Category Archives: Robotics

Break things down to the original Latin and manufacturing is literally a matter of using your hands (manu) to make things (factura). Robots are a different story. The term comes to us from the Czech word robotnik, which means nothing short of slave labor. Don't let science fiction and Japanese cuteness confuse you: Humans created robots to do their drudge work.

Factories first opened their doors to modern industrial robots in 1961. That's when Unimate joined the General Motors workforce. Unimate was essentially a 4,000-pound (1,814-kilogram) arm attached to a giant steel drum. The Unimate robots boasted remarkable versatility for the time and could easily pour liquid metal into die casts, weld auto bodies together and manipulate 500-pound (227-kilogram) payloads.

In other words, Unimate could perform tasks that humans often found dangerous or boring, and it could do them with consistent speed and precision. It never called in sick, went on strike or violated company rules. It covered all three shifts in a 24-hour period without drawing a single minute of overtime. Needless to say, factory owners grew to like this no-nonsense new addition.

Robot factory workers aren't without their limitations, however. In their simplest forms, industrial robots are mere automatons. Humans program them to perform a simple task, and they repeat that task over and over again. Tasks that require decision-making, creativity, adaptation and on-the-job learning tend to go to the humans.

But when a job's just right for a robot, productivity tends to increase dramatically. For instance, Australia's Drake Trailers installed a single welding robot on its production line and benefited from a reported 60 percent increase in productivity [source: ABB Australia].

The most obvious impact of industrial mechanization is that it eliminates many unskilled job positions. This has especially been the case in United States and Japan, two countries that illuminate important factors in the robot takeover.

Japan suffers from negative population growth, and the younger members of its workforce are generally disinclined to take what they may perceive as dull manufacturing jobs. Industrial robots, therefore, have been a true advantage in that they fill unwanted factory jobs and create more technical positions dedicated to their upkeep. In the same way that a computerized office depends on various techies, so too do robotic workers require technical upkeep.

The United States, on the other hand, has seen a great deal of its factory business flee to China and other countries, where human labor is simply cheaper. Even domestic factory automation, with its allure of improved productivity and efficiency, has failed to tip the scales.

What will the future bring? Despite the economic downturn in 2009, the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) observed a global surge in industrial robot demand for 2010. According to IFR estimates, the year 2013 will see Earth's population of industrial robots exceed 1.1 million [source: IFR]

Meanwhile, roboticists continue to stretch the boundaries of what industrial robots can do, such as in the field of machine learning, tactile sensing and socially intelligent robots. The future will likely see machines working alongside humans and even learning from them to perform an increasing number of manufacturing tasks.

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How have robots changed manufacturing? | HowStuffWorks

The Robotics Academy is a world leader in robotics education and trains teacher internationally. To learn more about our online, face to face, or onsite training, scroll down to see all the available training sessions.

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The Robotics Academys qualified trainers can come to your site and offer classes for groups of teachers from September through May. Robotics Academy are not typically available to train during the summer. Cost for training begins at $2000/day plus expenses. Please send an email to training@rec.ri.cmu.edu to discuss your schools training needs.

All training is conducted at the National Robotics Engineering Center (NREC) in Pittsburgh, PA. The NREC is part of the Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute, a world-renowned robotics organization, where youll be surrounded by real-world robot research and commercialization.

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The Robotics Academys qualified trainers can come to your site and offer classes for groups of teachers from September through May. Robotics Academy are not typically available to train during the summer. Cost for training begins at $2000/day plus expenses. Please send an email to training@rec.ri.cmu.edu to discuss your schools training needs.

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Assisted training using provided hardware and software Screen sharing amongst the class Networking opportunities with other professional educators Robotics Academy Certification for Graduates

The Professional Development courses provide teachers and coaches with a solid foundation for robot programming in the respective languages, and experience in troubleshooting common student mistakes. It also focuses on identifying and extracting academic value from the naturally occurring STEM situations encountered in robotics explorations.

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Professional Development | Robotics Academy

Online Professional Development Courses Start this February!

