scholarly journals Programmable mobile robots as hands-on platform for basic programming

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (41) ◽  
pp. 57-73
Author(s):  
Sergio García ◽  
Sebastián Rueda ◽  
Beatriz Florián Gaviria ◽  
Bladimir Bacca Cortés
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Robots ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Software Tool ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Advanced Level ◽  
Engineering Programs ◽  
Vision Sensors ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Python Programming ◽  
Different Levels

Nowadays, mobile robots platforms are being used in different education contexts. The state of the art shows that 197 papers have been published in this area knowledge over ten years. Latin America faces a problem regarding the enrolled students in engineering programs. The SPADIES program (Colombia) affirms that the lack of motivation and interaction with real artifacts relating theory and practice is an important aspect for dropout. In this work, a platform composed by a set of programmable mobile robots, and a WEB-responsive software tool for programming at different levels of knowledge were implemented. The set of mobile robots were implemented with proximity, trajectory, light, inertial, and vision sensors; also, tools such as Bluetooth and LEDs-ring are included; and, a mechanical support for an erasable marker. The WEB-responsive tool supports graphical programming for novice, Python programming for middle, and ANSI-C for advanced level learners. 

scholarly journals Platform development for teaching basic programming using mobile robots

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (45) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bladimir Bacca-Cortes ◽  
Beatriz Florián-Gaviria ◽  
Sergio García ◽  
Sebastián Rueda
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Robots ◽  
Mobile Robotics ◽  
User Interaction ◽  
Software Tool ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Programming Environments ◽  
Engineering Programs ◽  
Vision Sensors ◽  
High Level

Mobile robotics is being used in different education contexts such as basic, middle and high level education. A review of the state of the art performed by [1] showed that 197 papers have been published in this area knowledge over the last 10 years. Nowadays, Latin America faces a serious problem regarding the enrolled students in engineering programs, depending to each country, there is a ratio of 1 graduated Engineer per 4500 to 10000 people [2]. In Colombia, the SPADIES program of the Ministry of Education [3] affirms that the lack of motivation and interaction with real artifacts relating theory and practice is an important aspect for dropout. In this paper, a platform composed by a set of programmable mobile robots, and a WEB-responsive software tool for programming at different levels of knowledge was implemented. The set of mobile robots included sensors such as proximity, trajectory, light, inertial, and vision sensors; also, communication and user interaction tools such as Bluetooth and colored LEDs-ring are included; and, a mechanical support for an erasable marker. The WEB-responsive tool supports graphical programming for novice, Python programming for middle, and ANSI-C for advanced level learners. This platform consolidates a hands-on tool to introduce students to STEM concepts. Results are reported in the context of platform functionality using all three programming environments, and beta tests with real users.

scholarly journals A State-of-the-Art Review on Mapping and Localization of Mobile Robots Using Omnidirectional Vision Sensors

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Payá ◽  
A. Gil ◽  
O. Reinoso
Keyword(s):  
Computer Vision ◽  
Mobile Robot ◽  
Mobile Robots ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles ◽  
Scientific Community ◽  
Mobile Robotics ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Omnidirectional Vision ◽  
Vision Sensors ◽  
Source Of Information

Nowadays, the field of mobile robotics is experiencing a quick evolution, and a variety of autonomous vehicles is available to solve different tasks. The advances in computer vision have led to a substantial increase in the use of cameras as the main sensors in mobile robots. They can be used as the only source of information or in combination with other sensors such as odometry or laser. Among vision systems, omnidirectional sensors stand out due to the richness of the information they provide the robot with, and an increasing number of works about them have been published over the last few years, leading to a wide variety of frameworks. In this review, some of the most important works are analysed. One of the key problems the scientific community is addressing currently is the improvement of the autonomy of mobile robots. To this end, building robust models of the environment and solving the localization and navigation problems are three important abilities that any mobile robot must have. Taking it into account, the review concentrates on these problems; how researchers have addressed them by means of omnidirectional vision; the main frameworks they have proposed; and how they have evolved in recent years.

