• 090942 - ROBOTICS

Aims and learning outcomes

This course aims at introducing students to the core aspects of robotics, including topics of multidisciplinary nature, and stressing the importance of integrating sensors, effectors and control. The course is targeted to computer engineering students, and gives emphasis on the computational aspects of motion control, modelling, sensor data acquisition and analysis.

Syllabus

1. THE ROBOT AS A SYSTEM

• Functional model of a robot. From robot to robotics.
• Structural and functional components of a robot (links, joints, actuators, sensors, …).
• Role of the operator (telecontrolled, programmed, autonomous robot).

2. SPACE REPRESENTATION

• Homogeneous transformations and coordinate frames coordinates. Euler angles.
• Configuration space vs Cartesian space.

3. MOVEMENT DESCRIPTION AND COMPUTATION

• Degrees of mobility and of freedom.
• Classification and description of mechanical structures (chains, wheels, legs)
• From Cartesian space to actuation space and back: kinematic models, Denavitt-Hartemberg notation, direct and inverse kinematics of manipulators and wheeled robots.
• The Matlab robotics toolbox.

4. SENSING AND PERCEPTION

• Types of sensors and their role as eteroceptive or proprioceptive sensors.
• Triangulation and position estimation
• Image acquisition and basic image analysis.
• From computer vision to robot vision.

5. ROBOT CONTROL

• Actuators for robotics.
• Robot control based on kinematic model and on trajectory computation
• Non holonomic constraints and the control of mobile robots.
• Integration of external sensors (force, vision).

6. ROBOT PROGRAMMING

• Languages in joint and in Cartesiam space.
• Simulators, virtual reality, and middleware for robotics.
• The user interface.

7. MAPS AND PATH PLANNING

• Maps and C-space maps.
• Geometric approaches to path planning and terrain covering.
• Localization and guidance systems.

8. TASK EXECUTION

• Telecontrol and semi-autonomous teleoperation.
• Collision avoidance.
• Architectures for autonomous robots: reactive, behavior based, deliberative.
• Robots as physical agents; AI architectures and learning.

 Prerequisites

Prerequisites include a foundation in Linear Algebra, Calculus, and control theory, plus the ability to program.

The final written examination will be followed by an oral discussion about a personal technical homework or about a scientific paper.

Contains all the class lectures and some downloadable material.

only in Italian