Online Professional Development Courses Start this February! We are excited to announce our latest online training schedule! Classes start in February and you can enjoy the convenience of taking Robotics Academy courses without leaving your own computer workstation! Register for a class here! Benefits of Robotics Academy Online Training Courses:

The latest chapter within the VEX CORTEX Video Trainer Curriculum is now available Competition Programming!Located in the Engineering Section,this chapterincludes lessons designed to help students prepare their programs for a VEX Competition. Some of the lessons youll learn within this chapter includes: Creating a Competition Legal Program with the

The latest chapter within our VEX CORTEX Video Trainer Curriculum is now available Using the LCD!Located in the Sensing section, this chaptercovers how to configure and implement the LCD as a useful tool in your program. Some of the lessons youll learn within this chapter includes: Three steps to

We are excited to share our latest chapter available within our VEX CORTEX Video Trainer Curriculum Gyro Sensor!Located in the Sensing section, this chapter will allow you toto turn the robot by measurements of degrees. Some of the lessons youll learn within this chapter includes: How the Gyro Sensor

We are excited to announce our Fallonline training schedulethatstarts in September! The Robotics Academy is a world leader in robotics education and trains teacher internationally. Enjoy the convenience of taking Robotics Academy courses without leaving your own computer workstation. Robotics Academy online training includes: Online access to supplemental lessons from

We are excited to share our latest chapter available within out VEX CORTEX Video Trainer Curriculum Integrated Encoders! Located in the Movement section, this chapter will allow you to increase movement accuracy and automatic movement corrections. Some of the lessons youll learn within this chapter includes: Introduction to the

Our Robotics Summer of Learning (RSOL) opens today! This summer, students have the opportunity to learn how to program virtual robots using a FREE copy of Robot Virtual Worldswhere they can program VEX IQor LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3virtual robots.All RSOL courses are self-paced with e-mail support available at rsol@cs2n.org. Sign

We are proud to announce the return of our Robotics Summer of Learning program!This summer, students have the opportunity to learn how to program robots, earn a programming certificate and badges, and play with cool software for FREE!We will provide all of the software and training materials at no cost

Our on-site (in Pittsburgh, PA) and online Summer Professional Development classes for VEX CORTEX, VEX IQ, and LEGO MINDSTORMS are filling up quickly. Register todayto make sure you get into your preferred course (listed below!) Highlights of the Robotics Academy Training: Acquire new skills with technology and new ways to

My name is Ringo Dingrando and I teach Robotics and Physics at International School Manila in the Philippines. For the past three years, high school students have been inquiring into how to program using ROBOTC and how to use their programming skills to build robots, often with VEX hardware. In

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ROBOTC | Robotics Academy

Introduction

This, the ninth release of the Toolbox, represents over fifteen years of development and a substantial level of maturity. This version captures a large number of changes and extensions generated over the last two years which support my new book Robotics, Vision & Control.

The Toolbox has always provided many functions that are useful for the study and simulation of classical arm-type robotics, for example such things as kinematics, dynamics, and trajectory generation. The Toolbox is based on a very general method of representing the kinematics and dynamics of serial-link manipulators.

These parameters are encapsulated in MATLAB objects - robot objects can be created by the user for any serial-link manipulator and a number of examples are provided for well know robots such as the Puma 560 and the Stanford arm amongst others. The Toolbox also provides functions for manipulating and converting between datatypes such as vectors, homogeneous transformations and unit-quaternions which are necessary to represent 3-dimensional position and orientation.

This ninth release of the Toolbox has been significantly extended to support mobile robots. For ground robots the Toolbox includes standard path planning algorithms (bug, distance transform, D*, PRM), kinodynamic planning (RRT), localization (EKF, particle filter), map building (EKF) and simultaneous localization and mapping (EKF), and a Simulink model a of non-holonomic vehicle. The Toolbox also including a detailed Simulink model for a quadrotor flying robot.

Advantages of the Toolbox are that:

the code is quite mature and provides a point of comparison for other implementations of the same algorithms;

the routines are generally written in a straightforward manner which allows for easy understanding, perhaps at the expense of computational efficiency. If you feel strongly about computational efficiency then you can always rewrite the function to be more efficient, compile the M-file using the Matlab compiler, or create a MEX version;

since source code is available there is a benefit for understanding and teaching.

Downloading the Toolbox

Download it from here in zip format (.zip).

The Toolbox is tested with MATLAB R2011a.

To install the Toolbox simply unpack the archive which will create the directory (folder) rvctools, and within that the directories robot, simulink, and common.

Adjust your MATLABPATH to include rvctools

Execute the startup file rvctools/startup_rvc.m and this will place the correct directories in your MATLAB path.

Run the demo rtbdemo to see what it can do

To get the MEX version of rne visit the folder rvctools/robot/mex and follow the directions in the README file

Documentation

The book Robotics, Vision & Control (Corke, 2011) is a detailed introduction to mobile robotics, navigation, localization; and arm robot kinematics, Jacobians and dynamics illustrated using the Robotics Toolbox for MATLAB.

The manual robot.pdf is a printable document (around 100 pages). It is auto-generated from the comments in the MATLAB code and is fully: to external web sites, the table of content to functions, and the ``See also'' functions to each other. You can find this in the Toolbox as rvctools/robot/robot.pdf

The Toolbox documentation also appears in the MATLAB help browser.

