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A multiplicity of techniques and angles of attack are incorporated in 18 contributions describing recent developments in the structure, architecture, programming, control, and implementation of industrial robots capable of performing intelligent action and decision making. Annotation copyright Book ... Read more

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This book provides a strong coverage of both the theoretical and application aspects of neural networks, fuzzy logic, genetic algorithms and hybrid intelligent techniques in robotics. Specific emphasis in the research work is given on the development of new efficient learning rules for robotic connectionist training and synthesis of neural learning algorithms for low-level control in the domain of robotic compliance tasks. The book contains several different examples of applications based on neural and hybrid intelligent techniques. ... Read more

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Robotic and manufacturing systems have gained increasing attention at both the academic and industrial levels. A key component in their development is the microprocessor, which offers increased functional capabilities at reduced costs. "Microprocessors in Robotic and Manufacturing Systems" provides a balanced, state-of-the-art presentation of the involvement of microprocessors in the design and operation of modern robotic and manufacturing systems. Prepared by a distinguished team of experts, the book covers a wide repertory of topics, including the latest developments in the field together with fresh, original results derived by the contributors. The book provides a unique, cohesive reference source providing access to the most current advances in the microprocessor-based robotics and manufacturing field.A subset of the topics covered is the following: computation of robot dynamics by multiprocessor schemes; numerical applications of digital signal processors in robotic computations; automatic scheduling of the Newton-Euler Inverse Dynamics; microprocessor-based controllers for robotic manipulators; design aspects of a robot coordinated by a desktop computer; collision strategies for robotic retreat and resistance: microprocessor based implementations; microprocessor based intelligent welding systems; microprocessors in robotic/machine vison computer-controlled integrated manufacturing systems; microcomputer expert system tools for robotic and manufacturing operations. The reader can save considerable time in searching the scattered technical information on the application of microprocessors to industrial robots and flexible manufacturing systems. The professional can have readily available a rich set of important analysis, design and operational results. ... Read more

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The present book includes a set of selected papers from the 3rd “International Conference on Informatics in Control Automation and Robotics” (ICINCO 2006), held in Setúbal, Portugal, 1-5 August 2006. The conference was organized in three simultaneous tracks: “Intelligent Control Systems and Optimization”, “Robotics and Automation” and “Systems Modeling, Signal Processing and Control”. The book is based on the same structure. The purpose of this conference is to bring together researchers, engineers and practitioners interested in the application of informatics to Control, Automation and Robotics.

Informatics applications are pervasive in many areas of Control, Automation and Robotics, and this conference intends to emphasize this connection, therefore, most papers highlight applications of Information Technology (IT) in these areas and present ideas on how to solve problems using IT, both in R and D and industrial applications. A diversity of papers are included in the book, ranging from papers describing advanced prototypes, systems, tools and techniques to papers presenting surveys indicating future directions.

