Autonomous tricycles could form the basis of urban taxi systems

Self-driving cars, trucks and buses might get the bulk of the headlines, but a team at the University of Washington Bothell (UWB) is developing a smaller kind of autonomous vehicle. With the aim of providing a relatively inexpensive alternative to owning an autonomous car, the team is creating a self-driving trike that may even open up the possibility of an automated ride-sharing network, like a bike version of Uber's or NuTonomy's proposed services.

The team, headed up by Tyler Folsom, has been experimenting with fitting autonomous systems into tricycle frames and this work culminated in August with a test that saw a bright orange recumbent trike drive itself in a circle. That modest command, entered via remote control, demonstrated the vehicle's ability to stop, start and turn itself to reach a destination, but Folsom says it's just a "baby step" on the way to deeper autonomy.

"I'm trying to shift the talk about self-driving cars to self-driving bicycles and making sure bicycles are part of the automation equation," says Folsom.

The outcome of that equation, the team hopes, is to eventually produce autonomous vehicles that are much lighter and more environmentally friendly than self-driving cars. With a targeted price tag of around US$10,000, ideally they'd be cheap enough to replace the family car or current public transport options. To keep that price down, the team is trying to maximize the efficiency of the electronics driving the trikes.

"We're using things much less powerful than a smartphone," says Folsom. "Part of the concept is that you don't have to spend as much money as the big car companies are spending. My contention is you don't need all that much processing power to make autonomy happen."

Reducing the required computational power may be easier to achieve if human error is removed from the picture by setting up a better autonomous infrastructure, which is a goal Folsom has been vocal about for years with his Elcano Project. Along with dedicated lanes for autonomous vehicles, he puts forward the idea of renewable energy-powered self-driving taxi systems, possibly with a fleet of velomobiles like Organic Transit's ELF, which could ferry people around cities without impacting too heavily on the environment.

"The big thing for me is the effect this could have on global warming," says Folsom. "If we can push transportation in this direction – very light vehicles – it's a major win for the environment. I want to have the technology that lets people make that choice if we decide, yes, by the way, survival would be a nice thing."

The project, which involves over 20 people, has received a $75,000 grant from Amazon Catalyst.

The team describes their work in the video below.

Source: New Atlas, University of Washington Bothell

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The Calicut diaries: Kidobotikzians@Tathva '16 (Contd....)

What word has two ‘O’s and an ‘R’ in it? You are thinking of the word “Robot”. Nope, we are talking of the other word- “Hooray”!

Yes, “Hooray” it was!

The bandwagon of roboticists at NIT-C have finished their campaign and are now retiring to the stables!

Yep. It was the third and final day of the tour of Kidobotikzians to Tathva ‘16. The event, which was conducted ever so wonderfully by the college, was a wonderful experience for the students, their accompanying faculty and the visitors too. Especially considering the fact Kidobotikzians revelled in an event that was for the standard of Graduates! 

All efforts put by Kidobotikzians up until the event paid off in full measure as they are returning home tonight with a string of trophies- each a hard earned, hard fought and wonderfully cherished victory!

The third day began with a great deal of promise with a string of interesting events lined up. Today being the third and final day, many of the events of the previous days had their final rounds that were held today. And Kidobotikzians, on their virtue of being seasoned roboticists dominated most of these events. The final results tally did no justice to the average of these young roboticists. To think of it that school going young students travelled to a college fest and participated in it with much success against the best of college students from across the nation is quite an accomplishment. A major credit to all this goes to the students and their faculty who spent many an hours helping students understand the concepts of robotics to a degree of professionalism that these kids know the concepts at the back of their hands. A lot of credit is also owed to the parents who have been a constant support to the wishes of these young students and who help them try such interesting activities as a part of their personal development.

As we sign off, our bunch of roboteers are already gearing up for the next big event- FTC. With detailed planning and preparation underway, Kidobotikzians are expected to work wonders at every major event henceforth! 

Click here for the photos of the event: Facebook Album

Happy Roboting!

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Robotic arm gives quadriplegic man a new sense of touch

In 2012, quadriplegic Jan Scheuermann used her own thoughts to control a robotic arm and feed herself a chocolate bar thanks to a system developed by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). Now, the same team has recreated the physical feeling of touch through a robotic hand, allowing a quadriplegic man to feel "his" fingers and hand for the first time in 10 years.

After first demonstrating their robotic arm in 2012, the team continued to improve the technology to extend the functional utility of the hand so that it approached the agility of a natural human limb. But although regaining movement is important, how objects feel in our hands also plays a crucial role, creating a feedback loop that allows us to adjust our grip and motion as required. Through further development of the robotic arm and brain computer interface (BCI), the Pitt-UPMC team was able to give 28-year-old Nathan Copeland, who was paralyzed in a car accident in 2004, the sensation of touch again.

Like Scheuermann's procedure, the arm was wired directly into Copeland's brain, allowing him to control it with the same kind of thought commands anyone would normally use. The difference in this case was that the electrical signals from the arm were transmitted through four tiny microelectric arrays implanted into the regions of the brain associated with feeling in individual fingers and the palm. The end result was the ability to feel pressure and how strong it was, although so far he hasn't been able to distinguish between different temperatures.