Evidence-Based Social Sciences: A New Emerging Field

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 207-211
Author(s):  
Nazila Zarghi ◽  
Soheil Dastmalchian Khorasani
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Critical Appraisal ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Internal Validity ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Social Settings ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Academic Area ◽  
Different Levels

Abstract Evidence based social sciences, is one of the state-of- the-art area in this field. It is making decisions on the basis of conscientious, explicit and judicious use of the best available evidence from multiple sources. It also could be conducive to evidence based social work, i.e a kind of evidence based practice in some extent. In this new emerging field, the research findings help social workers in different levels of social sciences such as policy making, management, academic area, education, and social settings, etc.When using research in real setting, it is necessary to do critical appraisal, not only for trustingon internal validity or rigor methodology of the paper, but also for knowing in what extent research findings could be applied in real setting. Undoubtedly, the latter it is a kind of subjective judgment. As social sciences findings are highly context bound, it is necessary to pay more attention to this area. The present paper tries to introduce firstly evidence based social sciences and its importance and then propose criteria for critical appraisal of research findings for application in society.

scholarly journals Learning-free pattern detection for manuscript research:

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hussein Mohammed ◽  
Volker Märgner ◽  
Giovanni Ciotti
Keyword(s):  
South Asian ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Software Tool ◽  
Pattern Detection ◽  
Asian Studies ◽  
Medieval Manuscripts ◽  
South Asian Studies ◽  
Training Samples ◽  
Nearest Neighbour Classifier

AbstractAutomatic pattern detection has become increasingly important for scholars in the humanities as the number of manuscripts that have been digitised has grown. Most of the state-of-the-art methods used for pattern detection depend on the availability of a large number of training samples, which are typically not available in the humanities as they involve tedious manual annotation by researchers (e.g. marking the location and size of words, drawings, seals and so on). This makes the applicability of such methods very limited within the field of manuscript research. We propose a learning-free approach based on a state-of-the-art Naïve Bayes Nearest-Neighbour classifier for the task of pattern detection in manuscript images. The method has already been successfully applied to an actual research question from South Asian studies about palm-leaf manuscripts. Furthermore, state-of-the-art results have been achieved on two extremely challenging datasets, namely the AMADI_LontarSet dataset of handwriting on palm leaves for word-spotting and the DocExplore dataset of medieval manuscripts for pattern detection. A performance analysis is provided as well in order to facilitate later comparisons by other researchers. Finally, an easy-to-use implementation of the proposed method is developed as a software tool and made freely available.

Accurate 3D Localization Using RGB-TOF Camera and IMU for Industrial Mobile Robots

Robotica ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Majid Yekkehfallah ◽  
Ming Yang ◽  
Zhiao Cai ◽  
Liang Li ◽  
Chuanxiang Wang
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Robots ◽  
Inertial Measurement Unit ◽  
Indoor Environment ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Estimation Algorithm ◽  
Measurement Unit ◽  
3D Localization ◽  
Fast Motion ◽  
Tof Camera

SUMMARY Localization based on visual natural landmarks is one of the state-of-the-art localization methods for automated vehicles that is, however, limited in fast motion and low-texture environments, which can lead to failure. This paper proposes an approach to solve these limitations with an extended Kalman filter (EKF) based on a state estimation algorithm that fuses information from a low-cost MEMS Inertial Measurement Unit and a Time-of-Flight camera. We demonstrate our results in an indoor environment. We show that the proposed approach does not require any global reflective landmark for localization and is fast, accurate, and easy to use with mobile robots.

scholarly journals Gradient Profile Estimation Using Exponential Cubic Spline Smoothing in a Bayesian Framework

