From nivek@ri.cmu.edu Mon Feb 13 11:45:41 EST 1995 Article: 17932 of comp.robotics Path: cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!nivek From: nivek+@cs.cmu.edu (Kevin Dowling) Newsgroups: comp.robotics,news.answers,comp.answers Subject: comp.robotics Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) part 1/5 Supersedes: Followup-To: poster Date: 13 Feb 1995 03:53:33 GMT Organization: Carnegie-Mellon University, School of Computer Science Lines: 2274 Approved: news-answers-request@mit.edu Expires: 29 Mar 1995 03:53:11 GMT Message-ID: Reply-To: nivek@ri.cmu.edu NNTP-Posting-Host: j.gp.cs.cmu.edu Summary: This posting contains a list of Frequently Asked Questions and their answers about robotics. It should be read by anyone who wishes to post to the comp.robotics newsgroup Xref: glinda.oz.cs.cmu.edu comp.robotics:17932 news.answers:37803 comp.answers:10019 Archive-name: robotics-faq/part1 Last-modified: Tue Dec 13 12:10:57 1994 This is part 1 of 5 of the comp.robotics Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) list. This FAQ addresses commonly asked questions relating to robotics. ____________________________________________________________________________ Copyright Notice This FAQ was compiled and written by Kevin Dowling with numerous contributions by readers of comp.robotics. Acknowledgements are listed at the end of the FAQ. This post, as a collection of information, is Copyright 1994 Kevin Dowling. Distribution through any means other than regular Usenet channels must be by permission. The removal of this notice is forbidden. This FAQ may be posted to any USENET newsgroup, on-line service, or BBS as long as it is posted in its entirety and includes this copyright statement. This FAQ may not be distributed for financial gain. This FAQ may not be included in commercial collections or compilations without express permission from the author. Please send changes, additions, suggestions and questions to: Kevin Dowling tel: 412.268.8830 Robotics Institute fax: 412.268.5895 Carnegie Mellon University net: nivek@cmu.edu Pittsburgh, PA 15213 This FAQ may be referenced as: Dowling, Kevin (1994) "Robotics: comp.robotics Frequently Asked Questions" Usenet news.answers. Available via anonymous ftp from ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/ part1 through part5. 70+ pages. If the Last-modified date above is more than two months old you should obtain a new copy. See Section [0.1] Where to Find This FAQ . ___________________________________________________________________________ Part 1/5 Part 1 [0] Errata [0.1] Where to find this FAQ and comp.robotics archives [0.2] Related FAQ's and Mailing Lists [1] What is Robotics? [1.1] What is the definition of a 'robot'? [1.2] Where did the word 'robot' come from? [2] Where can I find robotics resources on the net? [3] Organizations [3.1] Robotics Related Organizations [3.2] Robotics Associations of Many Countries [3.3] Robotics Clubs [4] What Periodicals and Publications are there? [4.1] Magazines, Journals, Newsletters [4.1.1] Robotics Publications [4.1.2] Trade magazines [4.1.3] Other sources [4.2] Books, Online Information and Videos [4.2.1] Books [4.2.2] CDROMS [4.2.3] Magazine Articles [4.2.4] Online Technical Reports Part 2 [5] Conferences and Competitions [5.1] Conferences [5.2] Competitions Part 3 [6] What University Programs are there? [6.1] Graduate Programs in Robotics [6.2] Student Who's Who [7] What is the State of the Robot Industry? [8] What companies sell or build robots? [8.1] Mobile robot companies [8.1.1] AGV Companies [8.1.2] Underwater robots [8.2] Manipulator companies [8.3] Other Organizations doing robotics [8.4] Small Inexpensive Robots [9] What is a Robot Architecture? Part 4 [10] What Robotics related products are there? [10.1] Sensors [10.1.1] Cameras [10.1.2] Inertial measurement devices and gyros [10.1.3] Rangefinding devices [10.1.4] Force/torque, accelerometers, tactile [10.1.5] Sonar sensors [10.1.6] Pan/tilt mechanisms [10.1.7] Measuring robot position [10.1.8] Measuring linear motion [10.1.9] Interfacing sensors [10.2] Actuators [10.2.1] RC-Servos [10.2.2] Shape memory materials [10.2.3] Stepper Motor Controller [10.3] Imaging for Robotics [10.4] Wireless Communication [10.4.1] RF Modems [10.4.1] RF Video [10.4.2] RF Ethernet [10.5] Robot Parts: Suppliers and Sources Part 5 [11] Whatever happened to Heathkit Hero Robots? [12] What's available for Puma Manipulators? [13] What kinds of Robotics Simulators are there? [13.1] Commercial Simulators [13.2] Shareware and Freeware Simulators [14] What Real-Time Operating System should I use? [15] What is NuTank? [16] Survey of Mobile Robot Development Environments [17] Small development platforms [17.1] What is the Miniboard? [17.2] What is the F1 Board? [17.3] What is the Bot Board? [18] What is the XXX Microcontroller? [18.1] Motorola 68XX [18.2] Motorola 683xx [18.3] Intel 80C186 [18.4] Intel 8051 [18.5] Intel 8096 [18.6] Microchip PIC16/17 [18.7] Parallax BASIC Stamp [18.8] National Semiconductor LM628/629 [18.9] Hewlett-Packard HCTL 1000, 2000 [18.10] Motor Drivers [19] Acknowledgements _____________________________________________________________________________ [0] Errata This section provides details on finding the comp.robotics FAQ and gives pointers to other FAQs related to robotics. [0.1] Where to find this FAQ and comp.robotics archives [0.1.1] Information for New Users of the Internet. If you haven't done so, new users on the net should read news:news.announce.newusers. In particular, the following posts are a good idea: -A Primer on How to Work With The Usenet Community -Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About Usenet -Hints on Writing Style for Usenet This FAQ is currently posted to comp.answers, news.answers and comp.robotics. All posts to news.answers are archived and are available via anonymous FTP and e-mail from the following locations: The World Wide Web: WorldWideWeb (W3 or WWW) is the universe of network-accessible information, an initiative started at CERN, now with many participants. It has a body of software, and a set of protocols and conventions. W3 uses hypertext and multimedia techniques to make the web easy for anyone to roam, browse, and contribute to. Future evolution of W3 is coordinated by the W3 Organization. The W3 has grown into an extraordinary means of finding information about organizations, people, companies, products and many, many other things. Many browsers have been developed to search the net. Some of the most popular are Mosaic, MacWeb and Netscape. If you are not using the Web or browsers: Learn! The WWW is already a main source of information on the net and it is very easy to use with the browsing and surfing tools now available. Within the robotics community it is already providing robotic tools, images, videos, teleoperation and observation. The following is a general introduction to the WWW: http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html If you have electronic mail, then it possible (though slow!) to get W3 information by mail. try sending a mail to listserv@info.cern.ch with a line in it saying just HELP to get back instructions. Your mail system must have a mail gateway onto internet mail, but that is quite likely. You might have to take the internet address above and ask your friendly system manager how to convert it into the equivalent mail address on the system you are using. Ways to get the FAQ: HTML: Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) is a description language for the Webpages on the net. It provides links and pointers to other Web pages as well as formatting the documents. Jason Almeter at Indiana Univ has converted the c.r. FAQ to html format. Go to the Table of Contents at: http://www.cs.indiana.edu/robotics/FAQ/copy.html OSU has a very useful site for all the usenet FAQs: http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/FAQ-List.html FTP: FTP is a way of copying file between networked computers. If you need help in using or getting started with FTP, send e-mail to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with send usenet/news.answers/ftp-list/faq as the body of the message. ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq part1, part2, part3, part4, part5 Internet address: 18.181.0.24 ftp://ftp.uu.net/archive/usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq part1.Z, part2.Z [use uncompress] Internet address: 137.39.1.9 ftp://nic.switch.ch/info_service/Usenet/periodic-postings [Check info_service/Usenet/00index for filenames] Internet address: 130.59.1.40 ftp://ftp.cs.cmu.edu/user/nivek/ftp/robotics-faq part1, part2, part3, part4, part5 128.2.206.173 E-mail: Send email to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu containing these lines: send usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part1 send usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part2 send usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part3 send usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part4 send usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part5 Archives: There are a number of sites in the US, Europe and Japan that store the FAQ and archives for comp.robotics. You can find these by using the Internet search programs, Archie, Gopher or Wais. Archives of comp.robotics and many AI-related newsgroups can now be found in appropriate subdirectories of ftp://ftp.cs.cmu.edu:/user/ai/pubs/news/ or more directly for comp.robotics at: ftp://ftp.cs.cmu.edu/user/ai/pubs/news/comp.robotics/0.html Each of these newsgroups is being automatically archived on a weekly basis. For example, the gzipped tar file 94_10_08.tgz in the comp.lang.lisp/ subdirectory contains all articles that appeared in the comp.lang.lisp newsgroup during the previous week. Links to these archives also exist in many of the topical directories of the CMU AI Repository (e.g., /user/ai/lang/lisp/news/ contains links to Lisp-related newsgroups). The archives for most of the newsgroups start with articles appearing on 23-JUL-94. Comments and suggestions should be sent to ai+news-archives@cs.cmu.edu. The following site, ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html indexes not only the CMU AI archives of newsgroups, but over a hundred other publicly-accessible sites. Another location is: ftp://wilma.cs.brown.edu/pub/comp.robotics/ In addition to the FTP archive maintained at wilma.cs.brown.edu, there are a couple of other mechanisms available: - The comp.robotics archive at wilma is also available as a WAIS source (called "comp.robotics.src"), and hence it is also available to WWW browsers, via the appropriate WAIS gateway. - Moises Lejter maintains a mailing list of individuals who would rather receive comp.robotics via Email as a daily digest of all messages posted to comp.robotics in each 24-hour period. Anyone interested should send email directly to . It's a LOT of mail though... ____________________________________________________________________________ [0.2] Related FAQ's and Mailing Lists There are a number of newsgroups with topics related to robotics. These include: comp.ai.* comp.realtime sci.electronics sci.virtual worlds, rec.metalworking (fabrication) In a number of the sections of this faq are locations of related materials on the net. Most regularly posted FAQ's can be found at rtfm.mit.edu (rtfm is an acronym for Read The #$%*! Manual) ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/ where is the name of a given newsgroup. Or on the www: http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/FAQ-List.html See the Microcontroller section for several other FAQs related to a variety of microcontrollers. ------------------------------ Mailing Lists av-mcm (Autonomous Vehicle - Mine Counter Measure) mailing list. This mailing list was created to provide a professional forum for exchange of information about R & D in connection with the use of autonomous vehicles and associated work packages and control concepts in the tasks of mine (or hazardous materials) clearance on land, in the sea, or from the air and space. We wish to include individuals from the armed services, industry, federal sponsors of research, and the academic community. Subscribers from the international community are welcome. To subscribe to the mailing list send a message to av-mcm-request@stl.nps.navy.mil without a subject line. In the message body type subscribe av-mcm your-email-address This is an open, unmoderated mailing list. Once subscribed, you may send messages directly to the list (there is no active moderator who screens messages before they are posted). To post a message to the list (which will be delivered to all members) use the address av-mcm@stl.nps.navy.mil To send a message to the list manager only use the address av-mcm-request@stl.nps.navy.mil To find out more about this mailing list such as where old messages are archived, and who subscribes to the list send a message to av-mcm-request@stl.nps.navy.mil leave the subject line blank and then type Help in the first line of text. You should receive an email response soon. ------------------------------ nanomech-l mailing list nanomech-l: A new list for discussing the extension of micromechanical technology to nanometer precision (1 micron and below), high frequency agile manufacturing and robotics using high-precision parts, and techniques for the assembly of micro- and nanomechanical devices. Possible topics include: * actuation & control mechanisms (piezo, acoustic, etc.) * parts and subsystems (electrostatic bearings, springs, ratchets, etc.) * contact-free, high-frequency, high-DOF electromagnetic and electrostatic actuators * nanometer precision parts testing, sorting, and selection systems * nanometer precision assembly operations & mechanical designs for assembly machines * high-precision registration (peg & hole, STM & atomic ruler, etc.) * nanometer precision lithographic techniques (SAMS, high proximity e-beam, tip arrays, high precision 3D lithography, etc.) * materials for nanolithography (silicon, diamond, monodisperse nanophase, Langmuir-Blodgett films, self-assembling molecular structures, etc.) * nanometer precision machining and finishing techniques (e-beam, AFM, "sanding", etc.) The nanomech-l list is run automatically off majordomo. To subscribe send mail to listserv@netcom.com with the first line "subscribe nanomech-l". ____________________________________________________________________________ [1] What is robotics? In this section we define the words 'robot' and 'robotics' and look a little at the history of robots. ------------------------------ [1.1] What is the definition of a 'robot'? A reprogrammable, multifunctional manipulator designed to move material, parts, tools, or specialized devices through various programmed motions for the performance of a variety of tasks" Robot Institute of America, 1979 Obviously, this was a committee-written definition. It's rather dry and uninspiring. Better ones for 'robotics' might include: Force through intelligence. Where AI meet the real world. Webster says: An automatic device that performs functions normally ascribed to humans or a machine in the form of a human. ------------------------------ [1.2] Where did the word 'robot' come from? The word 'robot' was coined by the Czech playwright Karel Capek (pronounced "chop'ek") from the Czech word for forced labor or serf. Capek was reportedly several times a candidate for the Nobel prize for his works and very influential and prolific as a writer and playwright. Mercifully, he died before the Gestapo got to him for his anti-Nazi sympathies in 1938. The use of the word Robot was introduced into his play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) which opened in Prague in January 1921. The play was an enormous success and productions soon opened throughout Europe and the US. R.U.R's theme, in part, was the dehumanization of man in a technological civilization. You may find it surprising that the robots were not mechanical in nature but were created through chemical means. In fact, in an essay written in 1935, Capek strongly fought that this idea was at all possible and, writing in the third person, said: "It is with horror, frankly, that he rejects all responsibility for the idea that metal contraptions could ever replace human beings, and that by means of wires they could awaken something like life, love, or rebellion. He would deem this dark prospect to be either an overestimation of machines, or a grave offence against life." [The Author of Robots Defends Himself - Karl Capek, Lidove noviny, June 9, 1935, translation: Bean Comrada] There is some evidence that the word robot was actually coined by Karl's brother Josef, a writer in his own right. In a short letter, Capek writes that he asked Josef what he should call the artifical workers in his new play. Karel suggests Labori, which he thinks too 'bookish' and his brother mutters "then call them Robots" and turns back to his work, and so from a curt response we have the word robot. R.U.R is found in most libraries. The most common English translation is that of P. Selver from the 1920's which is not completely faithful to the original. A more recent and accurate translation is in a collection of Capek's writings called Towards the Radical Center published by Catbird Press in North Haven, CT. tel: 203.230.2391 The term 'robotics' refers to the study and use of robots. The term was coined and first used by the Russian-born American scientist and writer Isaac Asimov (born Jan. 2, 1920, died Apr. 6, 1992). Asimov wrote prodigiously on a wide variety of subjects. He was best known for his many works of science fiction. The most famous include I Robot (1950), The Foundation Trilogy (1951-52), Foundation's Edge (1982), and The Gods Themselves (1972), which won both the Hugo and Nebula awards. The word 'robotics' was first used in Runaround, a short story published in 1942. I, Robot, a collection of several of these stories, was published in 1950. Asimov also proposed his three "Laws of Robotics", and he later added a 'zeroth law'. -Law Zero: A robot may not injure humanity, or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm. -Law One: A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm, unless this would violate a higher order law. -Law Two: (a) A robot must obey orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with a higher order law. -Law Three: A robot mus protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with a higher order law. An interesting article on this subject: Clarke, Roger, "Asimov's Laws for Robotics: Implications for Information Technology", Part 1 and Part 2, Computer, December 1993, pp. 53-61 and Computer, January 1994, pp.57-65. The article is an interesting discussion of his Laws and how they came to be in his books, and the implications for technology today and in the future. ------------------------------ [1.3] When did robots, as we know them today, come into existence? The first industrial modern robots were the Unimates developed by George Devol and Joe Engleberger in the late 50's and early 60's. The first patents were by Devol for parts transfer machines. Engleberger formed Unimation and was the first to market robots. As a result, Engleberger has been called the 'father of robotics.' Modern industrial arms have increased in capability and performance through controller and language development, improved mechanisms, sensing, and drive systems. In the early to mid 80's the robot industry grew very fast primarily due to large investments by the automotive industry. The quick leap into the factory of the future turned into a plunge when the integration and economic viability of these efforts proved disastrous. The robot industry has only recently recovered to mid-80's revenue levels. In the mean time there has been an enormous shakeout in the robot industry. In the US, for example, only one US company, Adept, remains in the production industrial robot arm business. Most of the rest went under, consolidated, or were sold to European and Japanese companies. In the research community the first automata were probably Grey Walter's machina (1940's) and the John's Hopkins beast. Teleoperated or remote controlled devices had been built even earlier with at least the first radio controlled vehicles built by Nikola Tesla in the 1890's. Tesla is better known as the inventor of the induction motor, AC power transmission, and numerous other electrical devices. Tesla had also envisioned smart mechanisms that were as capable as humans. An excellent biography of Tesla is Margaret Cheney's Tesla, man out of time, Published by Prentice-Hall, c1981. SRI's Shakey navigated highly structured indoor environments in the late 60's and Moravec's Stanford Cart was the first to attempt natural outdoor scenes in the late 70's. From that time there has been a proliferation of work in autonomous driving machines that cruise at highway speeds and navigate outdoor terrains in commercial applications. Articles on the history of personal robots: What ever happened to ... Personal Robots? by Stan Veit The Computer Shopper, Nov 1992 v12 n11 p794(2) What ever happened to ... Personal Robots? (part 2) by Stan Veit Computer Shopper, April 1993 v13 n4 p702(2) I have the text to these online but am trying to find out if I can include these as part of the FAQ or as separate files that are ftpable. ____________________________________________________________________________ [2] Where can I find robotics resources on the net? Within this FAQ are a wide variety of URL's and pointers to ftp sites for robotics resources. There are a few URL's that go beyond this and some of those are presented here: ------------------------------ Robotics Internet Resource Page: This is an excellent source of pointers to a wide variety of Robotics related work on the Internet. This includes files, video, images, teleoperation etc etc. - Use your favorite browser (Mosaic, Netscape, MacWeb etc. to check it out) http://piglet.cs.umass.edu:4321/robotics.html ------------------------------ European Robotics Archive: Eurobots is an archive dedicated to storage of robotics related information. It can be accessed via WWW at http://cswww.essex.ac.uk/Eurobots or ftp://ftp.essex.ac.uk/pub/robots. In addition to holding a collection of general information, the WWW version has "Hot Links" to useful documents (such as this FAQ!) and pointers to other mobile robot sites. There is also a dedicated section for those working in Europe. This archive is intended to provide a service to all mobile robot developers, so check it out and send us material that others might find useful, or give us your suggestions for improvement. ------------------------------ Virtual Reality (VR) related: For sci.virtual-worlds: ftp://milton.u.washington.edu/public/virtual-worlds cheap-vr Also see: ftp://ftp.ipa.fhg.de//pub/VIRTUAL_REALITY/WWW/hmepage.html There are papers, productsheets, publications and information. ------------------------------ Tutorial and Overview of Estimation and Navigation work at Notre-Dame [I highly recommend this - it is an excellent use of the www and a well-done overview of the work. - nivek] http://www.nd.edu/NDInfo/Research/sskaar/Home.html Part I: Camera Space Manipulation Part I relates to the positioning of a rigid body in three-dimensional space relative to a specific, second body accomplished with either a holonomic system, such as a typical industrial robot, or a nonholonomic system, such as a forklift. Part II: Estimation Based Navigation Relates to the navigation of a vehicle relative to a known environment such as a home, office, or warehouse. ____________________________________________________________________________ [3] Robotics Organizations There are a number of organizations and societies related to robotics. Some are related specifically to industry, several to academia and a number of hobbyist groups. In addition, a number of the groups, such as the ASME or IEEE, (see below) are very large organizations and robotics is one of many sub-disciplines in their respective fields. Many of these organizations also have periodicals associated with robotics. [3.1] Robotics Related Organizations [3.2] Robotics Associations of Many Countries [3.3] Robotics Clubs ------------------------------ [3.1] Robotics Related Organizations Advanced Robot Technology Research Association (Japan) Kikai-shinko Bldg 3-5-8 Shiba-Kohen, Minato-ku, Tokyo tel: (03) 434-0532 fax: (03) 434-0217 Has joint research programs with member companies. Members are 20 or so Japanese companies including: Ishikawajima-Harima, Oki Electric, Kawasaki Heavy Industry, Kobe Steel, Komatsu, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Toshiba, JGC, NEC, Hitachi, Fanuc, Fujitsu, Fuji, Matshushita Research Institute, Mitsui, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi Electric, Yaskawa American Society of Mechanical Engineers, (ASME) 345 E. 47th Street New York, NY 10017 Mechanical Engineering magazine, like the IEEE's Spectrum, is an excellent general publication on aspects of mechanical engineering. There are often publications on robotics and the ASME sponsors a number of other publications and conferences that are relevant to robotics. The ASME also has a BBS service, MechEng, with an email server. send email to with 'send info' in the body. Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems (AUVS) 1735 North Lynn Street Suite 950 Arlington, VA 22209-2022 tel: 703.524.6646 fax: 703.524.2303 Promoting worldwide advancement of unmanned vehicle systems. Membership includes subscription to Unmanned Systems magazine, AUVS News Bulletin, regional seminars, annual symposium and trade show, and other opportunities. AUVS also sponsors an annual aerial Robotics Competition. See Conference announcements for more details. or see: http://cwis.usc.edu/dept/robotics/other/auvsarc/auvsarc.html and ftp://usc.edu/pub/nn_robotics/other/auvsarc/ Also auvsarc-request@robotics.usc.edu Student membership: $15/year Educational Institutions/Libraries $100/year Individual: $40/year Corporate memberships also available. Center for Autonomous and Man-controlled Robotic and Sensing Systems Charles Jacobus, CAMRSS director ERIM PO Box 8618 Ann Arbor, MI 48107 tel: 313.994.1200 X2457 Member companies include: Ball Aerospace, Coulter Electronics, ERIM, Fairchild, Ford Aerospace, Geospectra, Grumman, Industrial Technology Institute, KMS Fusion, Michigan State, UofM. American Insitute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW Washington, DC 20024 tel: 202.646.7400 tel: 212.247.6500 (Technical Information Service) Conferences and publications, several cover automation technologies for servicing on the ground and in space as well as exploration. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Service Center 445 Hoes Lane Piscataway, NJ 08854-4150 tel: 201.981.0060 tel: 800.678.IEEE net: ftp://ftp.ieee.org/ A large organization with hundreds of publications including journals, transactions, Spectrum, sponsoring conferences, workshops and meetings. IEEE membership is $95 regular ($23 students) For membership in the IEEE Computer Society, add $22. $20 for IEEE Expert (Intelligent Systems and their Applications) $12 for Transactions on Neural Networks $12 for Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics $15 for Transactions on Robotics and Automation $19 for Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering $24 for Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine IntelligenceIEEE The International Society for Optical Engineering, (SPIE) P.O.Box 10 Bellingham, Washington 98227-0010. tel: 206.676.3290 (PST) fax: 206.647.1445 tlx: 46-7053 net: spie@mom.spie.org ftp://mom.spie.org/ SPIE has publications, meetings and conferences in the field of intelligent robots, mobile robots, teleoperation, machine vision, etc. SPIE is a nonprofit society dedicated to advancing engineering and scientific applications of optical, electro-optical, and optoelectronic instrumentation, systems and technology. Its members are scientists, engineers, and users interested in the reduction to practice of these technologies. SPIE provides the means for communicating new developments and applications to the scientific, engineering, and user communities through its publications, symposia, and short