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ROBOVOLC is a new robotic system that has been designed to help scientists in the exploration of volcanoes. It is composed of three subsystems: a rover platform with six articulated and independently actuated wheels; a manipulator arm to collect rock samples, drop and pick up sensors and sample gas; and a pan‐tilt turret with a high resolution camera, video‐camera, infrared camera and a doppler radar for gas speed measurement. This paper contains a short description of the system, following an introduction to the problem and review of the state‐of‐the‐art. Finally, results from the first test campaign on Mount Etna during September 2002 are briefly described.

To construct a commercial agricultural manipulation for fruit picking and handling without human intervention.

Describes a research activity involving a totally autonomous robot for fruit picking and handling crates.

Picking time for the robotic fruit picker at 8.7 s per orange is longer than the evaluated cited time of 6 s per orange.

The final system, recently tested, has not yet achieved a level of productivity capable of replacing human pickers. Further mechanical modifications and more robust and adaptive algorithms are needed to achieve a stronger robot system.

Experimental results and new simulations look very promising.

Will help to limit costs and guarantee a high degree of reliability.

This paper presents the EC funded Climbing and walking robotics project and its activities to encourage the development of a common framework to assist researchers and companies to focus at the component level to make the required innovations. An open modular philosophy is felt to be needed to allow the robotics technology to evolve so that the wide and growing range of service applications can be adequately supported. The current and future planned activities are briefly described.

The system proposed in this paper is the Alicia³ robot, which is based on the Alicia II module. Its aim is to inspect non‐porous vertical walls like those of aboveground petrochemical tanks, with a wide range of surface materials and cleanliness levels. To meet this aim, pneumatic‐like adhesion has been selected for the system. The system is also required to move over the surface at a suitable speed, to pass over obstacles and to have a suitable payload to carry mission‐specific instrumentation. The robot design mainly aimed at finding a solution with a high degree of modularity, so that it can easily be disassembled for maintenance purposes and to replace consumable parts such as the wheels and the sealing, making its design easier. Some onboard control algorithms have also been introduced to increase system reliability and reduce energy consumption.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of shaped metal deposition (SMD). SMD is an additive manufacturing process which uses a robotic cell to create fully dense, near‐net shape, metallic parts directly from computer‐aided design files.

Research into optimising the SMD process was carried out as part of the 6th Framework RAPOLAC project. This included developing both robotic and weld models, creating a weld controller, and using a design of experiments approach to optimise parameters based on the resultant component microstructure and material properties. Extensive metallurgical analysis and mechanical testing was carried out.

A mechatronic model of the robot was produced and integrated with a novel controller to allow parts to be manufactured with little or no operator intervention. Computational models of the temperature field, microstructure, strain and stresses that occur during deposition were also developed. Variation in weld parameters was linked to part microstructure and mechanical properties.

This research focussed on a common titanium aerospace alloy (Ti‐6Al‐4V).

The SMD process is applicable to a variety of parts in a range of industrial sectors. It is cost‐effective for low‐volume parts and prototypes, but it is envisaged that its main use will be to add material to previously forged or cast components and therefore SMD will allow companies to reduce both the size of forgings and material waste. SMD as a repair technique is also being investigated.

The paper provides a summary of the latest advances in robotic manufacturing by SMD.

This paper aims to tackle the problem for a fully actuated unmanned aerial vehicle (FUAV) to perform physical interaction tasks in the Global Positioning System-denied environments without expensive motion capture system (like VICON) under disturbances.

A tether-based positioning system consisting of a universal joint, a tether-actuated absolute position encoder and an attitude sensor is designed to provide reliable position feedback for the FUAV. To handle the disturbances, including the tension force caused by the taut tether, model uncertainties and other external disturbances such as aerodynamic disturbance, a hybrid disturbance observer (HDO) combining the position-based method and momentum-based technology with force sensor feedback is designed for the system. In addition, an HDO-based impedance controller is built to allow the FUAV interacting with the environment and meanwhile rejecting the disturbances.

