An Integrated Design and Simulation Environment for Rapid Prototyping of Laminate Robotic Mechanisms

Laminate mechanisms are a reliable concept in producing lowcost robots for educational and commercial purposes. These mechanisms are produced using low-cost manufacturing techniques which have improved significantly during recent years and are more accessible to novices and hobbyists. However, iterating through the design space to come up with the best design for a robot is still a time consuming and rather expensive task and therefore, there is still a need for model-based analysis before manufacturing. Until now, there has been no integrated design and analysis software for laminate robots. This paper addresses some of the issues surrounding laminate analysis by introducing a companion to an existing laminate design tool that automates the generation of dynamic equations and produces simulation results via rendered plots and videos. We have validated the accuracy of the software by comparing the position, velocity and acceleration of the simulated mechanisms with the measurements taken from physical laminate prototypes using a motion capture system

A critical review of MANET testbed using mobile robot technology

This paper is a continuation of our previous paper under the same topic, MANET testbed using mobile robot technology. In our previous paper, we studied the topic by scrutinizing all the technical aspects and presented it as a technical review. However in this paper, we study the topic and presents it as a critical review that dwells into four aspect, namely (i) purpose, a ccessibility and s cope of testbed facilities, (ii) usability and c ontrollability of robot mobility in t estbed facilities, (iii) repeatability and r e producibility of real m obility in t estbeds, and (iv) tools for MANET implementation, deployment and d ebugging for experiments. With the wealth of information on the topic provided in this paper, the content of this paper is expected to be a source of reference for MANET researchers who are at a crossroad when selecting the preferred mobi le robot technology and approach to sui t thei r own speci f ic needs

Methodology for configuring desktop 3-axis parallel kinematic machine

Konfigurisanje novih mašina alatki je kompleksan zadatak koji uključuje korišćenje širokog spektra koncepcija, metoda, modela, proračuna, tehnologija, simulacija, upravljanja, programiranja i tehnoekonomije. U radu se predstavlja metodologija funkcionalnog konfigurisanja novih mašina alatki, sa primerom primene ove metodologije na konkretan primer stone troosne mašine sa paralelnom kinematikom. Ovaj rad opisuje strukturu mašine, pristup modeliranju i konfigurisanje sistema upravljanja i programiranja baziranog na EMC sistemskom softveru, koji radi pod Linux operativnim sistemom u realnom vremenu. Stona glodalica je verifikovana uspešnom izgradnjom prvog prototipa.Configuring machine tools is a complex task which involves the use of huge spectra of conceptions, methods, models, calculations, technologies, simulations, control, programming, techno-economy. The paper presents the IDEF methodology for functional configuring of new machine tools, with an example of this methodology application for desktop 3-axis parallel kinematic machine. The paper describes the structure of the machine, modeling approach, and control and programming system based on PC Linux platform with real-time extension and EMC2 (the Enhanced Machine Controller) software system. Desktop3-axis parallel kinematic machine (PKM) has been verified by successful making of the first prototype

Improving Skills in Mechanism and Machine Science Using GIM Software

The field of education has evolved significantly in recent years as it has incorporated new pedagogical methodologies. Many of these methodologies are designed to encourage students’ participation in the learning process. The traditional role of the student as a passive receiver of content is no longer considered valid. Teaching in mechanical engineering is no stranger to these changes either, where new learning activities have been designed to complement theory-heavy lectures. These activities take place in both physical and virtual laboratories. In case of the latter, the use of the GIM software (developed at the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Spain) is a promising option. In this paper, features of the GIM that are most frequently used to support and exemplify the theoretical concepts taught in lectures are described using a case study. In addition, GIM is integrated into different learning activities to show its potential as a tool for learning and self-evaluation.This research was funded by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Spanish Government Project, MINECO/FEDER, UE (grant number DPI2015-67626-P), Departamento de Educación, Política Lingüística y Cultura, Regional Government of the Basque Country (grant number IT949-16) and University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU (grant number PIE2012/14)

Virtual Reality Games for Motor Rehabilitation

This paper presents a fuzzy logic based method to track user satisfaction without the need for devices to monitor users physiological conditions. User satisfaction is the key to any product’s acceptance; computer applications and video games provide a unique opportunity to provide a tailored environment for each user to better suit their needs. We have implemented a non-adaptive fuzzy logic model of emotion, based on the emotional component of the Fuzzy Logic Adaptive Model of Emotion (FLAME) proposed by El-Nasr, to estimate player emotion in UnrealTournament 2004. In this paper we describe the implementation of this system and present the results of one of several play tests. Our research contradicts the current literature that suggests physiological measurements are needed. We show that it is possible to use a software only method to estimate user emotion

