In this paper, we describe a reactive robot architecture that uses fast re-planning methods to avoid the shortcomings of reactive navigation, such as getting stuck in box canyons or in front of small openings. Our robot architecture differs from others in that it gives planning progressively greater control of the robot if reactive navigation continues to fail, until planning controls the robot...

One of the major components for the creation of autonomous robots is the ability of a robot to ‘plan its path’ that gives the robot much necessary capability of being autonomous. Though desirable, ‘pre-programming’ a robot for all possible cases or conditions will be impossible due to the fact that the number of motion combinations can be large or infinite. In this paper, we have enhanced a rob...

Interaction and command modes as well their combination are essential features of modern futuristic robotic systems interacting with human beings in various dynamical environments. This paper presents a synthetic overview concerning the most used Human-Robot Systems (HRIS). It includes first historical which namely tele-manipulation, off-line robot programming, traditional elementary teaching b...

This paper introduces a visual programming language (vpl) for Thymio II, an educational robot. Our vpl is intended for children in primary school and aims at making robotics programming approachable for young children by creating a close correspondence between the icons of the programming language and the design of the robot. Its two modes of operation — basic and advanced — allow children to l...

This paper reports on a programming lesson using autonomous robots in junior high school. First, the design of the low cost circuit board for the lesson is described. The structure of a general programming language “Dolittle” which controls a robot is also explained. Then, we introduce lessons of manufacturing and controlling robots in “Information and Computer” area of “Technology and Home Eco...

Computer programming is a skill required in many professions, not just computer science. Lego Mindstorms NXT can be incorporated into a programming course to add hands-on interactivity that will better engage a broader range of students. Chosing the most suitable programming language is difficult, and this paper summarizes some experiences in teaching students using RoboLab and NXT-G for Mindst...

“Programming-by-Demonstration” (PbD) is a very intuitive and efficient means for programming robots for a specific task. One approach for PbD uses manual guided robots to show the task the robot has to perform. Even though manual guidance is a lot more intuitive than traditional programming, first experiences showed that there is still training needed to make full use of such a system. This pap...

A very general form of representing and specifying an autonomous agent's behavior is by using a computer language. The task of planning feasible actions could then simply be reduced to an instance of automatic programming. We have evaluated the use of an evolutionary technique for automatic programming called Genetic Programming (GP) to directly control a miniature robot. To our knowledge, this...

The first part of this paper explores the general issues in using Artificial Life techniques to program actual mobile robots. In particular it explores the difficulties inherent in transferring programs evolved in a simulated environment to run on an actual robot. It examines the dual evolution of organism morphology and nervous systems in biology. It proposes techniques to capture some of the ...

Genetic programming is an automatic programming technique that evolves computer programs to solve, or approximately solve, problems. This paper presents two examples in which genetic programming creates a computer program for controlling a robot so that the robot moves to a specified destination point in minimal time. In the first approach, genetic programming evolves a computer program compose...