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Since the late 1960s, there has been a revolution in robots andindustrial automation, from the design of robots with no computing orsensorycapabilities (first-generation), to the design of robots withlimited computational power and feedback capabilities(second-generation), and the design of intelligent robots(third-generation), which possess diverse sensing and decision makingcapabilities. The development of the theory of intelligent machineshas been developed in parallel to the advances in robot design. Thistheory is the natural outcome of research and development in classicalcontrol (1950s), adaptive and learning control (1960s),self-organizing control (1970s) and intelligent control systems(1980s).
The theory of intelligent machines involves utilization andintegration of concepts and ideas from the diverse disciplines ofscience, engineering and mathematics, and fields like artificialintelligence, system theory and operations research. The main focusand motivation is to bridge the gap between diverse disciplinesinvolved and bring under a common cover several generic methodologiespertaining to what has been defined as machine intelligence.Intelligent robotic systems are a specific application of intelligentmachines. They are complex computer controlled robotic systemsequipped with a diverse set of visual and non visual sensors andpossess decision making and problem solving capabilities within theirdomain of operation. Their modeling and control is accomplished viaanalytical and heuristic methodologies and techniques pertaining togeneralized system theory and artificial intelligence.
Intelligent Robotic Systems: Theory, Design and Applications,presents and justifies the fundamental concepts and ideas associatedwith the modeling and analysis of intelligent robotic systems.
Appropriate for researchers and engineers in the general area ofrobotics and automation, Intelligent Robotic Systems is both asolid reference as well as a text for a graduate level course inintelligent robotics/machines.
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Robotic systems are characterized by the intersection ofcomputer intelligence with the physical world. This blend of physicalreasoning and computational intelligence is well illustrated by theTetrobot study described in this book. Tetrobot: A Modular Approach to Reconfigurable Parallel Roboticsdescribes a new approach to the design of robotic systems. TheTetrobot approach utilizes modular components which may bereconfigured into many different mechanisms which are suited todifferent applications. The Tetrobot system includes two uniquecontributions: a new mechanism (a multilink spherical joint design),and a new control architecture based on propagation of kinematicsolutions through the structure. The resulting Tetrobot systemconsists of fundamental components which may be mechanicallyreassembled into any modular configuration, and the controlarchitecture will provide position control of the resulting structure.A prototype Tetrobot system has been built and evaluatedexperimentally. Tetrobot arms, platforms, and walking machines havebeen built and controlled in a variety of motion and loadingconditions. The Tetrobot system has applications in a variety of domains wherereconfiguration, flexibility, load capacity, and failure recovery areimportant aspects of the task. A number of key research directions have been opened by the Tetrobotresearch activities. Continuing topics of interest include:development of a more distributed implementation of the computercontrol architecture, analysis of the dynamics of the Tetrobot systemmotion for improved control of high-speed motions, integration ofsensor systems to control the motion and shape of thehigh-dimensionality systems, and exploration of self-reconfigurationof the system. Tetrobot: A Modular Approach to Reconfigurable Parallel Roboticswill be of interest to research workers, specialists and professionalsin the areas of robotics, mechanical systems and computer engineering. ... Read more

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Especially designed as self-sustaining oscillating systems, resonant robotic systems use the natural modes of oscillation of electromechanical modules for their movements. In fact, manipulator systems built on these principles demonstrate record-breaking characteristics in performance. The authors summarize the results and experience of research on, and development of, resonant robotic systems. For the readers convenience, a presentation of design concepts is followed by solutions to new dynamical and control problems. The book is intended for designers, researchers and graduate students.

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'Advanced robotics' describes the use of sensor-based robotic devices which exploit powerful computers to achieve the high levels of functionality that begin to mimic intelligent human behaviour. The object of this book is to summarise developments in the base technologies, survey recent applications and highlight new advanced concepts which will influence future progress.

I. Technologies (Recent developments in advanced robotics and intelligent systems; Machine intelligence - architectures, controllers and applications; Advanced control systems for robotic arms; Intelligent gripping systems; Force feedback control in robots applied to decommissioning; Tele-presence control of robots; Sensing and sensor management for planning); II Applications (Robotics in the nuclear industry; Robots in surgery; Intelligent autonomous systems for cars; Walking machine technology; Handling of flexible materials in automation; Robotics in food manufacturing; Robotic milking; Error-free semiconductor wafer handling); III Advanced concepts and procedures (The concept of robot society and its utilisation; Miniature and microrobotics; Characteristics of robot behavior; A behaviour synthesis architecture for co-operant mobile robots; Co-operant behaviour in multiple manipulators; Neural networks in automation procedures; Parallel processing, neural networks and genetic algorithms for real-time robot control); Index.

Also available:

Control Theory, 2nd Edition - ISBN 9780863413322
Flexible Robot Manipulators: Modelling, simulation and control - ISBN 9780863414480

The Institution of Engineering and Technology is one of the world's leading professional societies for the engineering and technology community. The IET publishes more than 100 new titles every year; a rich mix of books, journals and magazines with a back catalogue of more than 350 books in 18 different subject areas including:

-Power & Energy
-Renewable Energy
-Radar, Sonar & Navigation
-Electromagnetics
-Electrical Measurement
-History of Technology
-Technology Management
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This book is the outcome of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Machine Intelligence and Knowledge Engineering for Robotic Applications held at Maratea, Italy in May 1986. The focus is on the review of recent advances of machine intelligence and knowledge engineering for robotic applications. The papers, contributed by top researchers representing industry, government and the academic community, span the full range of robot vision and sensing, machine intelligence and knowledge-based systems, task planning, trajectory planning, tracking, control and hardware/software systems development. The greater part of the technical content is new and unique. The approaches taken are based on the reasoning that third generation robot tasks will need more sophisticated control and sensing systems, machine intelligence and knowledge-based systems to guide them than the current second-generation robots. Short papers on the state of research by industrial authors are also included. ... Read more

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Neural Networks in Robotics is the first book to presentan integrated view of both the application of artificial neuralnetworks to robot control and the neuromuscular models from whichrobots were created. The behavior of biological systems provides boththe inspiration and the challenge for robotics. The goal is to buildrobots which can emulate the ability of living organisms to integrateperceptual inputs smoothly with motor responses, even in the presenceof novel stimuli and changes in the environment. The ability of livingsystems to learn and to adapt provides the standard against whichrobotic systems are judged. In order to emulate these abilities, anumber of investigators have attempted to create robot controllerswhich are modelled on known processes in the brain andmusculo-skeletal system. Several of these models are described in thisbook.
On the other hand, connectionist (artificial neural network)formulations are attractive for the computation of inverse kinematicsand dynamics of robots, because they can be trained for this purposewithout explicit programming. Some of the computational advantages andproblems of this approach are also presented.
For any serious student of robotics, Neural Networks in Roboticsprovides an indispensable reference to the work of major researchersin the field. Similarly, since robotics is an outstanding applicationarea for artificial neural networks, Neural Networks in Roboticsis equally important to workers in connectionism and to students forsensormonitor control in living systems.
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Product Description

The present book includes a set of selected papers from the 3rd “International Conference on Informatics in Control Automation and Robotics” (ICINCO 2006), held in Setúbal, Portugal, 1-5 August 2006. The conference was organized in three simultaneous tracks: “Intelligent Control Systems and Optimization”, “Robotics and Automation” and “Systems Modeling, Signal Processing and Control”. The book is based on the same structure. The purpose of this conference is to bring together researchers, engineers and practitioners interested in the application of informatics to Control, Automation and Robotics.

Informatics applications are pervasive in many areas of Control, Automation and Robotics, and this conference intends to emphasize this connection, therefore, most papers highlight applications of Information Technology (IT) in these areas and present ideas on how to solve problems using IT, both in R and D and industrial applications. A diversity of papers are included in the book, ranging from papers describing advanced prototypes, systems, tools and techniques to papers presenting surveys indicating future directions.

Product Description

The control unit is one of the most important parts of any digital system. As a rule, control units have an irregular structure, which makes the processing of their logic circuits design very sophisticated. One possible way to optimise such characteristics as the size or performance of control units is to adapt their structures to the particular properties of interpreted control algorithms. In this book control algorithms are represented by the linear graph-schemes of algorithms (GSA), where the number of operator vertices is not less than 75% of the total number of all algorithm vertices. A special class of control units named as compositional microprogram control units (CMCU) is proposed as the best way for interpretation of linear control algorithms. The CMCU includes a finite state machine, which addresses microinstructions of interpreted microprogram, and a microprogram control unit including control memory, which keeps only microoperations of initial GSA. The microprogram control unit uses the principle of natural addressing of microinstructions. Organization of the control unit proposed in the book increases regularity of the circuit, because the system of microoperations is implemented using standard blocks, such as PROM or RAM. At the same time, an irregular part of the system described by means of Boolean functions is reduced. It permits a decrease in the total number of logical elements (PAL, GAL, PLA, FPGA) in comparison with other models of finite state machines. The main goal of all proposed methods is reduction of the number of field-programmable logic devices used for implementation of logic circuit of the addressing FSM.

This book will be interesting and useful for students and postgraduates in the area of Computer Science and for designers of modern digital devices. Compositional microprogram control units enlarge the class of models applied for implementation of control units with modern field-programmable logic devices.