Related publications

If you like the Toolbox and want to cite it please reference it as:

P.I. Corke, Robotics, Vision & Control, Springer 2011, ISBN 978-3-642-20143-1. [bibtex]

The following are now quite old publications about the Toolbox and the syntax has changed considerably over time:

P.I. Corke, MATLAB toolboxes: robotics and vision for students and teachers, IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine, Volume 14(4), December 2007, pp. 16-17 [PDF]

P.I. Corke, "A Robotics Toolbox for MATLAB", IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine, Volume 3(1), March 1996, pp. 24-32. [PDF]

P.I. Corke, A computer tool for simulation and analysis: the Robotics Toolbox for MATLAB, Proceedings of the 1995 National Conference of the Australian Robot Association, Melbourne, Australia, pp 319-330, July 1995. [PDF]

Support

There is no support! This software is made freely available in the hope that you find it useful in solving whatever problems you have to hand. I am happy to correspond with people who have found genuine bugs or deficiencies but my response time can be long and I can't guarantee that I respond to your email. I am very happy to accept contributions for inclusion in future versions of the toolbox, and you will be suitably acknowledged.

I can guarantee that I will not respond to any requests for help with assignments or homework, no matter how urgent or important they might be to you. That's what your teachers, tutors, lecturers and professors are paid to do.

You might instead like to communicate with other users via the Google Group called which is a forum for discussion. You need to signup in order to post, and the signup process is moderated by me so allow a few days for this to happen. I need you to write a few words about why you want to join the list so I can distinguish you from a spammer or a web-bot.

There is also a frequently asked questions (FAQ) wiki page.

Whos using it

Introduction to Robotics (3rd edition), John Craig, Wiley, 2004. The exercises in this book are based on an earlier version of the Robotics Toolbox for MATLAB.

Robot Kinematics and Dynamics, Wikibooks.

Toolbox ported to other languages

Robotics Toolbox for SciLab, Matteo Morelli

Robotics Toolbox for LabView, National Instruments ported the MATLAB Toolbox to Labview under licence.

Robotics Toolbox for Python, still quite immature (Corke)

Octave. A large part of release 9 now works with Octave. There is a folder called octave and follow the instructions in the README to install it. The classical Robotics Toolbox functions are supported: Link, SerialLink, Quaternion and all the trajectory, angle conversion functions. None of the mobile robotics functions are covered. In terms of the RVC book the functions for Chaps 7, 8 and 9 are covered.

Other robotics related software on the web

ARTE: Robotics Toolbox for Education, a Matlab toolbox focussed on industrial robotic manipulators, with rich 3D graphics, teach pendants and the ABB RAPID language.

V-REP, a virtual robot experimentation platform, the Swiss army knife of robot simulators.

OpenRAVE, an environment for testing, developing, and deploying motion planning algorithms in real-world robotics applications.

RoKiSim, a Windows-based simulator with 3D models of common robots which can be driven using a virtual teach pendent.

SPACELIB: 3D kinematics and dynamics, C-language and MATLAB. (Legnani, U. di Brescia)

Dynamechs a C++ library for simulating the dynamics of multibody systems

ROBOOP, C++ classes for robot kinematics and dynamics (Richard Gourdeau of cole Polytechnique de Montreal)

JRoboOp Java wrapper for ROBOOP from the PRISMA Lab at U. Naples.

Open Dynamics Engine A free, industrial quality library for simulating articulated rigid body dynamics for example ground vehicles, legged creatures, and moving objects in VR environments.

RoboAnalyzer (IIT Delhi)

Orocos (Open Robot Control Software) project(EURON)

Retired or gone missing:

Robotica for Mathematica (Spong, U. Ilinois)

Robot Symbolic Dynamics package for MAPLE (Corke)

MATROBCOM a toolbox for interfacing Matlab to real robots (Pires, U.Coimbra).

ROBOMOSP: Robotics Modelling and Simulation Platform

Toolbox release history

v4 August 1996

v5 April 1999, first with objects

v6 April 2001

v7 April 2002, MEX files, Simulink models and modified Denavit-Hartenberg support.

v8 December 2008, first with classdef object syntax

v9 September 2011

The text of this website [or page, if you are specifically releasing one section] is available for modification and reuse under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0 Unported License and the GNU Free Documentation License (unversioned, with no invariant sections, front-cover texts, or back-cover texts).

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Robotics Toolbox - PeterCorke.com

76. Dear Rich Hooper, I am an electrical engineering student at Bucknell University working with a design team to improve the control interface for a professor's micromanipulator. Do you have any suggestions for us? We are currently using an "RC style" joystick with the twist controlling z-axis motion and up-down/back-forth controlling x and y. It springs back to neutral when no force is applied.

