitation because of the instable wireless connection, restricted bandwidth and limited coverage of network. Fortunately, assisted by LTE (Long Term Evolution) techniques, the robots can be deployed more widely to support bandwidth-intensive applications. Hence, this paper proposes a LTE-based robotics system integrated with cloud computing to enhance the capability of data transmissions and intelligence for providing higher quality and more friendly services. Furthermore, we develop a robot with emotional recognition and feedback for improving Quality of Service (QoS) and Quality of Experience (QoE), and design a testbed for verifying system's feasibility and performance. (c) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

关键词： Sensor fusion   Assistive robotics   Rehabilitation robotics   Classification   Electromyography   Electroencephalography  

摘要： Modern wearable robots are not yet intelligent enough to fully satisfy the 'demands of end-users, as they lack the sensor fusion algorithms needed to provide optimal assistance and react quickly to perturbations or changes in user intentions. Sensor fusion applications such as intention detection have been emphasized as a major challenge for both robotic orthoses and prostheses. In order to better examine the strengths and shortcomings of the field, this paper presents a review of existing sensor fusion methods for wearable robots, both stationary ones such as rehabilitation exoskeletons and portable ones such as active prostheses and full-body exoskeletons. Fusion methods are first presented as applied to individual sensing modalities (primarily electromyography, electroencephalography and mechanical sensors), and then four approaches to combining multiple modalities are presented. The strengths and weaknesses of the different methods are compared, and recommendations are made for future sensor fusion research. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

关键词： Institutional Robotics   Philosophical foundations of social robotics   Heterogeneous multi-robot systems   Humans-robots interactions   Mediated interaction  

摘要： The way human beings engage with material things in our environment is experiencing rapid modification. Human and non-human, natural and artificial creatures are on the verge of building unprecedented relations of sociability. This paper takes this process as a horizon for Social Robotics, advancing a new approach to coordinate systems of multiple robots within social spaces durably shared by humans and machines. Given the fact that institutions are the tools in use within human societies to shape social action over long periods of time, we use human-inspired institutions to deal with scenarios involving many-to-many human-robot lasting interactions. Our approach, Institutional Robotics, is inspired by leading economists and philosophers having dedicated sustained efforts to the understanding of social institutions. This paper: (1) advocates the importance of an institution-based approach for multi-robot systems (Institutional Robotics) in real-world human-populated environments, where many-to-many social interactions among robots and humans must be considered;(2) reviews experiments conducted (including novel experimental work) and methodologies used in the process of advancing Institutional Robotics. Both contributions pave the way for a new institution-based methodology to coordinate robot collectives, which stems from an inter-disciplinary approach based on robotics, social sciences and philosophy.

关键词： spherical robot   control   nonholonomic constraint   combined mechanism  

摘要： This paper is concerned with free and controlled motions of a spherical robot of combined type moving by displacing the center of mass and by changing the internal gyrostatic momentum. Equations of motion for the nonholonomic model are obtained and their first integrals are found. Fixed points of the reduced system are found in the absence of control actions. It is shown that they correspond to the motion of the spherical robot in a straight line and in a circle. A control algorithm for the motion of the spherical robot along an arbitrary trajectory is presented. A set of elementary maneuvers (gaits) is obtained which allow one to transfer the spherical robot from any initial point to any end point.

关键词： DELTA Robot   3D Printing   Parallel Robot   Image Recognition   Pick-and-place  

摘要： This investigation concerns the design and implementation of the DELTA parallel robot, covering the entire mechatronic process, involving kinematics, control design and optimizing methods. To accelerate the construction of the robot, 3D printing is used to fabricate end-effector parts. The parts are modular, low-cost, reconfigurable and can be assembled in less time than is required for conventionally fabricated parts. The controller, including the control algorithm and human-machine interface (HMI), is coded using the Borland C++ Builder 6 Personal software environment. The integration of the motion controller with image recognition into an opto-mechatronics system is presented. The robot system has been entered into robotic competitions in Taiwan. The experimental results reveal that the proposed DELTA robot completed the tasks in those competitions successfully.

关键词： Smart Assistive Powered Wheelchair   Mobile Robotics   Real-time Navigation   Dynamic   Localized Adjustable Potential Force Fields  

摘要： Providing an assistive navigation system that augments rather than usurps user control of a powered wheelchair represents a significant technical challenge. This paper evaluates an assistive collision avoidance method for a powered wheelchair that allows the user to navigate safely whilst maintaining their overall governance of the platform motion. The paper shows that by shaping, switching and adjusting localized potential fields we are able to negotiate different obstacles by generating a more intuitively natural trajectory, one that does not deviate significantly from the operator in the loop desired-trajectory. It can also be seen that this method does not suffer from the local minima problem, or narrow corridor and proximity oscillation, which are common problems that occur when using potential fields. Furthermore this localized method enables the robotic platform to pass very close to obstacles, such as when negotiating a narrow passage or doorway.

摘要： Transoral endoscopic head and neck surgery is a new approach for the treatment of oropharyngeal tumors. Using either a robotic system and/or laser, surgeons gain access through the mouth via minimally invasive technique and thus have improved visualization of the tumors of the oropharynx, without disfiguring incisions. This transoral route of access minimizes long-term speech and swallowing dysfunction. Surgeons view this approach as a considerable technologic advance, analogous to the evolution in radiation therapy from conventional two- and three-dimensional conformal techniques to intensity-modulated techniques. Although the use of radiation with or without chemotherapy to treat oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) is supported by evidence from prospective clinical trials, there are no prospective data supporting the use of this new surgical approach for OPC. Here, we review the fundamentals of transoral endoscopic head and neck surgery, with robotics and laser technology, and discuss ongoing clinical trials for patients with OPC. (C) 2015 by American Society of Clinical Oncology

关键词： 蛇形机器人   运动力学   仿生  

摘要： 在自然界中,生物蛇的运动方式多变,有良好的地面适应性及运动稳定性的特点。近些年来机器人一词渐渐融入到我们的生活,而蛇形机器人更是引起了很多科学家和科研机构的重视。蛇形机器人的各种特点,使得它在倒塌建筑物中的抢险救灾,军事侦察,星际探索等高危环境下有广阔的运用前景。1972年日本东京工业大学最早研制了其样机,1987年德国开始研制仿真蛇形机器人,以后各种各样的改进与突破呈现了现如今的集光电,力学,运动学,仿真学等等的高端蛇形机器人。当代移动机器人的研究领域正朝着非结构环境下的自主作业方向发展。

关键词： 高速重载   柔性   动态特性   多目标优化  

摘要： 提出一种考虑关节柔性影响的高速重载码垛机器人动力学性能优化方法。首先,考虑关节柔性的影响,建立了刚柔耦合动力学方程;随后进行了模态分析以及受迫振动分析;提出以最低阶固有频率最大和各关节驱动力矩基于目标轨迹上的最大值最小作为动力学优化目标;最后构造有约束的多目标优化问题,并利用遗传算法对该多目标优化问题进行求解。优化结果表明,机器人的动力学性能明显改善,说明优化方法合理有效。