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Billygoats and Sensitive Thugs…by Lisa Harmon
Hey, a new picture…I actually took one! Kenai waking up the nose, 18 mo
Moblie Robot for Automatic Installation of Floor Tiles
This paper describes the configuration of a floor-tile installation robot for commercial buildings. The research is motivated by the need to reduce the installation time and cost while guaranteeing consistent quality. In order to compete with human installation, a time of 24 seconds per installed tile has to be matched. The technical solution that is deemed feasible and capable of reducing this time to about 10 seconds, is an autonomous, electrically-powered mobile robot with omni-directional locomotive capability, and stereo cameras and light-striper for sensing.
Systematic Configuration of Robotic Locomotion
Configuration of robotic locomotion is a process that formulates, rationalizes and
validates the robot's mobility system. The configuration design describes the type and
arrangement of traction elements, chassis geometry, actuation schemes for driving and
steering, articulation and suspension for three-dimensional motions on terrain. These
locomotion attributes are essential to position and move the robot and to negotiate
terrain. However, configuration of robotic locomotion does not just involve the
electromechanical aspects of design.
Field Validation of Nomad's Robotic Locomotion
During June and July of 1997, a mobile robot named Nomad traversed 223km in the Atacama Desert of southern Chile via transcontinental teleoperation. This unprecedented accomplishment is primarily attributed to Nomad's innovative locomotion design which features four-wheel/all-wheel drive locomotion, a reconfigurable chassis, electronically coordinated steering, pivot-arm suspension, and body motion averaging. Nomad's locomotion was configured through systematic analysis and simulations of the robot's predicted performance in a variety of terrain negotiation scenarios.
Specification and Role of the Sensor Manager in the Science/Autonomy System
The NOMAD project focuses on producing a rover capable of autonomously searching for and classifying Antarctic meteorites. The rover is equipped with a sensor array and a network of software modules, the Science/Autonomy system, which work in conjunction to enable the rover in its aforementioned task. The sensor manager is a communications interface between the sensor array and the higher-level decision making modules of the Science/Autonomy system.
Patterned Search Planning and Testing for the Robotic Antarctic Meteorite Search
The goal of the Robotic Antarctic Meteorite Search is to enable discovery of meteorites in Antarctica by a mobile robot. The extreme environment makes it one of the best places to find meteorites, but one of the worst places for humans to work. The meteorite-finding robot will traverse an ice field in a pattern designed to cover the area completely, stopping to investigate potential meteorites with an array of sensors. High level autonomy is needed for this project in many areas: scientific sensing, scientific analysis, navigational sensing, navigational planning, and mission planning.
Autonomous Navigation Field Results of a Planetary Analog Robot in America
The Robotic Antarctic Meteorite Search at Carnegie Mellon is developing robotic technologies to allow for autonomous search and classification of meteorites in Antarctica. In November 1998, the robot Nomad was deployed in the Patriot Hills region of Antarctica to perform several demonstrations and experiments of these technologies in a polar environment. Nomad drove 10.3km autonomously in Antarctica under a variety of weather and terrain conditions.
Technology and Field Demonstration Results in the Robotic Search for Antarctic Meteorites
Robotic search for meteorites in Antarctica is an ideal test case for demonstration and field validation of planetary science rovers. Antarctica's lengthy diurnal cycle, its
harshness and its remote location present conditions and challenges similar to those encountered in missions to the poles
of the Moon and Mars. This project has researched and developed the technologies and capabilities of an autonomous
robot for the search of Antarctic meteorites.
Short-Range Millimeter-Wave Radar Perception in a Polar Environment
Autonomous vehicle operations in Antarctica challenge robotic perception. Flying ice and snow, changing illumination due to low sun angles and lack of contrast degrade stereo and laser sensing. Millimeter-wave radar offers remarkable advantages as a robotic perception modality because it is not as sensitive to the aforementioned conditions.
Effect of Tire Design and Steering Mode on Robotic Mobility in Barren Terrain
Robotic tasks call for a range of steering activity: one extreme is highway driving with negligible turning for hundreds of kilometers; another is forklift handling, which calls for agile turning. Steady state turning of a wheeled vehicle on natural terrain with slow but capable locomotors characteristic
of planetary robotic vehicles is the scope of this research.Two tire designs were developed, implemented and evaluated
aboard the Nomad robot, enabling a comparative study of their effect on mobility and steering.