Dear Student: I would call what you are working on a Human Machine Interface (HMI). I bet there's a visual component (computer screen, VR goggles, etc.) along with the hand controller part. The hand controller part is also often called the manual controller. Frankly, if you only need to control X, Y and Z it's going to be tough to beat a traditional joystick like you already have. My experience is that humans are most precise using the small muscles of their hands and fingers, and that's the scale of a traditional joystick. Some force feedback might be helpful. You could experiment with that, but I don't recommend a manual controller that is at the scale of whole arm or body motion to control a micro manipulator.

If you are going to try to design a force feedback manual controller, it needs to be very high bandwidth. The structure needs to be very light, there needs to be no backlash and the actuators need to be backdrivable. The Phantom haptic device http://www.dentsable.com/haptic-phantom-omni.htm is a good example of a design that follows these principles and is at the scale of small movements of the hands and fingers. You could look at this design and learn from it.

Good luck with the project,

Rich

1. What are some of the advancements in robotics?

The biggest advancements have been in the precision, speed and strength of robots. Learning and artificial intelligence algorithms have probably been the biggest disappointments. I dont think we will see robots even remotely approaching human intelligence by 2050.

2. What defines artificial intelligence?

Artificial means not occurring in nature. Intelligence is the capacity to acquire and apply knowledge.

3. What is the closest to artificial intelligence that mankind has created thus far?

Probably some computer algorithm.

4. Is it possible robots will surpass human intelligence?

It is possible, but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting.

5. Besides creating a neural network, are there any other ways of creating artificial intelligence?

Learning algorithms and expert systems are two examples.

6. About how much does it cost to build a humanoid robot?

Im sure Honda has spent tens of millions of dollars on their Asimo.

7. If a completely self sustaining robot is created is it possible that Hollywood movies like The Terminator and I Robot could become reality?

It is possible, but more likely the people that made the robots would just turn them off before it got that out-of-control.

8. With spying becoming a greater problem, will creating surveillance robots add to an already growing threat?

Surveillance robots do make excellent spies.

9. Do you think that the field of robotics engineers will grow in the future or shrink?

I think the field will grow. Do some research on the number of robots deployed world-wide today and compare it with the numbers from ten years ago and then see what you think. You might also like to read Marshall Brains Robotic Nation and see what he thinks.

10. Robots like the Mini Andros III are used to dispose of explosive ordinance devices. Are there any other robots that help in a similar manner like firefighting?

I'm sure there are. Do some research and please let me know what you find. I think the BEAR robot could make an excellent fire fighter.

11. AIBO is able to learn and is capable of simulating emotions. Is there a possibility of AIBO turning on its owners?

Nope. I just read that Sony is discontinuing Aibo.

12. Im about to graduate high school. How do I find a job in robotics?

You really have two choices. The first is to go to traditional college and the second is to go to a technical college. If you decide to go the traditional college route, then you should probably study science or engineering, though there may be opportunities for folks with humanities degrees to work in the robotics field one of these days. Dr. Susan Calvin was a robot psychologist. If you go to a technical college, then you will have a chance to learn about robot programming and robot applications. A job doing those things would be very interesting.

13. Im about to graduate college with an engineering degree. How do I find a job in robotics?

When you first graduate college, you will be a very junior engineer. Robots are often the most complex systems a company will make. You will need to first focus on a subsystem, such as the mechanical, electrical, computing or software systems. Once you have become an accomplished engineer in one of those fields, you can consider moving to a systems engineering roles.

14. What sort of classes did you take to prepare for your college career, or what classes did you participate in your freshman year of college?

I didn't take calculus or any AP classes in high school. I did participate in student government, spent several semesters in metal shop and was on a sports team every year. Hopefully some Universities still appreciate varied experience. College had the typical freshman-engineering curriculum - calculus, physics and chemistry.

15. Did you always wish to be involved with robotics, if so what started your interests in robotics? If not, how did you come into being involved?

I've been interested in robotics for as long as I can remember. I'm not sure what started it. I do remember making a robotic hand in my garage when I was about 16.

16. What sort of company or group do you work for, and what is required of you by your employer (in terms of hours, job expectations, etc)?

I work for a company that does custom engineering of computer-controlled machines. We bid on projects in the 1 to 10 million-dollar range primarily. The projects usually last a year or less. We have about 70 engineers and about 15 work in my group. I work about 53 hours a week and try not to make too many big $$$ mistakes.