"I can feel just about every finger — it's a really weird sensation," explains Copeland, about a month after surgery. "Sometimes it feels electrical and sometimes it's pressure, but for the most part, I can tell most of the fingers with definite precision. It feels like my fingers are getting touched or pushed."

As far as the research and technology has come, the Pitt-UPMC team acknowledges that there's still a long way to go on the road to eventually developing a system that moves and feels like the real thing. It's possible because the brain still remembers how to control the limbs – the injury just disrupts the connection between them.

"The most important result in this study is that microstimulation of sensory cortex can elicit natural sensation instead of tingling," says Andrew B. Schwartz, co-author of the study. "This stimulation is safe, and the evoked sensations are stable over months. There is still a lot of research that needs to be carried out to better understand the stimulation patterns needed to help patients make better movements."

The research was published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

Source: New Atlas, UPMC

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The Calicut diaries: Kidobotikzians@Tatva '16

A trip to the “God’s Own Country” is usually one that nobody affords to miss. All of us who’ve been there can relate to the beautiful beaches, the lovely shorelines and the wonderful weather. But when you also roboting into this mix, it becomes an experience for a lifetime . Thanks to NIT-Calicut’s Tatva ’16, Kidobotikzians are enjoying the very same thing at the moment!

A strong contingent of students belonging to the Kidobotikz student community are currently here at NIT Calicut taking part in what can be named a full on tech-extravaganza! Called Tatva ‘16, it is an annual tech festival. Featuring students from across the country, the two day event can be considered a tough event. As we come close to the end of the first of the two day event, we wanted to take a break from all the roboting action and tell you how our experience was. 

Being a tech fest, Tatva has an elaborate set of events for the best of geeks amongst us. To test their roboting skills and prove their mettle, Kidobotikzians had decided to take part in an event that is meant for college students. Yes, you read it right! Kidobotikzians are the only school students who are taking part in the event meant for colleges. And the story doesn’t end their. A few of them have actually bested their performance to take home a few prizes.

The first day of Tatva ‘16 began with some exceptional brouhaha thanks to the tough competition among the participating teams. As a matter of fact, the campaign was kickstarted on a winning note when Vishal Desh, who is a strong favourite at the event, took the honours for winning Accelero Botx. The contest which happened yesterday saw Vishal contest against some fierce opposition and emerge victorious.

Meanwhile, the itinerary for the second day, today, was jam packed with truly amazing events such as Dirt Race, Schwimmwagen, Collision Course and Death Race League of Machines. While the first two were events which involved the usage ATV robots, the latter two were events which were robotic battles. The star event for Kidobotikzians was Amazed where four students belonging to the community- Vishal Desh, Abhishek Shankar, Chitresh, S.Charan- won prizes. 

As we go into the third day, there are several more events in the fray and the Kidobotikzians are fresh from their exploits and the first two days. With still a lot of exciting events to be played out, one can expect the Kidobotikzians to bring back a lot of trophies.

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Robotic ALIAS puts Cessna Caravan through basic maneuvers

The ALIAS system, developed by DARPA, could cut down on crew requirements in military and civilian small aircraft by taking control with a robotic arm. Although it's still a ways off production, the system has been successfully demonstrated on a Cessna Caravan aircraft.

As aircraft have become more advanced, they've also become more difficult to understand. Pilots and crew need to undergo intensive training before being let loose in the latest aircraft, and even then they can be overwhelmed by the complexity of flight systems in an emergency.

According to DARPA, the Aircrew Labor In-Cockpit Automation System (ALIAS) could provide a solution. Rather than retrofitting old airplane fleets with complex, expensive automated flight systems, ALIAS has been designed as an adaptable drop-in solution to lighten the load on crews. Although it's all-new, the system has its roots in DARPA's previous work in automated systems and unmanned autonomous vehicles.

When it's completely up and running, ALIAS should be able to handle a complex military mission from takeoff to landing. It should also be able to deal with emergency situations in the air, essentially reducing the human pilot to a mission supervisor by letting the computer deal with minute-to-minute flying.

Having successfully tested the system on a Diamond DA-42 earlier this year, it was recently installed in a Cessna Caravan in an attempt to prove its versatility. It pulled off a set of basic in-flight maneuvers, with a human pilot sitting alongside. The team at Aurora is now working to install it into a Bell UH-1 helicopter.

"Demonstrating our automation system on the UH-1 and the Caravan will prove the viability of our system for both military and commercial applications," says John Wissler, Vice President of Research & Development at Aurora, which has been working on the project. "ALIAS enables the pilot to turn over core flight functions and direct their attention to non-flight related issues such as adverse weather, potential threats or even updating logistical plans."

Watch ALIAS flying the Cessna in the video below.

Source: New Atlas, Aurora

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Autonomous robot takes the hard work out of yard work

Gardens can be a double-edged sword: when they're thriving, so is the work required to keep them in shape. A new autonomous robot helper by the name of Kobi, however, can take the edge off by mowing the lawn, collecting leaves and clearing snow for you.