courses. SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering, has started up four new listservers, covering robotics, fiber optics, optical computing and processing, and optomechanical engineering/instrument design. This brings the total to eight (see list below). SPIE maintains several e-mail Listserver Groups dedicated to various technical specialties. These groups are a way for colleagues to share information, solve problems, and discuss issues related to their interests. While the topics are tied to the various International Technical Working Groups of SPIE, membership is not required to join a listserver group. Currently available e-mail listservers maintained by SPIE: Listname Group -------- ----- info-bios BiOS (Biomedical Optics Society) info-ei Electronic Imaging info-holo Holography info-adopt Adaptive Optics info-fibers Fiber Optics info-opcom Optical Computing and Processing info-robo Robotics info-optomech Optomechanical and Instrument Design To subscribe to one of these groups, send an e-mail message to info-optolink-request@mom.spie.org and include the words: subscribe info-listname in the message body area, where listname matches one of the names listed above. For a complete set of instructions, send a message to info-optolink-request@mom.spie.org with the word HELP in the message body. For an up-to-date list of SPIE listserver groups at any time, send the word LISTS to the same address. The Material Handling Institute 8720 Red Oak Blvd, Suite 201 Charlotte, NC 28217 Primary robotics focus is on AGV's. National Service Robots Association (NSRA) 900 Victors Way PO Box 3724 Ann Arbor, MI 48106 tel: 313.994.6088 An organization devoted to robots other than on the factory floor. Robotics Industry Association (RIA) (same address as NSRA) Society of Manufacturing Engineers, (SME) One SME Drive PO Box 930 Dearborn, MI 48121 tel: 313.271.1500 Utility/Manufacturer Robot Users group (UMRUG) Contact: Harry T. Roman MC: 16-H Public Service Electric and Gas Company 80 Park Plaza PO Box 570 Newark, NJ 07101 tel: 201.430.6646 ------------------------------ [3.2] Robotics Associations of Many Countries Compilied from a list provided by the British Robot Association. Alphabatized by English spelling of country. Australian Robot Association Inc G.P.O. Box 1527 SYDNEY 2001 New South Wales Australia Contact: Mr Michael Kassler tel: +61-2-959-32-39 fax: +61-2-959-46-32 Osterreichisches Forschungszentrum Seibersdorf GmbH Hauptabteilung Fertigungstechnik und Automation A-2444 SEIBERSDORF Austria Contact: Mr Erwin Fugger tel: +43-2254-80-22-13 fax: +43-2254-80-21-18 SOBRACON - Sociedade Brasileira de Comando Numerico, Automazacao e Computacao Grafica Rua General Jardim, 645-7 andar, cjto.72 01223 011 - Sao Paulo, SP Brazil Contact: Mr. Arnaldo Pereira Ribeiro tel: +55-11-256-1192 / 258 3320 fax: +55-11-256-94-96 British Robot Association (BRA) BRA Aston Science Park Love Lane Birmingham B7 4BJ England tel: +44 (0)21-628 1745 fax: +44 (0)21-628 1746 Meetings, newsletters, information, contacts, sponsor of several events in the UK. Individual and Student rate is 60 pounds UK. "Robot" Interindustry Research and Production Association (MNTK "Robot") Izmailovskaya sq.,7 MOSCOW - Russia CIS Contact: Mr. Vladimir P Stepanov tel: +7-095-367-85-36 fax: +7-095-367-88-81 China Society of Industrial Automation & Automated Industries 8, 7F, Tun Hwa N. Rd. TAIPEI - China Contact: Mr. Chen, Chen-Chang tel: +886-2-751-34-68 fax: +886-2-781-77-90 Danish Industrial Robot Association (DIRA) Teknologiparken DK-8000 AARHUS C Denmark Contact: Mr. John Nielsen tel: +45-86-14-24-00 fax: +45-86-14-43-55 Robotics Society in Finland c/o Suomen Automaation Tuki Oy Asemapaallikonk. 12 C FIN-00520 HELSINKI Finland tel: +358-0-146-1644 fax: +358-0-146-1650 Contact: Mr. Hannu Lehtinen e-mail: Hannu.Lehtinen@vtt.fi Fachgemeinschaft MHI im VDMA P.O. Box 71 08 64 D-6000 FRANKFURT (MAIN) 71 Germany Contact: Mr. Berndt Knoerr tel: +49-69-66-03-466 fax: +49-69-66-03-459 IPA Nobelstrasse 12 D-7000 STUTTGART 80 Germany Contact: Mr Rolf D Schraft tel:+49-711-970-12-00 fax: +49-711-970-13-99 Association Francaise de Robotique Industrielle (AFRI) Tour 66 4, Place Jussieu F-75252 PARIS CEDEX 05 France Contact: Mr. Arnauld Laffaille tel: +33-1-44-27-62-12 fax: +33-1-44-27-62-14 Hungarian Robotics Association c/o Tungsram T.H. Co.Ltd. Centre of Robotics and Automation H-1340 Budapest IV., Vaci ut 77 Hungary Contact: Dr. Jozsef K. Tar tel: +36-1-169-6144 fax: +36-1-169-6144 Government of India Ministry of Science & Technology Dept. of Science & Technology Technology Bhavan New Mehrauli Road New Delhi-110 016 India Contact: Mr. A.N.N. Murthy, Director tel: +91-11-662-260, 654-793 fax: +91-11-616-2418 SIRI - Associazione Italiana di Robotica c/o ETAS Periodici Via Mecenate 91 I-20138 MILANO Italy Contact: Mr Daniele Fabrizi tel: +39-2-580-842-24 fax: +39-2-554-003-88 Japan Industrial Robot Association c/o Kikaishinko Bldg 3-5-8, Shibakoen, Minato-Ku TOKYO Japan Contact: Mr Kanji Yonemoto tel: +81-3-3434-2919 fax: +81-3-3578-1404 KIST - Korea Institute of Science and Technology P.O. Box 131, Cheongryang Seoul Korea Contact: Mr. Chun Sik-lee tel: +82-2-967-3505, 963-4497 fax: +82-2-969-1763 Meininger Automation bv P.O. Box 743 NL-2280 AS RIJSWIJK Netherlands Contact: Mr Jack B Eijlers tel: +31-70-340-17-80 fax: +31-70-340-1602 Federation of Norwegian Engineering Industries (TBL) Box 7072 - H N-0306 OSLO 3 Norway Contact: Mr Johan Ulleland tel: +47-2-46-58-20 fax: +47-2-46-18-38 Polish Federation of Engineering Associations (NOT) Czackiego Str 3/5 PL-00950 WARSZAWA Poland Contact: Mr. Kazimierz Wawrzyniak tel: +48-22-26-87-31 fax: +48-22-27-29-49 Singapore Industrial Automation Association (SIAA) 151 Chin Swee Road #03-13 Manhattan House SINGAPORE 0316 Singapore Contact: Mr Stephen Teng tel: +65-734-69-11 fax: +65-235-57-21 MVVZ Robot Nam. Legionarov 3 CZ-080 01 PRESOV Slovakia Contact: Mr Vladimir Cop tel: +42-91-235-77 fax: +42-91-231-95 "J. Stefan" Institute Jamova 39 61000 Ljubljana Slovenia Contact: Mr Jadran Lenarcic tel: +38-61-159-199 fax: +38-61-161-029, 273-677 Asociacion Espanola de Robotica Rambla de Catalunya 70, 3r 2a E-08007 BARCELONA Spain Contact: Mr Luis Basanez tel: +34-3-215-57-60 fax: +34-3-215-23-07 Swedish Industrial Robot Association (SWIRA) Box 5506 S-114 85 STOCKHOLM Sweden Contact: Mr Thomas Hardenby tel: +46-8-783-80-00 fax: +46-8-660-33-78 Schweizerische Gesellschaft fur Automatik, Arbeitsgruppe Robotik Postgasse 17 CH-3011 BERN Switzerland Contact: Mr Charles Giroud tel: +41-31-21-22-51 fax: +41-31-21-12-50 British Robot Association (BRA) Aston Science Park, Love Lane Aston Triangle BIRMINGHAM B7 4BJ United Kingdom Contact: Mr. Donald Pitt tel: +44-21-628-17-45 fax: +44-21-628-17-46 Robotic Industries Assoc (RIA) P.O. Box 3724 ANN ARBOR, MI 48106 USA Contact: Mr. Donald A. Vincent tel: 1-313-994-6088 fax: 1-313-994-3338 Secretariat of IFR c/o Sveriges Verkstadsindustrier Box 5506 S-114 85 STOCKHOLM Swden Contact: Mr Lennart Djupmark Mrs Kerstin Teglof Delgado tel: +46-8-783-80-00 or +46-8-783-82-08 fax: +46-8-660-33-78 ------------------------------ [3.3] Robotics Clubs The original computer club in Silicon Valley was the Homebrew computer club, out of which evolved a major portion of the personal computer industry. In that spirit, if not the hope for history repeating itself, a number of robotics societies and clubs have sprung up. Maintainer of this list: Ed Severinghaus listserver: send message "get society" to info@sfrsa.com listserver or "help" for list of other options Atlanta Hobby Robotics Association P.O. Box 2050 Stone Mountain, GA 30086 tel: 404.972.7082 fax: 404.979.3660,,,11 net: bbs: Robots R4U 404.978.7300 - 300-14400 - 8N1 - 24hrs - 7days Supporting Hobby Robot activity in Atlanta and more. Source of "Robot Hobby; The Complete Manual, for Individuals and Clubs" See Books Section. The Robot Group PO Box 164334 Austin, TX 78716 tel: 512.794.9105 net: gopher://gopher.cs.utexas.edu/Other Interesting Gophers/Robogopher Connecticut Robotics Society c/o Jake Mendelssohn Jake.Mendelssohn@circellar.com 190 Mohegan Drive West Hartford, CT 06117 tel: 203.233.2379 The Dallas Personal Robotics Group Dallas Personal Robotics Group c/o Eric Yundt - President 5112 Hardaway Circle The Colony, TX 75056 Voice #: 214-625-4454 Fax #: 214-612-2035 Email: eric@sssi.com garap@utdallas.edu srainwater@ncc.com BBS: The Interociter BBS 214-258-1832 LA Area Robotics and Automation Group Los Angeles, CA If you wish to subscribe to the mailing list, please send a message to: listproc@cad.ucla.edu with a blank Subject: line and the body of the message reading: subscribe la-ragroup [David Lee e-mail: dlee@cs.ucla.edu] Palo Alto Homebrew Robotics Club c/o Richard Prather 91 Roosevelt Circle Palo Alto, CA 94306 Portland Area Robotics Society (PARTS) 821 SW 14th Troutdale, OR 97060 tel: 503.666.5907. net: marvin@agora.rdrop.com contact: Marvin Green The purpose of the Portland Area Robotics Society is to support and promote the development of personal robotics, and to facilitate the exchange of information between robot enthusiasts. P.A.R.T.S will help provide practical and technical assistance to its members, by promoting experimentation, construction, discussions, seminars, exhibitions, and contests, in the field of hobby robotics. Membership to P.A.R.T.S shall be open to all persons, who are interested in learning more about robotics, and furthering the objectives of the club. To