17. Within your job, what do you enjoy the most and what do you enjoy the least? Why?

I like most aspects of my job. The hardest part is dealing with employees that don't try hard enough or make a lot of mistakes.

18. I was wondering what colleges or universities are good for majoring in robotics.

Any college or university with an engineering program can put you on the path towards a career in robotics. Talk to (or email) someone on the faculty and tell them you are interested in robotics. See what they think.

19. Does your employer offer you benefits?

My employer offers benefits that are typical for a company that employs engineers health, life & disability insurance, 401k, standard holidays, a cube : )

20. Did you like the college you chose? if not why?

I went to Rice University for my undergraduate degree. The choice was good for me. I recommend looking for a University committed to nurturing its undergraduate students. I know its hard to believe, but an 18-year-old living away from home for the first time can use some guidance from time to time.

21. What are the educational requirements for becoming a robotics engineer?

The educational requirements are pretty much the same as the educational requirements for becoming any kind of engineer. That would be an engineering degree from a four-year college. Ive also seen folks with physics degrees and other science degrees working as engineers. There is also plenty of room for technical college degrees in the robotics field. These would be for the folks that would like to work on the "ground floor" with robots. They are deploying robots and teaching them to do their tasks.

22. What is the typical job function?

See below for a description of what I do on a typical day.

23. What do you do on a typical workday?

I generally get to work at 8:00 AM. Then Ill:

Spend two or three hours designing electrical circuits or mechanical systems and helping younger engineers learn about these circuits and systems. These engineers also help me by creating drawings and schematics.

An hour or two working on Bills Of Materials (BOMs) The BOM is very important to engineers. This is a list of all the materials in the system. It includes wires, resistors, integrated circuits, nuts, bolts and processors, etc. The manufacturing department uses the BOMs and the drawings to build the systems.

An hour or two in meetings or conference calls

An hour or two writing emails

An hour or two in the lab conducting experiments or trying to understand why the systems I designed are not working the way I thought the would.

Ill take a 30-minute lunch at noon and go home around 6:30. I usually sneak in a few hours working early in the morning on weekends (I'm writing the answer to this question at 2:40 AM). I typically work 53-hour weeks.

24. My son is 13 and is very interested in robotics, he attends West Hill School in Stalybridge Cheshire. He is to take his options for next year, can you suggest which would be the right direction for him to choose. Will he need A levels? and which University would you recommend he attend. He has been asked for Homework, what he would need in terms of qualifications to do this job. I hope you can help. Your website is very interesting, Brilliant and very informative. Thanks in advance.:

I'm happy to hear you enjoyed looking at the learnaboutrobots site. Robotics is such a broad field that your son could study almost any discipline and end up working with robots. There are robots in art, music and entertainment. The "star" of Isaac Asimov's "I Robot" books is a robot psychologist. I don't know how it is in Stalybridge Cheshire, but here in Austin public school is crammed with reading, writing and arithmetic - at the expense of music, arts and physical education. I have a 13 year old son too. I encourage him to study what he enjoys. I also insist that he participates in at least one cultural extracurricular activity (like playing piano) and one physical (he's on swim team right now) every semester. Tell your son I said hello.

25. Give a brief description of your field of engineering.

Systems engineering - The design of systems with mechanical components, electrical components, computing machinery and software.

26. Do you design you own work, or produce someone else's designs?

Engineers design their own work. Junior engineers get more supervision and senior engineers can make bigger mistakes.

27. What advice would you give a high school student (myself) who is thinking of going into robotics engineering?

The same advice I'd give a middle school student and an undergraduate student. Take the classes that seem interesting to you. See 24 above.

28. If you had to do it all over again, what (if anything) would you do differently?

Take more vacation time...

29. I'm not really good in mathematics, but I'm pretty average. Do you think I have what it takes to become a robotic engineer?

You can definitely work in robotics without being strong in mathematics. You might find getting an undergraduate degree in engineering pretty tough. Most engineering curricula have a lot of math. I'm sure you can do it, though you might need to spend a little more time on your homework.

30. I understand that you are a very busy man, but I need just a moment of your time. I am sure you get this question a lot. Do you know of any specific colleges I could attend in Indiana to get a degree in mechanical engineering? I believe a degree in mechanical engineering could help me become a robotics engineer. Please write back to me as soon as you can. Thank you in advance for your time.

Not a day goes by when someone doesn't ask me about mechanical engineering programs in Indiana : ) I'm not familiar with colleges in Indiana, but I bet there are plenty that have good programs in mechanical engineering. An undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering would be a great way to get on the path to becoming a robotics professional..

31. My friend and I were brain storming last night till about 4am about a simple robot that could play simple games. The games would involve timing so it would only involve one or two robotic fingers to fire corresponding with the timing.

