By Cliff Thompson, San Francisco Robotics Society of America (SFRSA)
(Web: www.robots.org) (Email:CliffTRobot@msn.com)
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An Ongoing Exploration of
Robotics Internet Resources. By Cliff Thompson, San Francisco Robotics Society of America (SFRSA) (Web: www.robots.org) (Email:CliffTRobot@msn.com) |
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| ART, ENTERTAINMENT & RECREATION |  |
| Title: False Gods | |
| URL: http://www.falsegods.com | |
| Contact: marque@falsegods.com | |
| Sample Graphic: S.P.A.R.C. 1 | |
Description: Marque Cornblatt is exploring interactive, internet tele-operated robotics sculpture. The site also contains a collection of Mechanical and Video Sculpture in a Gallery of Transhuman Artifacts. |
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| Summary: "Interactive sculptures and robots using video, toys, found objects and all sorts of high and low technology to simulate live interaction and human powered flight." | |
| Sample Quotes: "SPARC 2 is a robotic telepresence and artificial intelligence simulator, based around a wireless rolling chassis and controlled entirely through the internet. The machine interacts with people as if it were alive…self-aware, telling jokes..." | |
| Navigational Links: robot links to images and video clips of robotics sculptures, including a clip of a crowd-pleasing robot named SPARC2. | |
| Favorite Links: WaterBoy > Info > Burning Man leads to the pyrotechnic event community’s web site at http://www.burningman.com. | |
| BUSINESS & INDUSTRY |  |
| Title: GREYPILGRIM…Innovative…Affordable Remote Operations Equip…. | |
| URL: http://www.greypilgrim.com | |
| Contact: pilgrim@greypilgrim.com | |
| Sample Graphic: EMMA | |
| Description: GREYPILGRIM LLC makes a serpentine manipulator called EMMA. Uses for the device range from camera positioning to nuclear waste retrieval. | |
| Summary: "GreyPilgrim - developers of EMMA, a flexible robotic arm. Applications include nuclear storage tank waste retrieval, telepresence camera deployment, and fire suppression monitors." | |
| Sample Quotes: "EMMA... is a serpentine robotic manipulator…built in stages…multiple stages can yield complex curves. Its motion is like that of an elephant's trunk...EMMA…is also hollow throughout its length…" | |
| Navigational Links: Technology describes how the systems operate, Products describes the available robotic manipulators, platforms and cranes. | |
| Favorite Links: Technology > Research Links includes The Engineer’s Companion, (captioned "THIS GUY actually thinks engineers are INTERESTING"), at http://members.aol.com/RonGraham1/. | |
| EDUCATION & RESEARCH |  |
| Title: The Mobile Robot Laboratory Home Page | |
| URL: http://www.cc.gatech.edu/aimosaic/robot-lab/MRLHome.html | |
| Contact: robot-lab-www@cc.gatech.edu | |
| Sample Graphic: Trash-collecting robots | |
Description: Georgia Tech’s Mobile Robot Lab explores Multiagent Robotic Systems and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. The site also maintains a library of related publications. |
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| Summary: "The Mobile Robot Laboratory's charter is to discover and develop fundamental scientific principles and practices that are applicable to intelligent mobile robot systems." | |
| Sample Quotes: "Multiagent task-achieving behavior…Teleautonomous control of robot societies …are being developed…’Router’…an integrated planning and learning system…integrates case-based and model-based reasoning…" | |
| Navigational Links: Research Projects: Multiagent Robotic Systems leads to a description of the Multiagent robot team work, & discussions including "Teleautonomous Control of Robot Societies." | |
Favorite Links: Interesting/Related Sites around the Web includes jumps to Artificial Life ONLINE at http://alife.santafe.edu and Boadicea: a Pneumatic Walking Robot at http://www.ai.mit.edu/projects/boadicea.html. |
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| HARDWARE & SOFTWARE |  |
| Title: The Mobile Robot Laboratory Home Page…Online Software | |
| URL: http://www.cc.gatech.edu/aimosaic/robot-lab/MRLHome.html | |
| Contact: mlab@cc.gatech.edu (MLab), javabots-help@cc.gatech.edu (JBots) | |
| Sample Graphic: MissionLab | |
| Description: Georgia Tech’s Mobile Robot Lab offers Online Software named MissionLab (captioned "multiagent robotics mission specification and simulation") and JavaBots (RoboCup JavaSoccer). | |
Summary: "MissionLab takes high-level military-style plans and executes them with teams of real or simulated robotic vehicles, Javabots links to a complete Introduction, Applications, Installation and Documentation page." |
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| Sample Quotes: "MissionLab supports execution of multiple robots in simulation…control(s) multiple Denning, and Nomadics Technologies…RoboCup JavaSoccer…Two teams of five robots…kick and push a golf ball across the opposing team's goal." | |
| Navigational Links: MissionLab leads to a components and files breakdown, Javabots links to a complete Introduction, Applications, Installation and Documentation page. | |
| Favorite Links: MissionLab > Multiagent Mission Spec… downloads a paper describing key concepts used in MissionLab, at ftp://ftp.cc.gatech.edu/pub/people/arkin/web-papers/mission-auro.ps.Z. | |
| INSTITUTE, ORGANIZATION & CLUB |  |
| Title: Robotics Society of America | |
| URL: http://www.robots.org | |
| Contact: SFRSA@mondo.com | |
| Sample Graphic: SUMO | |
| Description: The San Francisco Robotics Society of America (SFRSA) exchanges information about robotics to stimulate education, create new businesses and promote the enjoyment of robotics." | |
| Summary: "The Society’s regular Monthly Meeting occurs at & is sponsored by the Exploratorium Science Museum in San Francisco, California. The SFRSA also publishes the Newsletter ROBOTS!" | |
| Sample Quotes: "Guests…This is your invitation to let people know about yourself and your robotics-related interests…If you would like to list yourself in our resource directory, please provide the following contact information…" | |
| Navigational Links: Info leads to the current collection of Newsletters Online, Search crawls the site, including Newsletters, for your search term, Discuss heads to a searchable online discussion forum. | |
| Favorite Links: Links includes a jump to "R.U.R. (‘Rossums Universal Robots’)…Excerpt from the original play by Karel Capek…This play introduced the word ‘robot’ first…" | |
| KEYWORD SEARCH RESULTS WEB SITES |
| This issue’s keyword is 68HC11, the popular robotics Central Processing Unit chip. The search turned up a number of Web Sites, samples from which follow: |
http://www.tec-i.com/. |
http://www.vuse.vanderbilt.edu/~jlc/tkbot.htm |
http://www.vnet.net/wizorg/wizorg.html. |
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http://www.mil.ufl.edu/Novasoft/. |