get the most from P.A.R.T.S, active participation is wholeheartedly encouraged. After all, you only get out of it what you put into it. Membership is $20 a year and includes the PARTS newsletter. PARTS also has a newsletter that focuses on robotics for the hobbyist. Each issue contains valuable information on electronics, microcontrollers, sensors, hardware construction and software for robotics. You can obtain a set of twelve newsletters for only $9.95. This includes shipping and handling. The Robot Group - Alex Iles, President POB 164334 Austin, TX 78716 tel: 512.288.9135 net: robot-group@cs.utexas.edu net: gopher://gopher.cs.utexas.edu/Other Interesting Gophers/Robogopher Robotics Society of Southern California c/o Jerry Burton, President 10471 S. Brookhurst Anaheim, CA 92804 714-535-8161 Robotics Society BBS at (714) 538-0614 jbpir2@aol.com Robotics Club of Maryland Computer Science Dept. A.V. Williams Bldg. (115) University of Maryland College Park, Md. 20742-3255 contact: Stephen Klueter, President net: robotics group President/founder: Franco Arteseros 13702 East Lehigh Ave, unit E. Aurora, CO 80014 tel: 303.680.9324 The Robotics Society of America PO Box 1205 Danville, CA 94526-1205 tel:415.550.0588 fax: 415.550.0411 bbs: 415.648.6427 (supports 14.4Kb) net: Subscription to SFRSA "Magazine" The normal subscription rate will be $25 for 12 monthly issues. Rochester Institue of Technology Brace Peters, President robotics@ritvax.isc.rit.edu RIT Robotics Club An RIT recognized club. 1502 Grace Watson Hall Rochester, New York 14623 meetings are held every Sunday, 7:00 pm in building 09, room 2139 (Gleason building) San Francisco Robotics Society of America Brad Smallridge, Director bsmall@sfrsa.com P.O.Box 1205 Danvile, CA 94526-1205 415-550-0588 BBS 415-648-6427, 14.4K N81 Seattle Robotics Society c/o Jeff Sandys P.O.Box 30668 Seattle, WA 98103-0668 206-782-5989 (8AM-9PM PST, ask for Bob) Triangle Amateur Robotics Club P.O. Box 17523 Raleigh, NC 27619 tel: 919.782.8703 net: sasrer@unx.sas.com (Rodney Radford) tel: 919.677.8001 x7703 hme: 919.469.9359 Meets first Monday of every month at 7:30pm on NCSU campus (110 Clark Lab) Twin Cities Robotics/AI Group St Paul, Minnesota Contact: Alan Kilian, (612)683-5499 tcrobots@cray.com kilian@cray.com via Mosaic: http://lenti.med.umn.edu/~mwd/robot.html University of North Carolina Asheville Robotics Club contact: Paul Schuh Home phone: (704) 645-6165 schuh@phys.unca.edu A related group: MicroMechanics Information Clearinghouse Requests to join list are sent to: FTP site: ftp://mems.isi.edu/ directories: /pub/prm, /pub/prospero, /pub/mems, /pub/papers WWW-URL: http://mems.isi.edu/mems ----- Robot related performance art: Survival Research Laboratories 1458-C San Bruno Ave. San Francisco, CA 94110 tel/fax: 415.641.8065 contact: SRL director Mark Pauline net: Survival Research Laboratories is a not-for-profit machine- performance art group conceived of and founded by Mark Pauline in November 1978. Since its inception SRL has operated as an organization of creative technicians dedicated to re-directing the techniques, tools, and tenets of industry, science, and the military away from their typical manifestations in practicality, product or warfare. Since 1979, SRL has staged over 45 mechanized presentations in the United States and Europe. Each performance consists of a unique set of ritualized interactions between machines, robots, and special effects devices, employed in developing themes of socio-political satire. Humans are present only as audience or operators. Survival Research Laboratories is now available for email and time-restricted Gopher and anonymous FTP access from 0000-0600 PST daily. [NOTE TIME RESTRICTION!]: ftp://srl.org/pub/SRLImageBank and ftp://srl.org/pub/SRLInfo The directory holds scanned-in photographs and video images of SRL shows in GIF format; SRLInfo has news. Image file sizes range from 70 to 250 Kbytes, but our link speed is only 9600 baud; please be patient. Always select BINARY mode before FTP file transfers. Filenames can be specified in upper or lower case. Comments or questions to support@srl.org. Joel Plutchak has a WWW mirror site for SRL at: http://lager.geo.brown.edu:8080/pub/srl/ ftp://lager.geo.brown.edu There are two SRL tapes carried by Media Magic - a company that has all sorts of great books, programs, CD-ROMs, laser disks, videos, etc dealing with computers in science and art. The tapes are: #v112a The Pleasures Of Unihibited Excess ($30) and #v112b The Will To Provoke ($25) Media Magic P.O. Box 598 Nicasio, CA 94946 tel: 415.662.2426 or orders tel: 800.882.8284 __________________________________________________________________________ [4] What Robotics Related Periodicals and Publications are there? [4.1] Magazines, Journals, Newsletters [4.1.1] Robotics Publications [4.1.2] Trade magazines [4.1.3] Other sources [4.2] Books, Online Information and Videos [4.2.1] Books [4.2.2] CDROMS [4.2.3] Magazine Articles [4.2.4] Online Technical Reports ------------------------------ [4.1] Magazines, Journals, Newsletters There are a number of academic journals and trade magazines devoted to robotics. There are no magazines currently devoted to the hobbyist or designer of robotic mechanisms. In the 1980's Robotics Engineering (nee Robotics Age) lasted for 7-8 years but folded. The one difficulty I noted as a subscriber was that the magazine attempted to address the hobbyist, the curious and those whose work was devoted to robotics without successfully catering to all groups. ----- [4.1.1] Robotics Publications This list of periodical covers the academic journals, the trade magazines devoted to both robotics and relevant sub-areas, and the lone newsletter for hobbyists. Advanced Robotics (in English) The International Journal of the Robotics Society of Japan. ISSN 0169-1864 Editor-in-Chief, Robotics Society of Japan, 6FL. Bunkyo-Shogaku Bldg., 1-15-4, Hongu, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113, Japan. Subscriptions and orders: VSP, PO. Box 346, 3700 AH Zeist, The Netherlands. Bimonthly, DM525 (1993 price). Automation in Construction Publisher: Elsevier Science Publisher B. V., Amsterdam. Desk Editor: Erik de Vries The Editor of the journal is Dr. T. Michael Knasel 10324 Lake Avenue Cleveland, OH 441102-1239. fax: 216.651.5136. Autonomous Robots ISSN 0929-5593 Kluwer Academic Publishers Journal Dept PO Box 358, Accord Station Hingham, MA 02018-0358 tel: 617.871.6600 fax: 617.871.6528 subscription: $50/individual Vol 1, 1994 (2 issues) Editor-in-chief George Bekey Industrial Robot ISSN 0143-991X Quarterly, $145/year MCB University Press Ltd. 62 Toller Lane Bradford, West Yorkshire England, BD8 9BY tel: (44) 274 499821, fax: (44) 274 547143 --in the US MCB University Press Ltd. PO Box 10812 Birmingham, AL 35201-0812 tel: 1-800-633-4931 (1-205-995-1567), fax: 1-205-995-1588 Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) The IEEE has a formidable array of journals, transactions and magazines. Here are a few that are relevant to robotics work: IEEE Transactions on Robotics and Automation IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics IEEE Control Systems Magazine IEEE Computer Magazine IEEN Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics Cost: Have to join IEEE and then subscribe. Student rates are much less expensive than non-student rates. International Journal of Robotics and Automation Published 4 times annually. ISSN 0826-8185 ACTA Press, PO Box 354, CH-8053, Zurich, Switzerland or ACTA Press, PO Box 2481, Anaheim, CA 92814. Subscriptions: $165 US or 313.50 SFr. ($12 US or 22.80 SFr postage and handling). A special rate is available to members of IASTED. International Journal of Robotics Research (IJRR) MIT Press 28 Carleton Street Cambridge, MA 02142 Cost: $50/year to individuals Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems Three issues per volume, $58.50 per volume (individual) Kluwer Academic Publishers Group PO Box 322, 3300 AH Dordrecht, The Netherlands --in the US: PO Box 358 Accord Station, Hingham, MA 02018-0358 Journal of the Robotics Society of Japan Robotics Society of Japan 6Fl. Bunkyo Shogaku Bldg., 1-15-4 Hongo Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113, Japan tel: (03)3812-7594 fax: (03)3812-4628. The table of contents (TOC) are posted to comp.research.japan and comp.robotics as they are available, although there is some delay. All of the TOC for this and other Japanese CS journals are archived for anonymous FTP at ftp://cs.arizona.edu/japan/table.contents/robotics.TOC/jrsj.TOC Journal of Robotic Systems G. Beni and S. Hackwood, editors College of Engineering University of California, Riverside Riverside, CA 92521-0425 Publisher: Interscience Division Professional, Reference, and Trade Group John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 605 Third Ave. New York, NY 10158 Mechatronics (Mechanics, Electronics, Control) Editors-in-Chief: Dr. R. W. Daniel Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1-3PJ United Kingdom: tel: +44-865-273153 fax: +44-865-273153 Professor J. R. Hewit Engineering Design Institute Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Technology, Loughborough Leicestershire, LE11 3TU UNITED KINGDOM tel: +44-509-222936 fax: +44-509-268103) Published by Pergamon Press Ltd, Headington Hill Hall, Oxford OX3 0BW UK. 1993 subscription rates: 193 pounds Sterling (US $312) Personal subscription rates for those whose library subscribes at a regular rate are available on request. Subscription rates for Japan are available on request. Robot (Japanese) Industrial Robots and Application Systems published bimonthly Japan Industrial Robot Association (JIRA) Kikai-Shinko Building 3-5-8, Shiba-Kohen, Mina To-ku Tokyo, Japan tel: (03) 3434-2919 fax: (03) 3578-1404 Robot Explorer 'The newsletter of motile systems' ISSN: 1060-4375 Appropriate Solutions 145 Grove Street PO Box 458 Peterborough, NH 03458-0458 tel: 603.924.6079 fax: 603.924.9441 net: apsol@world.std.com $14.95/year in the US, $29.95 to the rest of the world. Robotica International Journal of Information, Education and Research in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Quarterly publication, US $179 per year! Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building Shaftesbury Road, Cambridge CB2 2RU (UK) in the US: Cambridge University Press Journals Department 40 West 20th Street New York, NY 10011-4211 Robotics and Autonomous Systems -- In Europe -- Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. Journals Department PO Box 211, 100 AE Amsterdam The Netherlands Editors in Chief: Prof. F.C.A. Groen University of Amsterdam Faculty of Mathematics and CS Dept. of Computer Systems Kruislaan 403 1098 SJ Amsterdam The Netherlands net: -- In the US and Canada -- Elsevier Science Publishing Co., Inc. Journal Information Center 655 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10010 Editor in Chief Prof. T.C. Henderson University of Utah Dept. of Computer Science 3160 Merrill Engineering Bldg. Salt Lake City, UT 84112 USA net: Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing Pergamon Press, ISSN 0736-5845 Editorial Office: Dr. Andre Sharon, Associate Editor, damien@mit.edu Subscriptions and orders: Elsevier Science Inc, 660 White Plains Road, Tarrytown, NY 10591-5153, USA or Elsevier Science Ltd, The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford, OX5 1GB, UK. Robotics Today Published by: Society of Manufacturing Engineers One SME Drive PO Box 930 Dearborn, MI 48121 tel: 313.271.1500 Robotics World "The end-user's magazine of flexible automation" Published quarterly Communication Channels 6255 Barfield Road Atlanta, GA 30328 tel: 404.256.9800 They also publish the Robotics World Directory $49.95 ----- InterLingua Retrieval Service InterLingua, an information retrieval and translation company, will be making available (starting January, 1995) at no cost the tables-of-contents of selected Japanese publications every month. This is part of a larger project in the science / technology arena that we are engaged in, so it is possible for us to make this information available at no obligation. T-O-Cs of Japanese publications in the computer/electronics cateogry will be posted on the Usenet group (comp.research.japan). However, other T-O-Cs can be delivered via e-mail to you if you contact us with your address and category preferences at the e-mail address below. (Sorry, we are unable to deliver via post office or fax). Below is a list of categories in which we are currently translating T-O-Cs and making them available at no cost. Should you have any other suggestions, please let us know. If there is sufficient interest in other categories, we will consider making arrangements with Japanese publishers. Tables-of-contents from Japanese magazines will be available in the following categories: 1. General engineering (robotics, materials, inventions & patents) 2. Mechanical engineering 3. Transportation engineering 4. Metal engineering 5. Chemistry and chemical engineering 6. Energy engineering 7. Nuclear engineering 8. Electrical engineering 9. Electronics and communication technology 10. Information science (software & hardware) Again, these are the subject areas in which InterLingua is currently engaged in translations and information retrieval. Any additional suggestions are more than welcome. To subscribe to our e-mail delivery service contact us by e-mail at: japanese@aol.com ------------------------------ [4.1.2] Trade Magazines Usually free, mostly ads or industry news. Many articles written by advertisers. Great sources of product information. Our lab at CMU receives 50-60 trade magazines and journals per month and while no one reads all of the articles, pointers are passed on to people around the lab. This keeps the group abreast of new products and developments. Advanced Imaging 445 Broad Hollow Rd. Melville, NY 11747 tel: 516.845.2700 fax: 516.845.2797 Subscription free to qualified professionals, $50/yr otherwise. ComputerCraft CQ Communications 76 N. Broadway Hicksville, NY 11801 tel: 516.681.2922 fax: 516.681.2926 cost: $18.97/yr ISSN: 1055-5072 Computer Applications Journal Circuit Cellar Inc. 4 Park St. Suite 20 Vernon, CT 06066 Subscriptions: P.O. Box 7694 Riverton, NJ 08077 tel: 203.875.2751 cost: $21.95/yr ISSN: 0896-8985 Excellent for those building hardware, programming microcontrollers, etc. Also a very good source for companies who have products in these areas. Design News Cahners Publishing Co. 275 Washington Street Newton, MA. 02158 News and Applications for design engineers. Cost: Free to qualified recipients; otherwise - ? EE Times CMP Publications, Inc. 600 Community Drive Manhasset, NY 11030 Cost: Free to qualified recipients (in the U.S.); otherwise - $159/yr (U.S. & Foreign) Electronic Design Penton Publishing Inc 1100 Superior Ave Cleveland, OH 44114-2543 611 Route #46 West Hasbrouck Heights, NJ 07604 tel: 201.393.6060 fax: 201.393.0204 cost: $95.00/yr (free if qualified) ISSN: 0013-4872 Electronics Now (formerly Radio Electronics) Gernsback Publications Inc Subscription Dept Box 55115 Boulder, CO 80321-5115 500-B Bi-County Boulevard Farmingdale, NY 11735 tel: 516.293.3000 cost: $19.97/yr ISSN: 0033-7862 Embedded Systems Programming Miller Freeman 600 Harrison St. San Francisco, CA 94107 tel: 800.829.5537 (customer service) tel: 415.905.2200 bbs: 415.905.2689. $49.95 for 12 issues Laser Focus World 10 Tara Blvd., Fifth Floor (Editorial Office) Nashua, NH 03062 tel: 603.891.0123 fax: 603.891.0574 internet: lfworld@pinet.aip.org Subscription Inquiries: 918.831.9424 Machine Design Penton Publishing Inc. 1100 Superior Ave. Cleveland, OH 44114-2543 tel: 216.696.7000 fax: 216.621.8469 Cost: Free to qualified recipients in the U.S.; otherwise - $100.00/yr in U.S.; $140/yr in Canada; $160/yr - all other Foreign Midnight Engineering 'Journal of Personal Product Development' Published by William E Gates, [No, not him...] 111 E. Drake Road Suite 7041 Fort Collins, CO 80525 tel: 303.225.1410 fax: 303.225.1075 One-year (6 issues) $24, canada and mexico $29, other foreign $49 (airmail) Perhaps marginal for this list but focus is on "resources and insight for the entrepreneurial engineer" Issues and articles on developing hardware, software, micro-controllers, product development, marketing, patenting issues, startups, etc etc. Excellent if you need this info. Modern Materials Handling 44 Cook Street Denver, CO 80206-5800 tel: 303.388.4511 Trade magazine covering productivity solutions for manufacturing, warehousing and distribution. Typically includes articles on factory automation, etc. Cost: Free to qualified recipients; otherwise - $75 for US subscribers. Motion Control Tower Media Corp. 800 Roosevelt Rd. Bldg. C, Suite 206 Glen Ellyn, IL 60137 Trade magazine for Motion Control applications and Technology. Cost: Free to qualified recipients in the U.S.; otherwise - $50/yr in U.S. $90/yr foreign subscriptions. NASA Tech Briefs Associated Business Publications Co., Ltd. 41 E. 42nd St. New York, NY 10017-5391 Contains useful technology transfer information which very often includes robotics research performed at various NASA centers. Cost: Free to qualified recipients; otherwise - $75.00/yr in the U.S., $150.00/yr for Foreign subscriptions Nuts and Volts 430 Princeland Court Corona, CA 91719 tel: 800.783.4624 net: 74262.3664@compuserve.com Electronics classifieds and ads. Lots of devices and products relevant for robot builders. Often features articles on robot building as well by Karl Lunt. Sensors Helmers Publishing 174 Concord Street PO Box 874 Peterborough, NH 03458-0874 tel: 603.924.9631 Trade magazine devoted to sensing devices. Publishes directory. Cost: Free to qualified subscribers, $55/yr otherwise [To add] GPS World (Global Positioning System related) RF Design Sea Technology Laser Focus POB (surveying profession) Broadcast Engineering (TV and radio engineering) ------------------------------ [4.1.3] Other sources: Thomas Register Thomas Publishing Company One Penn Plaza New York, NY 10117-0139 tel: 212.695.0500 fax: 212.290.7362 About $250 for a 20-odd volume encyclopedia of US industry. Concentration on heavier industries - but still an amazing source for information. No company or lab building products should be without one. Available on CD-ROM for about $300. EEM - The 'Thomas Register' for Electrical engineers. [Address to add] ------------------------------ [4.2] Books, Online Information and Videos [4.2.1] Books [4.2.2] CDROMS [4.2.3] Magazine Articles [4.2.4] Online Technical Reports The readership of this group ranges from the beginner to experienced robot designers and users. Accordingly, this list covers the gamut as well. I would like to include net resources as well such as papers or tech reports so send me your sites! ----- [4.2.1] Books Some of these books may be out of print. Check with your local bookseller or try a used bookstore