You might consider servo center by Yost engineering and a couple of RC servos from the hobby shop. That would get you going for about $100. You could also buy a Robot magazine http://www.botmag.com/. There are lots of ads in that magazine for different robot building kits. Good luck!

32. I know that there are different disciplines in engineering such as robotics. But are there disciplines in Robotics Engineering? What is the correct term? What I am trying to say is that, Are their different fields such as Android engineering, Robotic Toys, Robotic Vehicles, Robotic Tools etc.? How many and what are the names of those different robotics fields?

I would call them branches of robotics. The branches I can think of along the lines you suggest would be mobile robotics, robotics tooling, robot vision, toys and entertainment. The disciplines that shape robotics include controls, mechanisms, dynamics, kinematics, computing hardware and software.

33. I am an academic coach assisting a high school student with the task of selecting the right college to fit his needs, wants, grades and temperament, that is a smaller school versus a huge 30,000 student factory. He is very interested in mechanical engineering and robotics.

You hit the nail on the head with the needs, wants, grades and temperament part. Take care of those and the rest will take care of themselves. I went to a very small 3,000-student school for undergrad and a huge 50,000-student school for grad. I learned a lot at both places. There are many schools of all sizes around the country where you can study robotics. Find some you are interested in and talk to (or email) someone on the faculty. Tell them you are interested in mechanical engineering and robotics. See what they think. Good luck to you and your student.

34. I am currently a junior in high school. I am really interested in the field of robotics and I would like to know how to get involved in this field. On your site, you talked about making a robot hand in your garage. how?? Did your house have these materials just lying around? Does experimenting with different things at home require any special equipment? I would love to try and make different things at home and I need to also...my mom is starting to get mad about all of the electronic stuff I take apart all throughout the house.

All of my early work was made from electronic stuff I took apart around the house. Our garage had a drill press and a vice, but no precision tools. Tell your Mom not to be mad, you're learning to be an engineer.

There are kits for making robots that you can buy so you don't have to scrounge as many parts. Take a look at the ads in Robot magazine (botmag.com). You can buy decent servos at the hobby store for about $10 each and hook them to your computer with something like Servocenter from Yost engineering.

35. I am 42 and in the accounting field. I don't have a degree currently. I am very interested in consumer robotics, but am unsure if it is feasible for me to consider this. Any info you could provide would be appreciated.

I'm sure it's feasible, but I think the monetary penalty would be pretty high. You would lose at least a few years of salary while getting a degree and then you would be starting as a very junior engineer and would have a pretty low salary. Then you would be looking at 10 - 20 more years before you would have enough engineering experience to be a lead engineer on a robotics project. If you really wanted to do it, you could; but you would have to really want to.

36. I am a interested in robotics but am cautious about getting into the field and it being to crowded. I am a mechanical engineering major that plans to graduate in 2009. Do you think the robotics field will get to the point where there is more qualified workers than there is work?

There will be more demand than supply of good engineers that understand computer-controlled electro-mechanical systems for as far into the future as I can see.

37. My idols are Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein (I know the theory of relativity) and The Wright Brothers. I want to either become an engineer or a physicist. I'm only 12 years old, turning thirteen next year. So, let's get to the point. What kind of engineering do you think I should do? What kind of job do you think would suit me?

You asked me questions that only you can answer. Study and work on what you find most interesting.

38. I see you have P.E. after your name. What is a P.E.?

A Professional Engineer (P.E.) is a person who by reason of their knowledge of mathematics, the physical sciences and the principles of engineering, acquired by professional education and practical experience, is qualified to engage in the practice of professional engineering. To lawfully use that title a person must pass a series of exams, have multiple years of engineering experience, at least five positive references from other professional engineers and maintain a license from the state in which they practice.

39. Do you feel your pay is comparable to the amount of years you spent in college?

The money I earn is fine, but the real pay is the value I place on education.

40. What are some tools that you use regularly in your job?

The tools I use most often are an oscilloscope a Digital Multi Meter (DMM) and a computer.

41. Do you get vacation time from your job? How much?

I get two or three weeks vacation a year. As long as I am getting my job done, no one pays much attention to how much vacation time I take.

42. Do you ever travel for your job?

I generally travel two or three days a month.

43. If you get sick, can you work from home?

I could do some work from home, but a lot of my job duties require me to be at the office.

44. My son is 8. He wants to be a robotics engineer, but my husband is freaking out because he wants him to be a doctor.

He's only 8. By the time he grows up half of all surgeries will probably be performed by doctors controlling robots. The Da Vinci robot is already being used for gall bladder, prostate and even heart surgery. Do a search on Da Vinci robot and you will find lots of information. Maybe you could use his interest in robotics to expose him to medicine?