Entropy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 674
Author(s):  
Kushani De De Silva ◽  
Carlo Cafaro ◽  
Adom Giffin
Keyword(s):  
State Of The Art ◽  
Estimation Method ◽  
Synthetic Data ◽  
Noisy Data ◽  
Bayesian Framework ◽  
Physical Systems ◽  
Gradient Profile ◽  
Ill Posed ◽  
Profile Estimation ◽  
Different Levels

Attaining reliable gradient profiles is of utmost relevance for many physical systems. In many situations, the estimation of the gradient is inaccurate due to noise. It is common practice to first estimate the underlying system and then compute the gradient profile by taking the subsequent analytic derivative of the estimated system. The underlying system is often estimated by fitting or smoothing the data using other techniques. Taking the subsequent analytic derivative of an estimated function can be ill-posed. This becomes worse as the noise in the system increases. As a result, the uncertainty generated in the gradient estimate increases. In this paper, a theoretical framework for a method to estimate the gradient profile of discrete noisy data is presented. The method was developed within a Bayesian framework. Comprehensive numerical experiments were conducted on synthetic data at different levels of noise. The accuracy of the proposed method was quantified. Our findings suggest that the proposed gradient profile estimation method outperforms the state-of-the-art methods.

scholarly journals Improving academic performance: Strengthening the relation between theory and practice through prompted reflection

2021 ◽  
pp. 146978742110144
Author(s):  
Slaviša Radović ◽  
Olga Firssova ◽  
Hans GK Hummel ◽  
Marjan Vermeulen
Keyword(s):  
Academic Performance ◽  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Positive Relationships ◽  
Collaborative Reflection ◽  
Different Levels

The importance of reflection during learning process is widely recognized. Drawing on the literature, this article presents a study where students were stimulated to reflect during experiential learning, in order to both re- and de- contextualize their knowledge. We describe how different levels of prompted reflection can be related to academic performance and perceptions of the learning process. We found positive relationships between prompting reflection and the academic performance. It is therefore argued that prompting reflection leads to higher levels of reflection and better performance in writing. The results also show that higher levels of reflection do not have to diminish students’ motivation, perception of usefulness, interest and enjoyment during learning. Finally, the results reveal needs for encouraging more collaborative reflection during learning.

A Framework for Engineering Dissection Exercise Creation and Implementation

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen M. Hart ◽  
Steven B. Shooter ◽  
Charles J. Kim
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Engineering Education ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Rigorous Approach ◽  
Engineering Activity ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Different Levels

Hands-on product dissection and reverse engineering exercises have been shown to have a positive impact on engineering education, and many universities have incorporated such exercises in their curriculum. The CIBER-U project seeks to examine the potential to utilize cyberinfrastructure to enhance these active-learning exercises. We have formulated a framework for product dissection and reverse engineering activity creation to support a more rigorous approach to assessing other exercises for satisfaction of the CIBER-U project goals and adapting the best practices. This framework is driven by the fulfillment of learning outcomes and considers the maturity of students at different levels. Prototype exercises developed with the framework are presented. The approach is sufficiently general that it can be applied to the consideration and adaption of other types of exercises while ensuring satisfaction of the established goals.

A Task Based Approach to Mechatronic Systems Education

Volume 3 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Firth ◽  
Brian Surgenor ◽  
Peter Wild
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Robot ◽  
Mobile Robots ◽  
Systems Engineering ◽  
Educational Tool ◽  
Electronic Components ◽  
Mechatronic Systems ◽  
Student Workload ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Hands On Learning ◽  
Elective Course

This paper describes an elective course in mechatronic systems engineering that is project based and team-oriented with hands-on learning. Working in small teams, students add electronic components to a mobile robot base and write the programs required to make the robot perform a series of tasks. Although the application of mobile robots as an educational tool in a mechatronics course is becoming the norm at many universities, the task based organization of the Queen’s mechatronics course is believed to have a number of novel features. The paper will review the pedagogy of the course, including aspects of the student workload, the interplay between teams, and the task based approach to marking and organization of the laboratories.

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