Experimental validations of the proposed control algorithm are implemented on a real FUAV with the result of nice disturbance rejection capability and physical interaction performance.

A cheap alternative to indoor positioning system is proposed, with which the FUAV is able to interact with external environment and meanwhile reject the disturbances under the help of proposed hybrid disturbance observer and the impedance controller.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect on time to complete a task depending on how a human operator interacts with a mobile‐robot. Interaction is investigated using two tele‐operated mobile‐robot systems, three different ways of interacting with robots and several different environments. The speed of a tele‐operator in completing progressively more complicated driving tasks is investigated also.

Tele‐operators are timed completing a series of tasks using a joystick to control a mobile‐robot. They either watch the robot while operating it, or sit at a computer and view scenes remotely on a screen. Cameras are either mounted on the robot, or so that they view both the environment and robot. Tele‐operators complete tests both with and without sensors. One robot system uses an umbilical cable and one uses a radio link.

In simple environments, a tele‐operator may perform better without a sensor system to assist them but in more complicated environments then a tele‐operator may perform better with a sensor system to assist. Tele‐operators may also tend to perform better with a radio link than with an umbilical connection. Tele‐operators sometimes perform better with a camera mounted on the robot compared with pre‐mounted cameras observing the environment (but that depends on tasks being performed).

Tele‐operated systems rely heavily on visual feedback and experienced operators. This paper investigates how to make tasks easier.

The paper suggests that the amount of sensor support should be varied depending on circumstances.

Results show that human tele‐operators perform better without the assistance of a sensor systems in simple environments.

The aim of the research is the development of a small-scale ground mobile robot for surveillance and inspection; the main design goals are mobility in indoor environments with step climbing ability, pivoting around a vertical axis and without oscillations for stable vision, mobility in unstructured environments, low mechanical and control complexity.

The proposed hybrid leg-wheel robot is characterized by a main body equipped with two actuated wheels and two praying Mantis rotating legs; a rear frame with two idle wheels is connected to the main body by a vertical revolute joint for steering; a second revolute joint allows the rear axle to roll. The geometrical synthesis of the robot has been performed using a nondimensional approach for generality's sake.

The experimental campaign on the first prototype confirms the fulfilment of the design objectives; the robot can efficiently walk in unstructured environments realizing a mixed wheeled-legged locomotion.

Thanks to the operative flexibility of Mantis in indoor and outdoor environments, the range of potential applications is wide: surveillance, inspection, monitoring of dangerous locations, intervention in case of terroristic attacks, military tasks.

Different from other robots of similar size, Mantis combines high speed and energetic efficiency, stable vision, capability of climbing over high steps, obstacles and unevenness.

The non‐destructive inspection of large concrete walls (e.g. dams, bridge pylons) with autonomous systems is still an unsolved problem. One of the main difficulties is to develop a very flexible platform, which is able to move and inspect horizontal and vertical surfaces safely, and which is fast and cost‐efficient. The purpose of this paper is to present a climbing robot designed with these attributes in mind.

This paper presents the Climbing RObot with Multiple Sucking Chambers for Inspection, which is designed for inspection of concrete walls. The propulsion system consists of three omnidirectional‐driven wheels for high maneuverability. The adhesion is performed by a vacuum system of seven controllable vacuum chambers and one large reservoir chamber. Pressure sensors and valves are integrated for controlling, which allows fast reaction on changing conditions.

The comparison of simulated results and a simple prototype indicates that the developed physical model is exact enough to estimate the efficiency of the proposed adhesion mechanism. The propulsion system has been tested extensively and allows high maneuverability on reasonably flat ground.

This paper introduces a climbing robot which will allow higher objectivity and reproducibility of inspections as well as safe working conditions for technicians. With such a machine one can check the building via remote control or semi‐autonomously.