关键词： Robots   Programming profession   Erbium   Data mining   Task analysis   Robot sensing systems   Problem-solving  

摘要： This article describes an example of data mining techniques applied to an open educational environment. These novel assessment methods in the educational robotics (ER) field provide empirical evidence of problem-solving styles behind the key tasks of proposed activities within real operative scenarios. A supervised, mixed machine learning (ML) approach was applied to data from seven Italian secondary schools (197 students), and four ML techniques [logistic regression (LR), support vector machine (SVM), k-nearest neighbors (KNN), and random forest (RF)] were explored to predict students' success.

关键词： Ethics   Ontologies   Robots   Standards   Autonomous systems   Artificial intelligence  

摘要： I n the complex and rapidly evolving fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, the elaboration of ethical concerns, considerations, and requirements helps elucidate the nature of technology’s reach and impact on society where there is a legal void. Thus, establishing ethics in AI and robotics is fundamental to identifying their potential risks and benefits, especially in our pandemicwrecked world [1]. The development of AI and robotics within an ethical framework enables the anticipation of future application contexts and articulation of uses that do not yet exist. Ethical considerations help to create a much-desired relationship between technology and human values and address the impacts a technology can have, thereby addressing issues of trust, safety, security, data privacy, and algorithmic bias. The need for an ethical framework is urgent because of the increasing adoption and use of autonomous and intelligent systems (A/ISs) in many domains, such as health care, education, finance, and insurance services.

关键词： Applied physics   Materials for devices   Soft materials   Materials Science   general   Optical and Electronic Materials   Biomaterials   Nanotechnology   Condensed Matter Physics  

摘要： Innovations in soft materials design and engineering are delivering promising functional components for advanced soft robotic applications.

关键词： Engineering   Materials for devices   Soft materials   Materials Science   general   Optical and Electronic Materials   Biomaterials   Nanotechnology   Condensed Matter Physics  

摘要： New classes of functional soft materials show promise to revolutionize robotics. Now materials scientists must focus on realizing the predicted performance of these materials and developing effective and robust interfaces to integrate them into highly functional robotic systems that have a positive impact on human life.

关键词： NASA   Space vehicles   Robot kinematics   Moon   Software algorithms   Multi-robot systems   Resource management  

摘要： Plans for establishing a long-term human presence on the Moon will require substantial increases in robot autonomy and multirobot coordination to support establishing a lunar outpost. To achieve these objectives, algorithm design choices for the software developments need to be tested and validated for expected scenarios such as autonomous in situ resource utilization, localization in challenging environments, and multirobot coordination. However, real-world experiments are extremely challenging and limited for extraterrestrial environment. Also, realistic simulation demonstrations in these environments are still rare and demanded for initial algorithm testing capabilities. To help some of these needs, the NASA Centennial Challenges program established the Space Robotics Challenge Phase 2 (SRC2), which consist of virtual robotic systems in a realistic lunar simulation environment, where a group of mobile robots were tasked with reporting volatile locations within a global map, excavating and transporting these resources, and detecting and localizing a target of interest. The main goal of this article is to share our team's experiences on the design tradeoffs to perform autonomous robotic operations in a virtual lunar environment and to share strategies to complete the mission requirements posed by NASA SRC2 competition during the qualification round. Of the 114 teams that registered for participation in the NASA SRC2, team Mountaineers finished as one of only six teams to receive the top qualification round prize.

关键词： Handover   Robots   Receivers   Task analysis   Robot kinematics   Tools   Planning   Human-robot interaction (HRI)   object handover  

摘要： This article surveys the literature on human-robot object handovers. A handover is a collaborative joint action, where an agent, the giver, gives an object to another agent, the receiver. The physical exchange starts when the receiver first contacts the object held by the giver and ends when the giver fully releases the object to the receiver. However, important cognitive and physical processes begin before the physical exchange, including initiating implicit agreement with respect to the location and timing of the exchange. From this perspective, we structure our review into the two main phases delimited by the aforementioned events: a prehandover phase and the physical exchange. We focus our analysis on the two actors (giver and receiver) and report the state of the art of robotic givers (robot-to-human handovers) and the robotic receivers (human-to-robot handovers). We report a comprehensive list of qualitative and quantitative metrics commonly used to assess the interaction. While focusing our review on the cognitive level (e.g., prediction, perception, motion planning, and learning) and the physical level (e.g., motion, grasping, and grip release) of the handover, we also discuss safety. We compare the behaviors displayed during human-to-human handovers to the state of the art of robotic assistants and identify the major areas of improvement for robotic assistants to reach performance comparable to human interactions. Finally, we propose a minimal set of metrics that should be used in order to enable a fair comparison among the approaches.

关键词： Ophthalmic surgery   Robotics  

摘要： The future of robotic ophthalmologic surgery looks promising. Innovations in robotic technology and artificial intelligence may provide an ideal machine-human interface with planned and precise movements minimizing unwanted tissue damage and improving clinical outcomes.

关键词： Robots   COVID-19   Pandemics   Stakeholders   Service robots   Hospitals   Automation  

摘要： The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing a rethink in robotics. In the form it is known today, robotics has been the prerogative of a broad community of insiders. But now, in the wreckage left behind by COVID-19, a new era is beginning. What does it hold? During the pandemic, increasing numbers of people had manifested the hope that robotics might bring novel solutions. And this interest has emerged beyond the usual boundaries of the experts or technology enthusiasts. This provides an opportunity to reinforce the community of people involved in the process of innovation. By involving citizens, the community becomes more comprehensive (that is, plural and diverse). This broadening will involve more practical knowledge and therefore produce better robots of many shapes and functions. If progress is possible in the industry, why not in the hospitals, shopping malls, restaurants, hotels, and schools? What is more, the approach endorsed by the Italian robotics community during the lockdown has established a new cooperation among those who labor with robots, and the professionals who work in hospitals, which is bound to last a long time. As a major impact, this experience will enable an improvement on science's relationship with and for society. This may entail a further shift: to value more scientific knowledge and scientific literacy.

摘要： The article explores the words "autonomy," "autonomous systems," "AI" and the like are thrown around in conferences, product marketing materials, research papers, and prospectuses on the future of the marine robotics industry. These terms inspire notions of an exciting future where we ask our robots to perform a task, and off they go.