that provides a search service. Advanced Robot Systems Mark J. Robillard Howard Sams & Co. 1984 Autonomous Robot Vehicles I.J. Cox and G.T. Wilfong (eds) New York, Springer-Verlag, 1990 Collection of seminal papers on autonmous robot vehicles. Build Your Own Universal Computer Interface Bruce Chubb TAB Books Control System Design Guide George Ellis ISBN 0-12-237470-3 Covers hardware,software and theory of ordinary PID control. Directed Sonar Sensing for Mobile Robot Navigation by John J. Leonard & Hugh F. Durant-Whyte Kluwer Academic Press Boston (1992) ISBN 0-7923-9242-6 An expansion on John's thesis work, which he did at Oxford. Industrial Robots: Computer Interfacing and Control, Wesley E. Snyder Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1985. LOC # TS191.8.S67 Fair amount of detail on inductrial robot controllers and connecting to them. Inside the Robot Kingdom: Japan, Mechatronics and the Coming Robotopia Frederik L. Schodt Kodansha International New York, NY 1988 Lots of interesting views of robots in Japan and Japan's fascination with robots. Interfacing Test Circuits With Single-Board Computers Robert H. Luetzow TAB Books Machines That Walk Shin-Min Song and Kenneth J Waldron ISBN 0-262-19274-8 Like it says: legged locomotion. Focus is on the OSU Adaptive Suspension Vehicle. A Mathematical Introduction to Robotic Manipulation R. M. Murray, Z. Li, and S. S. Sastry CRC Press, 1994 For more information, see http://avalon.caltech.edu/~murray/mls Microprocessor Based Robotics Mark J. Robillard Howard Sams & Co. 1983 Microcontroller Technology: The 68HC11 Peter Spasov Regents/Prentice Hall, 1993, ISBN 0-13-583568-2 Aimed at the 68HC11 family, good reference. Minimalist Mobile Robotics Jonathan H Connel ISBN 0-12-185230-X Brooks subsumption architecture robots. Shows complex behaviors are possible with little of the massive architectures done in other programs. Mobile Robots: Inspiration to Implementation. Joseph L. Jones and Anita Flynn, This book grew out of the Mobot Lab at MIT and covers many aspects of mobile robots including design and the mechanics and electronics of construction as well as robot programming. Good for the beginner and experienced robot builder. A Mobile Robot kit is also available. See the Rug Warrior in the section on Small, Inexpensive Robots. Klaus Peters President and Publisher AK PETERS, LTD. 289 Linden Street Wellesley, MA 02181 tel: 617.235.2210 fax: 617.235.2404 net: The Robot Book Richard Pawson Windward, 1985, 192 pages. Utilizes Lego kits. The Robot Builder's Bonanza: 99 Inexpensive Robotics Projects Gordon McComb TAB Books Robot Evolution: the Development of Anthropomorphics Rosheim, Mark E. 1994, John Wiley & Sons ISBN 0-471-02622-0 Robot Hobby: The Complete Manual, for Individuals and Clubs John W. Gutmann, Foreword by Joe Engelberger ISBN 0-9634272-4-5 Soft cover $29.95 Hard Cover $36.95 Machine Press Publishing P.O. Box 870210 Stone Mountain, GA 30087-0006 Robotic Technology: Principles and Practice. Werner G. Holzbock Van Nostrand Reinhold Co, 1986, ISBN 0-442-23154-7 Robotics edited by Marvin Minsky Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1985 ISBN: 0385194145, LCCN: 84024390 Robot Motion: Planning and Control Brady, Hollerbach, Johnson, Lozano-Perez, and Mason. Cambridge, MA, MIT Press 1982) Collection of excellent papers on the topic of robot motion. Robots Peter Marsh Crescent (Crown) Publishers, NY 1985 Marsh edited the volume and the book is made up of several contributions from robotics researchers. A very well illustrated book that covers the general topic of robots. Excellent source materials and graphics. Safety, Reliability, and Human Factors in Robotic Systems. Edited by James H. Graham. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1991. ISBN 0-442-00280-7 Laws/rules/regulations are governing industrial robot installations in the U.S. ------------------------------ [4.2.2] CDROMS Isaac Asimov's The Ultimate Robot. It is an excellent intro and retrospective on robotics. Includes movie clips from several cinema robots, robotic terminology defined and illustrated (linkages, kinmatics, arm types etc), vignettes of many historically important robots including Moshers work >from the 60's, many teleoperated devices, several mobile machines including the ASV and many others. There is also a fun part where you get to select parts, build a robot and animate it. (Design by Ralph MacQuarrie who was production designer on Star Wars) There are video interviews with Asimov and all of his robot stories and essays as well Published by Microsoft. Available from a number of CDROM vendors. AICDROM Network Cybernetics Corporation is now shipping the second annual revision of their popular AI CD-ROM, an ISO-9660 format CD-ROM containing a wide assortment of information on AI, Robotics, and other advanced machine technologies. The AI CD-ROM contains thousands of programs, source code collections, tutorials, research papers, Internet journals, and other resources. The topics covered include artificial intelligence, artificial life, robotics, virtual reality, and many related fields. Programs for OS/2, DOS, Macintosh, UNIX, Amiga, and other platforms can be found on the disc. The files have been collected from civilian and government research centers, universities, Internet archive sites, BBS systems and other sources. The CD-ROM is updated annually to keep it current with the latest trends and developments in advanced machine technologies such as AI. The AI CD-ROM Rev. 1 was a CD-ROM PROFESSIONAL CONSUMER DISK PRODUCT OF THE YEAR AWARD finalist and has received good reviews in many magazines including Byte (Jerry Pournelle, March '93) and IEEE Computer (J. Zalewski, July '93), CD-ROM Professional and others. The new revision of the AI CD-ROM is now shipping. The price of Revision 2 will remain the same as the Revision 1 CD: $129 + $5 (US) / $10 (foreign) for shipping & processing. If you currently own the revision 1 AI CD-ROM, you can "upgrade" to the Rev.2 CD for $79 + shipping. Email or fax us to get an upgrade form. From: Network Cybernetics Corporation 4201 Wingren Road, Suite 202 Irving, Texas 75062-2763 tel: 214.650.2002 fax: 214.650.1929 ------------------------------ [4.2.3] Magazine Articles Initial List Provided by Dave Hrynkiw] Best source for most general articles and journal articles is your library - check online sources too! Discover Magazine, March 1991, Pg 43 An excellent 6 page article of the goings-on in the MIT Artificial- Intelligence lab. "Mathematical Recreations - Insectoids Invade a Field of Robots" Scientific American Magazine, July 1991 Another excellent 4 page article about MIT's work in the field of mobile robotics. "Gearing Down" Science News, Vol. 139 No. 2, January 12 1991, Pg 26-27 I haven't seen a copy of this article yet. If you find it, PLEASE fax/send me a copy. Referenced from Scientific American Magazine, July 1991 ("Mathematical Recreations" column) "Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control" Research News, May 1990, Pg 959-961 One of the better MIT Lab articles. Worth hunting down. "Working the bugs out of a new breed of 'insect' robots" Smithsonian Magazine, June 1991, pgs 63-73. Another excellent & more technical article on MIT's robot research. "The Iconoclast - Life in the Anthropomorphic Lane" Macworld magazine, May 1991, Pg 43-47 Another basic, but decent review of MIT's AI Robot labs. "People - A Mind of Their Own" Connoisseur Magazine, May 1991, Pg 42-46 A more personal look at Rodney Brook. "Robot Insects" Popular Science, March 1991, Pg 52-55,86 Popular Science does it's regular quality article. Some detail, but not to technical. Good, basic read. "New Approaches to Robotics" Science Magazine, Vol.253, September 1991, Pg 1227-1232 Very complete & technical document by Rodney Brooks. Has a very complete reference & notes section. "Artificial Intelligence - Building a Better Mouse" Omni Magazine, ??, Pg 22,126 Interesting Article about Dave Otten, the micro-mouse champ. Short, but interesting read. "Tech Update - Transformer Robots Crawl Up Stairs" Popular Mechanics, March 1993, Pg 17 Not much to say, but look at the pictures - what innovation! "Mighty Mouse" MIT Reporter, July 1991, Pg 12 A short piece about Dave Otten's micromice. "The OMNI Photovore - How to build a robot that thinks like a roach" Omni Magazine, October 1988, Pg 201-210,212 MIT developed this basic robot for the magazine. A really interesting read, with good technical. Haven't built mine yet, but I have all the parts... (Excellent article) "Annual Report of Microbot Technology, Inc." Omni Magazine, ??? Pg 68,70,76 Omni's interesting futuristic look of the possibilities with micro robots. "Tech Update - Mechanical Caterpillar" Popular Mechanics, June 1992, Pg 24 Another neat idea to look at. "Tech Update - Silicon Ants Could Prove Tireless Workers" Popular Mechanics, May 1992, Pg 21 Interesting little bit on the future of solar powered microbots. Neat graphic. "Trends - Let's Get Small" Technology Review, Aug/Sept 1992, pg 18-19 Article on JPL/IS Robotics small robots. Decent article "Go Robots, Go!" Popular Science, December 1992, Pg 97-102,138,140 Interesting overview of the AAAI Mobile Robotics Competition held in San Jose. "New Trends - Legs win over wheels for moon work" Machine Design Magazine, February 11 1988 A dated article on Georgia Tech's "Skitter". Short, but has photograph. "Light Elements - RoboHockey" Discover