scholarly journals Online Reconfiguration of Distributed Robot Control Systems for Modular Robot Behavior Implementation

2020 ◽  
Vol 100 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 1283-1308
Author(s):  
Malte Wirkus ◽  
Sascha Arnold ◽  
Elmar Berghöfer
Keyword(s):  
Control Systems ◽  
Robot Control ◽  
Autonomous Robots ◽  
High Complexity ◽  
Software Developer ◽  
Robot Controller ◽  
Software Complexity ◽  
Robot Behavior ◽  
Development Approach ◽  
Operational Modes

AbstractThe use of autonomous robots in areas that require executing a broad range of different tasks is currently hampered by the high complexity of the software that adapts the robot controller to different situations the robot would face. Current robot software frameworks facilitate implementing controllers for individual tasks with some variability, however, their possibilities for adapting the controllers at runtime are very limited and don’t scale with the requirements of a highly versatile autonomous robot. With the software presented in this paper, the behavior of robots is implemented modularly by composing individual controllers, between which it is possible to switch freely at runtime, since the required transitions are calculated automatically. Thereby the software developer is relieved of the task to manually implement and maintain the transitions between different operational modes of the robot, what largely reduces software complexity for larger amounts of different robot behaviors. The software is realized by a model-based development approach. We will present the metamodels enabling the modeling of the controllers as well as the runtime architecture for the management of the controllers on distributed computation hardware. Furthermore, this paper introduces an algorithm that calculates the transitions between two controllers. A series of technical experiments verifies the choice of the underlying middleware and the performance of online controller reconfiguration. A further experiment demonstrates the applicability of the approach to real robotics applications.

An overview on framework design for autonomous robots

2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Max Reichardt ◽  
Tobias Föhst ◽  
Karsten Berns
Keyword(s):  
Control Systems ◽  
Software Quality ◽  
Robot Control ◽  
Autonomous Robots ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Development Effort ◽  
Software Frameworks ◽  
Framework Design ◽  
Robotic Software

AbstractRobotic software frameworks have major impact on development effort and quality of robot control systems. This paper provides a condensed overview on the complex topic of robotic framework design. Important areas of design are discussed – together with design principles applied in state-of-the-art solutions. They are related to software quality attributes with a brief discussion on their impact. Based on this analysis, the approaches taken in the framework Finroc are briefly presented.

Safety in Robot Control Systems

1988 ◽  
Vol 21 (9) ◽  
pp. 266-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
G R Ward
Keyword(s):  
Control Systems ◽  
Robot Control

scholarly journals Building the Foundation of Robot Explanation Generation Using Behavior Trees

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-31
Author(s):  
Zhao Han ◽  
Daniel Giger ◽  
Jordan Allspaw ◽  
Michael S. Lee ◽  
Henny Admoni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autonomous Robots ◽  
Free Form ◽  
Static Structure ◽  
Simulation Code ◽  
Causal Information ◽  
Robot Behavior ◽  
Behavior Trees ◽  
Robot Task ◽  
Task Specification ◽  
Explanation Generation

As autonomous robots continue to be deployed near people, robots need to be able to explain their actions. In this article, we focus on organizing and representing complex tasks in a way that makes them readily explainable. Many actions consist of sub-actions, each of which may have several sub-actions of their own, and the robot must be able to represent these complex actions before it can explain them. To generate explanations for robot behavior, we propose using Behavior Trees (BTs), which are a powerful and rich tool for robot task specification and execution. However, for BTs to be used for robot explanations, their free-form, static structure must be adapted. In this work, we add structure to previously free-form BTs by framing them as a set of semantic sets {goal, subgoals, steps, actions} and subsequently build explanation generation algorithms that answer questions seeking causal information about robot behavior. We make BTs less static with an algorithm that inserts a subgoal that satisfies all dependencies. We evaluate our BTs for robot explanation generation in two domains: a kitting task to assemble a gearbox, and a taxi simulation. Code for the behavior trees (in XML) and all the algorithms is available at github.com/uml-robotics/robot-explanation-BTs.

scholarly journals Motivation as a tool for designing lifelong learning robots

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 353-372
Author(s):  
Alejandro Romero ◽  
Francisco Bellas ◽  
José A. Becerra ◽  
Richard J. Duro
Keyword(s):  
Robot Control ◽  
Control Structure ◽  
Autonomous Robots ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Main Question ◽  
Structured Design ◽  
Design Time ◽  
Real Robot ◽  
Series Of Experiments ◽  
Definition Of