Using Old Schröder-Reuleaux Models in Modern Kinematics Lectures

The paper deals with the use for educational purposes of kinematic models of the Schroder/Reuleax collection preserved at the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering of Politecnico di Torino. The article first traces a brief history of the models, which were acquired at the end of the 19th C. by the Regio Museo Industriale of Turin. Four straight-line mechanisms of the collection, employed in modern kinematics lectures, are presented in detail. The didactic method adopted starts from the analysis of the models of the collection and leads the students to develop schemes and software models, in a process of transition from real to virtual. The simulation results are then interpreted and correlated with the functioning of the real model

Mechanism and Machine Science Educational Workshop Based on Schröder-Reuleaux Ancient Models of Politecnico di Torino

Around the world, there are many collections of models of mechanisms and machine components of historical value. Among these, there is an important collection kept at the Politecnico di Torino, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering-DIMEAS. It consists of about 85 Reuleaux models manufactured by the Schröder company of Darmstadt in the second half of the 19th century. It includes linkages, gears, cam-follower systems, belt drives, couplings and clutches whose history is reconstructed. Some models are still used effectively today in teaching the science of mechanisms and machine. The paper presents both the important historical collection and the didactic methodology adopted in the course “Mechanics of Automatic Machines” in which students practice the developing of virtual models of some selected mechanisms

Assessment of the use of preliminary concepts test and rubrics in practical learning at university

Comunicació presentada al ICERI 2019 12th annual International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation (Seville, Spain. 11-13 November, 2019).The high number of students and teachers in the laboratory practices of the course Theory of Machines and Mechanisms, shared by several engineering degrees at Universitat Jaume I, makes the teaching planning and evaluation challenging. Some issues were observed in past years, such as differences in the student knowledge of basic concepts, underpreparation before practical classes, poor quality of the written reports, absence of common objective assessment criteria among teachers and low success rate. That led us to the implementation of an action for educational improvement during the academic year 2018-2019. The aim was to improve the students' level of training before attending laboratory practices, to standardize the evaluation among teachers and to involve students in the process of assessment in order to improve learning outcomes and the quality of the reports delivered. The improvement action included, on one side, carrying out an initial evaluation with a diagnostic test. The results of this test were used to estimate the basic knowledge of the students and proposing specific tutorial sessions in order to unify their level of knowledge. This method should increase the students involvement and improve the success while performing the laboratory practices. On the other side, rubrics were created in order to standardize the correction criteria. These rubrics were also made public to the students, before the classes, in an attempt to improve the quality of their reports. In addition, for some of the reports the students were asked to self-assess their own reports following the public rubric. The results indicate that teachers found the rubrics useful for objective and fair evaluation. However, the standard deviation across teachers has not been apparently reduced with respect to the previous year by the use of them, although the differences in the student cohort have to be taken into account. The effect on grades of the factors teacher and session, as well as their interaction, was significant (p<.05) according to the ANOVA tests, as already was prior to the application of the action. It was also found that the student grades in the practical classes did not improved significantly. A low implication in the preparation before classes and a low tutorial attendance were observed in the collective of students, possible explaining in part the discrete improvements obtained. The self-assessment improved the grades on average where it was applied. We concluded that the involvement of both students and teachers is necessary to promote learning quality using these techniques

Reducing the Barrier to Entry of Complex Robotic Software: a MoveIt! Case Study

Developing robot agnostic software frameworks involves synthesizing the disparate fields of robotic theory and software engineering while simultaneously accounting for a large variability in hardware designs and control paradigms. As the capabilities of robotic software frameworks increase, the setup difficulty and learning curve for new users also increase. If the entry barriers for configuring and using the software on robots is too high, even the most powerful of frameworks are useless. A growing need exists in robotic software engineering to aid users in getting started with, and customizing, the software framework as necessary for particular robotic applications. In this paper a case study is presented for the best practices found for lowering the barrier of entry in the MoveIt! framework, an open-source tool for mobile manipulation in ROS, that allows users to 1) quickly get basic motion planning functionality with minimal initial setup, 2) automate its configuration and optimization, and 3) easily customize its components. A graphical interface that assists the user in configuring MoveIt! is the cornerstone of our approach, coupled with the use of an existing standardized robot model for input, automatically generated robot-specific configuration files, and a plugin-based architecture for extensibility. These best practices are summarized into a set of barrier to entry design principles applicable to other robotic software. The approaches for lowering the entry barrier are evaluated by usage statistics, a user survey, and compared against our design objectives for their effectiveness to users