magazine, May 1990, pg 82 Interesting bit about MIT's Mech Eng 2.70 competition. "Society - Technology - For the Love of Robotics" Newsweek magazine, March 9 1992, Pg 68-69 Public-robot fodder. Nothing new here but some interesting pictures. Covers the Austin area Robot Group "Robots Go Buggy" Science News Magazine, Vol 140, November 30 1991, Pg 361-3 Very good article about the comparison between "simple" robotics and biologics (bugs) "Build This Robot Bug" Radio-Electronics Magazine, June 1992, Pg 33-38 _Very_ basic robot. Not a bad place to start tho... Science Digest, April 1983 p68 "The Rise of the Robot" by Tom Parrett. Article includes photos of the "Atlanta Robotics Special Interest Group" founded by John W. Gutmann with the support of Bill Dodd, owner of Hobby Robot CO. The first meeting was held on April 21st of 1981. ----------------------- [4.2.4] Online Technical Reports There are emerging sources on the net for tech reports and papers. If you know of additional ones please send me email. Thanks. ----- The Kahaner Reports This directory archives reports written about computing in Japan by Dr. David Kahaner, a numerical analyst current on assignment with the Office of Naval Research Asia (ONR Asia). The file INDEX contains a short description of each report in alphabetical order. The file INDEX.bydate contains the same descriptions ordered by the date the report was written. ftp://cs.arizona.edu/japan/www/japan.html ftp://cs.arizona.edu/japan/table.contents/robotics.TOC Some relevant files: robots (Feb 28, 1991) Overview of trends in robot manufacturing, use, and sales in Japan. ftp://cs.arizona.edu/japan/kahaner.reports/robots robots.93 (Dec 10, 1993) Summary of the 24th International Symposium on Industrial Robots (ISIR), the 1993 International Conference on Advanced Robotics (ICAR), and the 1993 International Industrial Robot Exhibition, all held in Tokyo 1-5 Nov 1993. ftp://cs.arizona.edu/japan/kahaner.reports/robots.93 ----- The 6.270 Robot Builder's Guide (See also the Miniboard section in this FAQ) by Fred Martin ftp://cherupakha.media.mit.edu/pub/6270/docs/ filenames: *.PS.Z This directory contains "The 6.270 Robot Builder's Guide", the course notes to the 1992 MIT LEGO Robot Design Competition. Hardcopy also available for $15 from: E&L Memo Requests MIT Media Laboratory 20 Ames Street Room E15-309 Cambridge, MA 02139 USA Check made out to 'MIT Epistemology and Learning' Contact: Fred Martin at fredm@media-lab.media.mit.edu ----- Cambridge University Tech report on 3D object model acquisition and recognition: ftp://svr-ftp.eng.cam.ac.uk/reports/ ----- Carnegie Mellon University SCS Technical Reports 1) The machine reports@cs.cmu.edu is the offical SCS machine for ftping SCS technical reports. Directories containing .ps files (compressed and uncompressed, dependent on size) are stored for ease of access. You can use the instructions below to browse the directories. 2) The reports appearing in our ftpable directories are also automatically transferred into MOSAIC. Authors retain the right to decide whether their report(s) should or should not appear in the public ftp directories/MOSAIC. 3) A third mechanism for storing and making reports available is MERCURY--the scanned image, full text, online database (part of the LIS system). Whether the report is scanned into the system is again left up to invidivual author choice. The CMU community is able to view text for the reports, as they appear, at their desks using Mercury. This system, supported by ARPA and CNRI, will open soon to MIT, Stanford, Cornell, and Berkeley...so we can all share online text of reports. Down the road, it is anticipated that more and more universities will become a part of this service. We scan original copies of reports into the system, DIRECTIONS FOR ANONYMOUS FTP: URL: ftp://reports.adm.cs.cmu.edu/ or The reports are in postscript format (.ps). The index file is called README.mss. The reports are listed in the directory by their NUMBER.ps...for example, CMU-CS-92-100.ps, CMU-CS-92-101.ps and so on. The majority of the files are not compressed, although any compressed files will be listed as NUMBER.ps.Z . A very few reports have been broken down into multiple postscript files. They will appear as NUMBERA.ps, NUMBERB.ps, etc. The README.mss will indicate the reports that have multiple .ps files. ----- MIT AI Laboratory net: publications@ai.mit.edu tel: 617.253.6773 fax: 617.253.5060 MIT bibliography, general info about the lab and most recent research publications is choice of ascii or .ps files ftp://publications.ai.mit.edu/bibliography ftp://publications/ai-publications/general-pubs ----- NASA Jet Propulsion Labs (JPL) ftp://robotics.jpl.nasa.gov/pub/gat/ filenames: bc4pe.rtf, aaai92.rtf, nats.rtf Note that all files are in Microsoft Word RTF format. Contact if you don't have access to a Mac. ----- New York University file://cs.nyu.edu/pub/tech-reports/tr669.ps.Z Abstract: Recent experimental and analytical evidence indicates that direct drive robots become very practical and economical at miniature and microscopic scales, so it is interesting to understand quantitatively the properties of direct drive robots under scaling transformations. This leads to a study of how screws and their dual co-screws behave under the group of similarity transforms. This group is the group of isometries together with dilations. Several different representations are found on the space of screws and complementary representations are found on the dual space of co-screws. From the electromagnetic theory of the force and torque on a magnet in a magnetic field, we derive the scaling properties of the electromagnetic wrench. Hence, these results can be directly applied to the scaling of direct drive motors. We conclude by proposing a scale-invariant measure for direct drive actuator performance. ----- LIFIA/INRIA ftp://imag.fr/pub/LIFIA (129.88.32.1) filenames: [several compressed PS files] ----- University of Massachusetts: ftp://rabbit.cs.umass.edu/pub/papers filenames: [The files are compressed postscript, topics include path planning, neuroscience, and control.] ----- University of Kaiserslautern FTP-Server is : ftp://ftp.uni-kl.de/reports_uni-kl/computer_science/mobile_robots/ subdirectories: 1993/papers, 1994/papers, etc ----- SPIE abstracts: ftp://mom.spie.org/abstracts/1800/ filenames: 1831.txt [From Mobile Robots VII 1992] SPIE bookorders can be made through bookorders@mom.spie.org ----- JTEC report on Japanese Space Robotics Available from NTIS (see below) A summary of the Japanese Technology Evaluation Center (JTEC) panel's report on the state of the art of Japanese robot technology. Lots of pictures of wierd and wonderful robots -- elephant trunk, caterpillar, space tentacle, wall builder, Komatsu's walking undersea rubble-leveler, humanoid two-armed assembly robot, 4-legged stair climber. Also tells where to write for videotapes of these machines in action. Here's the info (two years old, remember) ... Tape with narration by William "Red" Whittaker: cost: $37.50 University Video Communications Box 20006 Stanford, CA USA 94309 tel: 415.327.0131 Shorter tape of highlights from many Japanese labs: National Technical Information Service (NTIS) 5285 Port Royal Road Springfield, VA USA 22161 tel: 703.457.4650 Article: "Japan robotics aim for unmanned space exploration" William L. Whittaker, Takeo Kanade. IEEE Spectrum, December 1990 ------------------------------ [4.2.4] Videos (new section - looking for additional material) MIT Press has a number of companion videos - Legged Robots That Balance and others. See Publications for address etc. ----- Video Proceedings from the 8th International Symposium on Unmanned Untethered Submersible Technology (UUST 93) September 27-29, 1993 Marine Systems Engineering Lab, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire USA The video proceedings are now available for $35 US for VHS (NTSC) format and $50 US for PAL format. The video is being made publicly available on a non-profit basis. Printed abstracts and points of contacts are included in a pamphlet with each video. The program is available eclectronically via anonymous ftp to file://taurus.cs.nps.navy.mil/pub/auv/uust93_video_proceedings.ps.Z After AUgust 1 1994, you may order this video (or printed conference proceedings) by sending a check or money order to: Autonomous Undersea Systems Institute (AUSI) 8 Earle Drive Lee, New Hampshire 03824 USA (603) 862-4600 postscript copy: ftp://taurus.cs.nps.navy.mil/pub/auv/uust93.ps.Z Video Contents: 01:20 AUVs for Scientific Research in Hazardous Conditions 07:15 A Versatile Testbed: The "Twin-Burger" 13:55 ARPA/Navy Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) 31:30 Summary of MBARI/Stanford ARL Joint Underwater Robotics Research Program 43:05 Development of an Aquatic Walking Robot for Underwater Inspection: "AQUAROBOT" 47:30 Naval Postgraduate School Autonomous Underwater Vehicle 50:15 The Rational Behavior Model (RBM) Software Architecture 57:25 Mobile Undersea Systems Test (MUST) Laboratory 1:02:10 The Advanced Unmanned Search System (AUSS) 1:11:20 credits ________________________________________________________________ End of Part 1-- aka: Kevin Dowling Carnegie Mellon University tel: (412) 268-8830 The Robotics Institute adr: nivek@ri.cmu.edu Pittsburgh, PA 15213 -- aka: Kevin Dowling Carnegie Mellon University tel: (412) 268-8830 The Robotics Institute adr: nivek@ri.cmu.edu Pittsburgh, PA 15213