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Call 5 Preparatory Workshop on Collaborative Working Environments Brussels, Wednesday 13th April 2005 Robots at Work Dr Gerard McKee Active Robotics Laboratory School of Systems Engineering The University of Reading, UK [email protected]; http://www.arl.rdg.ac.uk Overview • • • • • • • • Background - Active Robotics Laboratory Robotics is integrative Open Source Community Online Robot Laboratories E-Cradle (OR + OS) Networked Robotics Research Issues Conclusions Author Background • Areas of research: – Networked Robotics; Teleoperation/Telerobotics; – Robot architectures; Cooeprative Robotics – Educational Robotics • Projects – NETROLAB - Networked Robotics Laboratory – Visual Acts - intelligent assistance for remove viewing during teleoperation – Cooperative Robotics - multi-robot payload transportation – TORUS - online robots for robotics education Active Robotics Laboratory (ARL) • Netrolab (1994-1998) – networking & multimedia technology • TORUS - student projects – (Toys Operated Remotely for Understanding Science) • Digger Intelligence I – Student Assignments • MVideo – image services for online robot projects 8000 7000 6000 Frequency • Digger Intelligence II - Digger Arena 9000 control server image server 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 control server 7808 3735 1821 950 491 258 158 55 23 7 5 1 image server 8279 4320 2222 1263 710 332 183 72 22 7 2 Number of concurrent logins Netrolab (Networked Robotics Laboratory) A resource-based laboratory model for teaching topics in AI & Robotics Sensors and Controls are resources Manipulator & Mobile Robot resources Video servers provide multiple streaming video channels from separate cameras Robotics is Integrative • Systems Engineering – mechanics, materials, drives & controls, sensors, electronic systems, computer systems, robotics science, artificial intelligence, cognitive science • Robotic Architectures & Intelligence – sensing, perception, representation, reasoning, planning, action; – reactive, behaviour-based, deliberative & hybrid architectures – localisation, mapping, navigation, etc. • Small-systems development hardware dominated. • Large-systems development software dominated. Open Source Software • Open Source: – a successful model for large-scale collaborative software developoment • Characterstics of success: – benign leadership with the ability to ‘recognise good design ideas from others’ [Raymond, 2001] – modularity, allowing collaborators to work in parallel, largely independently of each other – a running prototype early on Open Source & Robotics • Assumption: – The Open Source Model can be applied to software development for robotics – Large-scale Robot systems require significant software and hardware development effort and, hence, can benefit from collaboration • Robotics system development requires HANDS-ON experience with robot components and systems: – subsystems (e.g. sensors) – systems (e.g. the robot system) – task model and architectures Online Robots • Robot demonstrations on the Internet – Mercury Project, Tele-Garden (Goldberg) – Mobile robots - Xavier & others • Educational projects – Netrolab (McKee), PumaPaint (Stein) • These motivate robotics technology • telerobotics, mobile robotics, map-building, path planning, etc. Online Robot Laboratory User User Applications User Robot Systems & Task User Including point-andclick controls, data modelling/visualisation tools and displays; simulations User User Offering services: sensor and control servers, management, booking services and access control. Application Programmer Interface Levels of Interaction: manual, semi-automated, automated Distributed Expertise - Task Integration Comuter Vision Site Integration Software Components & Systems Electronics Mechanics & Materials Mobile Robotics Manipulator Robotics Distributed Online Robot Laboratory Environment (ORE) Knowledge Extended Open Source Collaborative Development Environment (CDE) E-Cradle (Open Source Robotics) Virtual Labs. (VL) Collaboratories (USA) Science Robotics Community Education Science & Education Real Lab. Env (RL) E-Science (UK & Europe) Communications & Information Technologies Commerce & Education Prob. Solv. Env. (PSE) Virtual Teams (VT) Online Robot Env. (OR) Science The Community at Large E-CRADLE CSCW (Europe & Japan) Commercial Tools CSCL (Europe) Course Man. Tools Coll. Dev. Env. (CDE) Open Source Comm. An E-Cradle is an online “Community Research & Development Laboratory Enterprise” Networked Robotics • Straddes robotics and network technology – The network is a design issue, but offers possibilities for integrating robotics with other technologies • Direct and related areas of networked robotics: – – – – – – – Online robots (remote access) Internet robotics (remote control - telemanipulation) Distributed robot architectures (network-enabled modules) Talk Networks (e.g. distributed robotics) Field robotics (network performance) Integrating Ambient (embedded) and robot (embodied) intelligence Sensor networks; embedded systems Distributed Robot Architectures Name Server Robot platforms are clusters of Robotics resources (sensors, effectors, algorithmic units) Robotic resources are encapsulated as modules that provide a defined functionality + local/remote connectivity options. Robot architectures can be created through the interconnection of networkenabled modules distributed across fixed and mobile robot platforms. PC – GNU \ Linux Processor Nodes Workstation NeRCS Network Backbone Robot 1 Robot 2 Location 1 (laboratory) Module Pool Robots as Resources Effector modules Algorithmic modules Sensor modules Task scenario Modularity Module pool Resources configured to create robotic agents Higher-order manipulator Higher-order sensor Effector modules Algorithmic modules Sensor modules Module pool Control architecture distributed about multiple computing & mobile robot platforms Networked Robot Research Objectives • Build an E-Cradle for open research & development in the domain of robotics • Pursue an open collaborative development of a solution to a specific robot task • Study growth and development of the E-Cradle • Assess its potential for open collaborative research and development in robotics and related domains. Research Challenges • Gain large-scale collaboration in the domain of robotics • Gain collaborators from outside the traditional institutional boundaries • Disseminate knowledge sufficient for this wider participation • I.e. A proof of concept Some Technical Requirements • Integrate CDEs with OREs • Modularity – networked robotics - distributed robot architectures • Hands-on interaction – Internet robotics (telemanipulation, control) • Prototype robot task deployed early on – have a solution of some form up and running early, so that collaborators can evaluate and refine it. Some Community Requirements • Diverse ways to contribute: – – – – – task level systems level infrasturcture tools knowledge • Local (component) views and global (task-level) views. • Scope for play and program Possible Research Method Planning ORE CDE Modules Reflection Planning Reflection Action & Observation Action & Observation Project Cycle I Project Cycle II Architecture Establish the E-Cradle Call Call Development Demo & Review Participatory Action Research (PAR) Users participate early in the project. Development Demo & Review Conclusions • Robotics is integrative - merging technology at multiple levels; metaphor for systems engineering • Open Source Development & Online Robots Laboratories can be integrated to create an innovative environment for collaboration; • Networked Robotics provides a network-centred framework for enabling collaboration