Of course, robotic lawnmowers have been earning their crust for some time now, and adding snow-clearing functionality isn't a new concept either. The beauty of Kobi, though, is that it has three strings to its bow and is designed for use in all seasons.

Kobi comprises a rear base unit and three accompanying modules. These are connected to the base depending on what type of garden work is required. There's a snow blower module with which Kobi will remove snow by sucking it up and shooting it to a dumping spot, a lawn module for cutting grass, and a leaf module for collecting leaves and depositing them in a set location.

The robot reportedly achieves all of this autonomously, and is able to get around a user's yard at speeds of up to 2 mph (3 km/h). To navigate, it uses a combination of GPS positioning, cameras and ultrasonic sensors. This, says its designers, affords it "inch-level positioning accuracy," but also allows it to detect objects and stop if need be. What's more, it can even plan when to do work itself based on the weather forecast, to which it connects via the user's home Wi-Fi network or a local mobile data network, depending on which network is strongest.

A lithium-ion battery powers Kobi, with ranges of up to 7 ac (2 ha) when using the lawn module, up to 3 ac (1 ha) when using the leaf module and up to 0.37 ac (0.15 ha) when using the snow module. When the battery is running low, Kobi will make its way back to its docking station for recharging, before continuing with the work at hand. A full charge is said to take between two and four hours.

In order to navigate a user's garden, Kobi must first be shown its perimeter and where there are any obstacles. It must also be shown where to dump snow and leaves. This is done using an accompanying mobile app, which will be available for iOS and Android when it launches and via which Kobi can be "taught" these things. In the event that a user moves house, the app can be used to reconfigure Kobi.

The app is also used to control Kobi and allows users to set the robot going or to stop it, as well as to schedule times for it to get to work. For security, Kobi is protected by anti-theft mechanisms, which include an alarm that sounds in the event that someone tries to steal it and an auto-disable mode that can only be circumvented using a pin-code set by the owner. It is expected to be made available to the general public in the north-east of the US from early 2017.

The video below provides an introduction to the Kobi robot.

Source: New Atlas, Kobi

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Geek Speak: Jogith Chandran

With the season of Navratri long gone and the season of Diwali fast approaching, these are quite some festive times for us all. However, back at Kidobotikz, an exciting event is already underway. A contingent of Kidobotikzians departed last evening to the city of Calicut. They are taking part in the annual Tech Festival Tatva hosted by NIT Calicut. What’s so special about this event one might wonder?

Well, it is a college festival and the teams from Kidobotikz are usually the only all-school teams that participate in this event. 

Meanwhile, we pick up from where we left last week. Last sunday we spoke with Jyotsna who was there as a part of the team preparations for FTC. This week, the entire team including Jyotsna are actually at Calicut for Tatva, except for one. He’s here taking care of the FTC-related activities in the absence of the other members. A rather tall and well mannered chap, who impresses one and all with his knowledge of roboting. Meet Jogith Chandran, who defines the word Smart with his techy accent and hipster glasses. He is our geek for the day. 

Hey Jogith! Do you mind introducing yourself to our readers?

Hi everyone! I am Jogith S Chandran. I study in the 9th grade at Smart Minds Academy, and since last sunday, a graduate of Kidobotikz.

Congratulations on your graduation. Must’ve been a very exciting experience. 

Can you tell us how you became associated with Kidobotikz?

It’s one of things that just happen and you look back at it with happiness. I’ve always been a robotics aficionado. However, wasn’t sure where to learn the coveted subject from. One fine day, I happened to chance upon the poster of Kidobotikz in the vicinity of my abacus class. As soon as I got home I told mom about it and convinced her to get me enrolled here. There’s been no looking back ever since. 

When I actually came here, it was during the summer. Interestingly, they had a summer camp here. And I managed to complete 4 month’s worth of course in less than 10 days. It really impressed me that I was able to learn all this. 

That’s interesting. What was your outlook towards robotics before you joined Kidobotikz and how has it changed now? 

Before joining Kidobotikz, my assumption was that robotics was a highly complicated and sophisticated subject that could be learnt only by the select few. But after joining, that perspective of mine changed completely. Much to my surprise, I realized that robotics was as basic a subject as anything and anybody with the right teacher and right learning material could master the concepts of robotics. The credit goes to the way to Kidobotikz and their faculty for making robotics such an interesting subject for me.

That’s an interesting perspective. How goes your preparation for FTC?

Well, we are currently looking into how we can brand ourselves and get a few sponsors onboard. That way we can connect with some established brands in the industry when we represent that nation at FTC. We all meet on a weekly basis to discuss about our individual roles and responsibilities.

So, what are your plans for the future? Any field of interest that you are looking forward to work in?

My dream would be to pursue higher studies in Robotics at MIT. Beyond that, I intend to find a niche R&D role for myself in the consumer electronics or robotics industries. This is my long term vision and I intend to work upon it with vigour.

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