Class is taught by Professor Marek Perkowski This class will teach you how to build large autonomous interactive robots and how to program them. It is the first class in the robotics sequence of three classes, but this class can be also taken by itself as a summer class. Thanks to a grant from Dean of MCECS, our robot-building team disposes a unique and innovative robot hardware built already by previous classes. We work on two mobile robots: (a) GuideBot and (b) MCECSBOT shown below.
This term, in hardware area, we will work on arms and hands for the robot, as well as the head and neck design and programming. New students will be able to influence how the robot will look like and how it will behave. Mechanical and design talents are very welcome. The only prerequisite of the class is the ability to program in C++.
In software domain we will work on control, navigation, localization and behaviors of the robots. This is a practical class and the grades will be based on homeworks and projects. The students from this class will work in small teams, together with three graduate students who work on theses related to this robot. Specifically, you will learn about Arduino programming for robot applications.
The particular project teams include: (1)GuideBot navigation – using sonars, KINECT and touch sensors, particle filters, (2) MCECS_Bot navigation and localization using Kalman Filters, (3)development of behaviors for MCECS_Bot – dancing, emotional gestures, emotion recognition. (4)natural language interface and conversation based on PSU MCECS data base for guiding robots, (5) redesigning and testing humanoid/android robot hands/arms, necks and heads with theatrical values.
The class material covers the following subjects: Artificial Intelligence language LISP for robot control, evolutionary robotics, robot vision and pattern recognition, sensors and sonars, servos and control, robot architectures including especially subsumption, and intelligent dialog.
This class is different than one taught last year and it is available to undergraduate students. If you are interested in robotics, your work can lead to journal and conference papers. Several such papers originated from this class in the past.
