Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!uunet!think.com!rpi!batcomputer!cornell!rochester!cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!crabapple.srv.cs.cmu.edu!crabapple.srv.cs.cmu.edu!nivek
From: nivek@frc.ri.cmu.edu (Kevin Dowling)
Subject: FAQ draft - comments solicited
Message-ID: <NIVEK.92Feb27224911@scythe.frc.ri.cmu.edu>
Date: Fri, 28 Feb 92 03:49:11 GMT
Organization: Field Robotics Center, CMU
Nntp-Posting-Host: scythe.frc.ri.cmu.edu
Reply-To: nivek@ri.cmu.edu (Kevin Dowling)
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Draft comp.robotics FAQ

I'm proposing to assemble a robotics FAQ for this group to cover a variety
of questions I've seen asked many times in this newsgroup.

I've assembled this as an OUTLINE without much detail before I put much
effort into this. This is so you can help point out missing items,
provide information and suggestions etc on this draft FAQ.

Please give feedback on this. If no responses I won't bother.
If a lot of responses (and not just 'sounds great' responses!)
then I'll update and post soon.

comp.robotics FAQ:
____________________________________________________________________________
Robotics related Organizations:

IEEE 
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Service Center
445 Hoes Lane
Piscataway, NJ 08854-4150
(201) 981-0060

SME, ASME

Trade organizations

___________________________________________________________________________
Robotics Publications:

	IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics
	IEEE Transactions on Robotics and Automation
	IEEE Control Systems Magazine
	Cost: Have to join IEEE and then subscribe. Student rates are good.

	International Journal of Robotics Research
	MIT Press
	28 Carleton Street
	Cambridge, MA 02142
	Cost: $50/year to individuals

	International Journal of Robotics and Automation

	Robotics and Autonomous Systems

	Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing

	Robotics Today
	Industry trade journal

	Robotics World

	Robotica - japanese journal

Useful and Relevant magazines:

	Sensors
	Trade magazine devoted to sensing devices. Publishes annual directory.
	Cost: Free to qualified subscribers, $55 otherwise
	Helmers Publishing
	174 Concord Street
	PO Box 874
	Peterborough, NH 03458-0874
	(603) 924-9631
	
	Machine Design
	Free to qualified subscribers

	Design News

Our lab at CMU gets 40-50 trade magazines and journals and while no
one reads all of them very often articles and pointers are passed
on to people in the lab. This has worked well. Trade magazines such
as Motion, GPS World, RF Design, Sea Technology, Laser Focus, POB,
Broadcast Engineering, and others have all helped me in the design
of robot systems in the past. All of these are free.
	
_____________________________________________________________________________
Mobile robots:  Companies and addresses - synopsis

TRC
Danbury, CT

Denning Mobile Robots
Waltham, MA

RWI
New Hampshire

Cybermotion
Roanoke, VA

_____________________________________________________________________________
Robot Manipulator companies - [ Adept, GMF/Fanuc, Staubli etc ]
Used robot companies - Aentenen in OH. Others?

_____________________________________________________________________________
Other organizations doing robotics.

Most large aerospace companies have groups working in or looking
into robotics. Martin Marietta (Denver), Rockwell International
(Downey, CA), Boeing (Seattle) to name a couple.

Redzone Robotics (Pittsburgh) have focused on hazwaste and nuke
manipulator applications but branching out into mobile applications.

______________________________________________________________________________
Graduate Program in Robotics:

[there's a summary post that describes this area. Anyone have this?]

Any decent school will undoubtedly offer some robotics courses within
the engineering programs. Mechanical and Electrical engineering and
Computer Science departments are all good candidates for coursework
in Robotics. A number of schools have established track records and
a focus on robotics however and we list some here.

MIT - Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science both have strong
robotics efforts. Asada, Slotine, Brooks, Raibert and others
are known and respected for their work.

CMU - The Robotics Institute is a 150 person organization that offers
a PhD in Robotics but students from other programs (engineering and
computer science mostly) do research in the Institute as well. Lots
of mobile robot work, computer integrated manufacturing, rapid
prototyping, sensors, vision, navigation, learning and architectures.
Program is taking four qualifiers and a program of research
leading to a thesis and the degree.
Facilities include about 10 mobile systems with more in design and
construction. Many manipulator systems and lots of compute cycles/person.
Graduate program contact:
Graduate Admissions Coordinator
The Robotics Institute
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Stanford
Robotics group directed by LaTombe, Aerospace robotics with Bob Cannon
doing some excellent space robotics work. 

___________________________________________________________________________
Sensors:
There is just so much in this category I'm not sure how to address
this other than giving some proximity sensing (acoustic, IR and laser
ranging) with some brief mention of some others.
sonar sensors - polaroid and others
range sensors - point range devices
tactile bump sensing - 
cameras - 

____________________________________________________________________________
Robot parts: Suppliers of useful mechanical and electrical components.

Winifred Berg

Small Parts

AST/Servo

Surplus places - 
____________________________________________________________________________
Hero robot questions:
Heros are no longer being made but Heath still offers some replacement
parts.

Heathkit
Benton, MI

_____________________________________________________________________________
Puma questions:

Pumas are probably the most common robot in university laboratories
and one of the most common assembly robots. Designed by Vic
Schienman many years ago it was produced for many years by Unimation
(later purchased by Westinghouse and sold at a loss later to Staubli,
a Swiss company) Found in many university labs as well.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Simulators:

[There have been some summary posts in this area too, Anyone?]

Deneb

Silma/Igrip

Technomatix/Robcad


_____________________________________________________________________________
--

aka: Kevin Dowling			Carnegie Mellon University
tel: (412) 268-8830			The Robotics Institute
adr: nivek@rover.ri.cmu.edu		Pittsburgh, PA 15213