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Rich Hooper, PhD, PE: Robotics Engineer

This self-paced, interactive Robotics Technician Certificate training program allows you to work, when you want, where you want, at your own pace. Earn college credits from a fully accredited, world-leader in Distance Education.

Welcome to OnlineRobotics.com. Our Robotics Technician program provides students the opportunity to complete Robotics training and receive a Robotics Technician certificate, while taking our home training courses using an interactive learning package.

Our unique pay-as-you-learn registration option allows for easy installment-type payments. Instead of paying for the entire program when you register, you can pay for just one module at a time! You decide how quickly, or slowly, you would like to progress through the course material on a pay-as-you-learn basis.

Our distance education program provides easy-to-use home study courses since all you need is the USB or CD-ROM and an internet connection. No expensive books or lab equipment are required. The robotics simulation software, RoboLogix, is provided with the program and converts your computer into a simulated industrial robot, complete with 3D learning environments such as manufacturing plants and control systems.

Because of the flexible delivery format, students can complete the home study training in less time or more time. The Robotics Technician training program is designed to meet your schedule not ours, so you decide how much time you will take to complete the training. We provide you with the training support but leave the scheduling of studying and completion time up to you. Average completion time for the entire Robotics Technician Certificate Training program is 28 weeks. Previous electronics and/or robotics/automation experience and education may reduce that time significantly.

George Brown College is one of the largest Colleges in North America with over 75,000 students studying in full-time and part-time programs. Our award-winning distance education programs include Robotics, Electronics, Electromechanical and Programmable Logic Controllers.

Link:

Robotics Technician & Automation Training - Online Course in ...

In this paper, we present a recent survey on robotic grippers. In many cases, modern grippers outperform their older counterparts which are now stronger, more repeatable, and faster. Technological advancements have also attributed to the development of gripping various objects. This includes [...] Read more. In this paper, we present a recent survey on robotic grippers. In many cases, modern grippers outperform their older counterparts which are now stronger, more repeatable, and faster. Technological advancements have also attributed to the development of gripping various objects. This includes soft fabrics, microelectromechanical systems, and synthetic sheets. In addition, newer materials are being used to improve functionality of grippers, which include piezoelectric, shape memory alloys, smart fluids, carbon fiber, and many more. This paper covers the very first robotic gripper to the newest developments in grasping methods. Unlike other survey papers, we focus on the applications of robotic grippers in industrial, medical, for fragile objects and soft fabrics grippers. We report on new advancements on grasping mechanisms and discuss their behavior for different purposes. Finally, we present the future trends of grippers in terms of flexibility and performance and their vital applications in emerging areas of robotic surgery, industrial assembly, space exploration, and micromanipulation. These advancements will provide a future outlook on the new trends in robotic grippers. Full article

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Robotics | An Open Access Journal from MDPI

Michigan Technological University is a FANUC Authorized Certified Education Training Facility that is able to provide training to academic and industry representatives. Michigan Tech collaborates with FANUC to support their goal of "Partnering with Education" to help meet the growing demand for the skilled workforce needed in all aspects of today's manufacturing. A FANUC certified instructor conducts all training at Michigan Tech and is committed to quality of teaching and providing the best learning experience. Our Robotics Laboratory is equipped with several FANUC industrial robots and classroom computers have FANUC Robotics ROBOGUIDE simulation software available for students to practice.

Register for our courses today!

Course Description: This course is intended for the person who operates or may be required to perform maintenance on a System R-J or higher controller with a standard application software package. It covers the tasks and procedures needed to reach the course goals with both classroom instruction and hands-on training. The course does not address the set-up and operation of specific software features and options.

Registered students will be provided with on-line modules four (4) weeks prior to the training. The on-line modules introduce the theoretical aspect of the material taught in the course. Hands-on 8-hour training will be conducted at Michigan Tech and will consist of 7 laboratory exercises. In addition to lab exercises, a pre-test and post-test are used to measure mastery of objectives.

Course Objectives:

Prerequisites: None

Seats: 12

Cost: $880

Fall 2016 Dates: September 24 October 8 October 22 November 19

Spring 2017 Dates: Coming Soon!

View Training Policies

Course Description:

This course covers the tasks that an operator, technician, engineer or programmer needs to set up and program a FANUC Robotics HandlingTool Software Package.

Course Objectives:

Course Delivery:

Registered students will be provided with on-line modules four (4) weeks prior to the training. Hands-on 16-hour training will be conducted at Michigan Tech and will consist of 12 laboratory exercises. In addition to lab exercises, a pre-test and post-test are used to measure mastery of objectives.

