Insight or Trial and Error: Ambiguous Items as Clue for Discovering New Concepts in Constrained Environments

The assembly task is of major difficulty for manufacturing automation. Wherein the peg-in-hole problem represents a group of manipulation tasks that feature continuous motion control in both unconstrained and constrained environments, so that it requires extremely careful consideration to perform with robots. In this work, we adapt the ideas underlying the success of human to manipulation tasks, variable compliance and learning, for robotic assembly. Based on sensing the interaction between the peg and the hole, the proposed controller can switch the operation strategy between passive compliance and active regulation in continuous spaces, which outperforms the fixed compliance controllers. Experimental results show that the robot is able to learn a proper stiffness strategy along with the trajectory policy through trial and error. Further, this variable compliance policy proves robust to different initial states and it is able to generalize to more complex situation.

Download Full-text

The advantage of errorless learning for the acquisition of new concepts' labels in alcoholics

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291709990626 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 40 (3) ◽

pp. 497-502 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

A. L. Pitel ◽

P. Perruchet ◽

F. Vabret ◽

B. Desgranges ◽

F. Eustache ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Implicit Memory ◽

Explicit Memory ◽

Memory Task ◽

Errorless Learning ◽

Trial And Error ◽

Learning Condition ◽

Memory Score ◽

New Concepts ◽

New Knowledge ◽

Learning Test

BackgroundPrevious findings revealed that the acquisition of new semantic concepts' labels was impaired in uncomplicated alcoholic patients. The use of errorless learning may therefore allow them to improve learning performance. However, the flexibility of the new knowledge and the memory processes involved in errorless learning remain unclear.MethodNew concepts' labels acquisition was examined in 15 alcoholic patients and 15 control participants in an errorless learning condition compared with 19 alcoholic patients and 19 control subjects in a trial-and-error learning condition. The flexibility of the new information was evaluated using different photographs from those used in the learning sessions but representing the same concepts. All of the participants carried out an additional explicit memory task and an implicit memory task was also performed by subjects in the errorless learning condition.ResultsThe alcoholic group in the errorless condition differed significantly from the alcoholic group in the trial-and-error condition but did not differ from the two control groups. There was no significant difference between results in the learning test and the flexibility task. Finally, in the alcoholic group, the naming score in the learning test was correlated with the explicit memory score but not with the implicit memory score.ConclusionsUsing errorless learning, alcoholics improved their abilities to learn new concepts' labels. Moreover, new knowledge acquired with errorless learning was flexible. The errorless learning advantage may rely on explicit rather than implicit memory processes in these alcohol-dependent patients presenting only mild to moderate deficits of explicit memory capacities.

Download Full-text

Novel Approaches to Low-Voltage Scanning Electron Microscopy

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100180586 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 48 (1) ◽

pp. 366-367

Author(s):

Arthur V. Jones

Keyword(s):

Electron Microscopy ◽

Scanning Electron Microscopy ◽

Low Voltage ◽

Electron Optics ◽

Current Interest ◽

New Concepts ◽

Opportune Time ◽

Novel Approaches ◽

Voltage Scanning ◽

Scanning Electron

In comparison with the developers of other forms of instrumentation, scanning electron microscope manufacturers are among the most conservative of people. New concepts usually must wait many years before being exploited commercially. The field emission gun, developed by Albert Crewe and his coworkers in 1968 is only now becoming widely available in commercial instruments, while the innovative lens designs of Mulvey are still waiting to be commercially exploited. The associated electronics is still in general based on operating procedures which have changed little since the original microscopes of Oatley and his co-workers.The current interest in low-voltage scanning electron microscopy will, if sub-nanometer resolution is to be obtained in a useable instrument, lead to fundamental changes in the design of the electron optics. Perhaps this is an opportune time to consider other fundamental changes in scanning electron microscopy instrumentation.

Download Full-text