Designing robots has usually implied knowing beforehand the tasks to be carried out and in what domains. However, in the case of fully autonomous robots this is not possible. Autonomous robots need to operate in an open-ended manner, that is, deciding on the most interesting goals to achieve in domains that are not known at design time. This obviously poses a challenge from the point of view of designing the robot control structure. In particular, the main question that arises is how to endow the robot with a designer defined purpose and with means to translate that purpose into operational decisions without any knowledge of what situations the robot will find itself in. In this paper, we provide a formalization of motivation from an engineering perspective that allows for the structured design of purposeful robots. This formalization is based on a definition of the concepts of robot needs and drives, which are related through experience to the appropriate goals in specific domains. To illustrate the process, a motivational system to guide the operation of a real robot is constructed using this approach. A series of experiments carried out over it are discussed providing some insights on the design of purposeful motivated operation.

Fault Detection of Robot Control Systems Based on Available Wireless Network Measurements

2013 ◽  
Vol 300-301 ◽  
pp. 604-610
Author(s):  
Jie Zhang ◽  
Ming Lv ◽  
Peng Fei Guo ◽  
Liang He ◽  
Yu Ming Bo
Keyword(s):  
Fault Detection ◽  
Control Systems ◽  
Robot Control ◽  
Fuzzy Model ◽  
Hop Count ◽  
Error Equation ◽  
Sensor Signals ◽  
Error System ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Controlled Object

Considering some robot control systems which employ wireless networks to transmit sensor signals between the controller and the nonlinear controlled object, the fault detection is carried out. Firstly, based on T-S fuzzy model, the object is linearized. The fuzzy observer is designed and the error equation of the observer is given by using the fuzzy dominant subsystem rule. Secondly, the error equation is equal to the discrete switched system related to the hop count of the wireless transmission, and the stability of the error system is proved. Finally, a simulation example is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in this paper.

The Track: Technion Robot And Controller Kit

Robotica ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-128
Author(s):  
David Bar-On ◽  
Shaul Gutman ◽  
Amos Israeli
Keyword(s):  
Research And Development ◽  
Hierarchical Model ◽  
General Model ◽  
Robot Control ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
General Purpose ◽  
Specific Task ◽  
Existing Building ◽  
New Model ◽  
Robot Controller

SUMMARYA modular hierarchical model for controlling robots is presented. This model is targeted mainly for research and development; it enables researchers to concentrate on a certain specific task of robotics, while using existing building blocks for the rest of their applications. The presentation begins by discussing the problems with which researchers and engineers of robotics are faced whenever trying to use existing commercial robots. Based on this discussion we propose a new general model for robot control to be referred as TERM (TEchnion Robotic Model). The viability of the new model is demonstrated by implementing a general purpose robot controller.

Subjective Evaluation for Maneuverability of a Robot Cooperating with Humans

2002 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 514-519 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryojun Ikeura ◽  
◽  
Hikaru Inooka ◽  
Kazuki Mizutani ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Control Systems ◽  
Impedance Control ◽  
Subjective Evaluation ◽  
Robot Controller ◽  
User Friendly ◽  
Force Characteristics

Robots will be expected to be user-friendly and to execute tasks in cooperation with humans. Control systems for such robots should be designed to work adapting to human characteristics. We have developed control for robots and humans cooperating in carrying an object. To make the robot controller, we studied cooperation force characteristics of two humans and developed variable impedance control for a robot. Variable impedance control for a robot we developed is evaluated subjectively. Results of subjective evaluation give the proposed variable impedance control high marks.

Motion Analysis of Human Lifting Works with Heavy Objects

2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 628-635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobutomo Matsunaga ◽  
◽  
Shigeyasu Kawaji
Keyword(s):  
Motion Control ◽  
Motion Analysis ◽  
Real World ◽  
Control Strategy ◽  
Robot Control ◽  
Autonomous Robots ◽  
Biped Robot ◽  
Weight Lifting ◽  
The Real ◽  
Lower Back

Advances in robot development involves autonomous work in the real world, where robots may lift or carry heavy objects. Motion control of autonomous robots is an important issue, in which configurations and motion differ depending on the robot and the object. Isaka et al. analyzed that lifting configuration is important in realizing efficient lifting minimizing the burden on the lower back, but their analysis was limited to weight lifting of a fixed object. Biped robot control requires analyzing different lifting in diverse situations. Thus, motion analysis is important in clarifying control strategy. We analyzed dynamics of human lifting of barbells in different situations, and found that lifting can be divided into four motions.

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