Prerequisites: None

Seats: 12

Cost: $1,760

Fall 2016 Dates: September 17-18 October 1-2 October 15-16 November 12-13 December 3-4 December 10-11

Spring 2017 Dates: Coming Soon!

View Training Policies

* 32 Hours (16 hours on-line + 16 hours hands-on training)

Course Description:

This course will provide procedures for creating a HandlingPRO virtual workcell. When completed, the workcell created will contain a FANUC robot with end-of-arm tooling, one or more fixtures for holding a part and a robot TPP Program which moves the part from one fixture to the other.

Course Objectives: One Day Course (HandlingPRO Intro)

Prerequisite: HandlingTool Operation and Programming OR Robot Operations course

Seats: 15

Cost: $880

Fall 2016 Dates: September 25 October 9 November 20 December 2

Spring 2017 Dates: Coming Soon!

View Training Policies

A continuing education unit (CEU) is a measure used in continuing education programs.

All the robotics training courses offered at Michigan Tech are in compliance with courses offered at FANUC Robotics with the course content being identical. Upon fulfilling all the course requirements, students receive a FANUC certificate of course completion.

Instructor Contact: avsergue@mtu.edu906-487-2258

Thank you for an excellent experience of learning the basics of the Fanuc robots. The knowledge you demonstrated, your preparation to adapt the course to fit the needs of what needed to be covered, and tailor the training to our knowledge level as well as Comco USA's business needs, made the 2 days spent there an extreme value to both me and my company (Comco USA).

It always shows when an instructor believes and enjoys what they are teaching. I believe your training would be a great value to anyone wanting to learn how to operate the Fanuc robots.

David Mitchell, Service Engineer, Comco USA

I really enjoyed the training, as well as the city and the surrounding area.

I am very impressed with the professionalism and dedication you have. The training was packed with the tools I needed to succeed. The theoretical content, along with the hands-on practice in Michigan Tech's Electrical Engineering Technology lab, gave me the confidence I was looking for.

I really liked your approach to the course, starting from emphasizing the safety aspects related to robot operations. The outline of the course was designed to get you into the robotic programming field in a continuous gradient, so I made huge steps in just two days of training. I definitely would not hesitate on taking more training at Michigan Tech.

Douglas Torres, Assistant Service Mgr. / Service Engineer, Comco USA Inc. - Nashville Office

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Industrial Robotics Training | School of Technology

Robotic Pets

Pets of the future might be robots with artificial intelligence.

Robotic Pets

The ultimate goal of the RoboCup project is to develop a team of fully autonomous humanoid robots that can win against the human world champion team in soccer by the year 2050.

The FIRST Robotics Competition challenges teams of young people and their mentors to solve a common problem in a six-week timeframe using a standard "kit of parts" and a common set of rules. Teams build robots from the parts and enter them in competitions.

RoboCup web site

FIRST Robotics Competition

Insects have come up with many interesting solutions for the problems that future robots will have to deal with like cooperation, specialized movement and adapting to changing environments. Robotic engineers are incorporating examples found in nature into their designs.

Robot Insects

Wearable bionic suits are being developed for the military to allow soldiers to carry heavier loads and to conserve energy.

Other uses for exoskeletons are assisting rescue workers move heavy objects and bionics for motor-impaired patients.

Exoskeletons

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Future of Robotics|Robots of the Future|Robot Links

Contact Us

Tom Newman Instructor 253.680.7350

Bob Traufler Career Advisor 253.680.7605

Location Downtown Campus Hours Mon - Fri, 7 a.m. - 2:45 p.m.

In the Industrial Electronics and Robotics Technician program, students learn to install, diagnose, maintain, modify, test, and calibrate electronic, electrical, and mechanical systems used in manufacturing support equipment and production machinery, including precision machine tools (CNC) and industrial robots.

The program consists of a certificate of training in Basic Electricity, a one-year Electrical Technician certificate, and a two-year Industrial Technology degree that prepares students for entry into electrical apprenticeships. The program features equipment and software from industry leaders such as Allen Bradley, Rockwell Automation, FANUC Robotics, Bosch, Siemens, Famic Technologies, and National Instruments.

Focus is on the intelligent control of machines and processes using programmable logic controllers (PLCs), embedded controllers, variable frequency drives (VFDs), industrial networks, sensors & transducers, instrumentation and robotics. The electrical curriculum is based on guidelines from the National Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee (NJATC) for electrical trades.

The program also offers in-depth career training for those interested in becoming an electronics technician in the manufacturing, scientific, aerospace, or civilian military industries.

Program Length: Seven quarters (approximate)

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Industrial Electronics and Robotics Technician