3,225 research outputs found
Higher-level Knowledge, Rational and Social Levels Constraints of the Common Model of the Mind
In his famous 1982 paper, Allen Newell [22, 23] introduced the notion of knowledge level to
indicate a level of analysis, and prediction, of the rational behavior of a cognitive articial agent.
This analysis concerns the investigation about the availability of the agent knowledge, in order
to pursue its own goals, and is based on the so-called Rationality Principle (an assumption
according to which "an agent will use the knowledge it has of its environment to achieve its
goals" [22, p. 17]. By using the Newell's own words: "To treat a system at the knowledge level
is to treat it as having some knowledge, some goals, and believing it will do whatever is within
its power to attain its goals, in so far as its knowledge indicates" [22, p. 13].
In the last decades, the importance of the knowledge level has been historically and system-
atically downsized by the research area in cognitive architectures (CAs), whose interests have
been mainly focused on the analysis and the development of mechanisms and the processes
governing human and (articial) cognition. The knowledge level in CAs, however, represents
a crucial level of analysis for the development of such articial general systems and therefore
deserves greater research attention [17]. In the following, we will discuss areas of broad agree-
ment and outline the main problematic aspects that should be faced within a Common Model
of Cognition [12]. Such aspects, departing from an analysis at the knowledge level, also clearly
impact both lower (e.g. representational) and higher (e.g. social) levels
SMA-Based Muscle-Like Actuation in Biologically Inspired Robots: A State of the Art Review
New actuation technology in functional or "smart" materials has opened new horizons in robotics actuation systems. Materials such as piezo-electric fiber composites, electro-active polymers and shape memory alloys (SMA) are being investigated as promising alternatives to standard servomotor technology [52]. This paper focuses on the use of SMAs for building muscle-like actuators. SMAs are extremely cheap, easily available commercially and have the advantage of working at low voltages.
The use of SMA provides a very interesting alternative to the mechanisms used by conventional actuators. SMAs allow to drastically reduce the size, weight and complexity of robotic systems. In fact, their large force-weight ratio, large life cycles, negligible volume, sensing capability and noise-free operation make possible the use of this technology for building a new class of actuation devices. Nonetheless, high power consumption and low bandwidth limit this technology for certain kind of applications. This presents a challenge that must be addressed from both materials and control perspectives in order to overcome these drawbacks. Here, the latter is tackled. It has been demonstrated that suitable control strategies and proper mechanical arrangements can dramatically improve on SMA performance, mostly in terms of actuation speed and limit cycles
Biologically Inspired Vision for Indoor Robot Navigation
Ultrasonic, infrared, laser and other sensors are being applied
in robotics. Although combinations of these have allowed robots to navigate,
they are only suited for specific scenarios, depending on their limitations.
Recent advances in computer vision are turning cameras into useful
low-cost sensors that can operate in most types of environments. Cameras
enable robots to detect obstacles, recognize objects, obtain visual
odometry, detect and recognize people and gestures, among other possibilities.
In this paper we present a completely biologically inspired vision
system for robot navigation. It comprises stereo vision for obstacle detection,
and object recognition for landmark-based navigation. We employ
a novel keypoint descriptor which codes responses of cortical complex
cells. We also present a biologically inspired saliency component, based
on disparity and colour
A systematic literature review of decision-making and control systems for autonomous and social robots
In the last years, considerable research has been carried out to develop robots that can improve our quality of life during tedious and challenging tasks. In these contexts, robots operating without human supervision open many possibilities to assist people in their daily activities. When autonomous robots collaborate with humans, social skills are necessary for adequate communication and cooperation. Considering these facts, endowing autonomous and social robots with decision-making and control models is critical for appropriately fulfiling their initial goals. This manuscript presents a systematic review of the evolution of decision-making systems and control architectures for autonomous and social robots in the last three decades. These architectures have been incorporating new methods based on biologically inspired models and Machine Learning to enhance these systems’ possibilities to developed societies. The review explores the most novel advances in each application area, comparing their most essential features. Additionally, we describe the current challenges of software architecture devoted to action selection, an analysis not provided in similar reviews of behavioural models for autonomous and social robots. Finally, we present the future directions that these systems can take in the future.The research leading to these results has received funding from the projects: Robots Sociales para Estimulación Física, Cognitiva y Afectiva de Mayores (ROSES), RTI2018-096338-B-I00, funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades; Robots sociales para mitigar la soledad y el aislamiento en mayores (SOROLI), PID2021-123941OA-I00, funded by Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI), Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación. This publication is part of the R&D&I project PLEC2021-007819 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by the European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR
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