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This book covers the fundamental properties, modeling, and demonstration of Electroactive polymers in robotic applications. It particularly details artificial muscles and sensors. In addition, the book discusses the properties and uses in robotics applications of ionic polymer–metal composite actuators and dielectric elastomers.

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foreword by Michael Arbib

"Hard to put down and necessary to know -- Arkin's book provides acomprehensive intellectual history of robots and a thorough compilationof robotic organizational paradigms from reflexes through socialinteraction." -- Chris Brown, Professor of Computer Science, Universityof Rochester

This introduction to the principles, design, and practice of intelligentbehavior-based autonomous robotic systems is the first true survey ofthis robotics field. The author presents the tools and techniquescentral to the development of this class of systems in a clear andthorough manner. Following a discussion of the relevant biological andpsychological models of behavior, he covers the use of knowledge andlearning in autonomous robots, behavior-based and hybrid robotarchitectures, modular perception, robot colonies, and future trends inrobot intelligence.

The text throughout refers to actual implemented robots and includesmany pictures and descriptions of hardware, making it clear that theseare not abstract simulations, but real machines capable of perception,cognition, and action. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Settling the bases.
This book has a very good organization and explanation of what is conceived as Behavior-based Robotics (BBR). Not only with the good theoretical explanations along with the real examples, but also for settling down into engineering research what is mostly a philosofical approach.

Excellent for standarizing, nomenclatures, and complete fundament on BBR research and works.

If anything bad can be said is the 10-years old fact, and the lack of techniques such as ANFIS and other cooperative control strategies for multiple robots.

Best to learn new robotic concept
Nous utilisons ce livre dans le but de concevoir la nouvelle intelligence de notre robot autonome (capra.etsmtl.ca). Ce livre est parfaitement bien structuré afin de bien comprendre le cheminement mental que nous devons avoir afin de développer ce concept. Il n'y a pas d'exemple directement lié à du code, mais jumelé à un livre d'exercice sur le behavior-based il vous permet une compréhension complète de bahavior-based et de son implémentation.

Overpriced and explains the obvious
The only reason I am giving this book three stars is that no other serious publication I know of discusses behavior based robotics. However, that being said, this book uses a lot of pages and costs a lot of dollars to explain a rather simple concept. It is an elegant concept, and I do take my hat off to Mr. Arkin for getting to the heart of the matter clearly and with good illustrations. But is it a concept that requires almost 500 pages? I don't really think so. Simply put, behavior-based robotics does not use an internal model of its environment. For instance, there is no programming in the robot of what a chair looks like, or what kind of surface the robot is moving on - all the information is gleaned from the input of the robot's sensors. The robot uses that information to react to the changes in its environment as those changes occur. State machines are at the heart of the design of any behavior-based robot. For example, a foraging robot would probably have four states describing its behavior in response to its sensors: wandering and looking for food, picking up food, homing towards the nest, and avoiding obstacles.
This book is a very easy read, although at times it seems repetitive. It does not really require any particular technical background in order to understand it, although to really appreciate the concept you should already be familiar with robotic design concepts.
Some really good implementations of the concepts in this book are at a website authored by Craig Reynolds. To find it, type "Steering behaviors for autonomous characters" into Google, and it should be the first address listed. Mr. Reynolds' site has a paper on his extensions of behavior-based concepts, as well as some Java applets demonstrating his methods.

Possibly the best single text on behaviour-based robotics
Outstanding introduction to the field of behaviour-based robot control. Completely accessible to the non-expert. It starts off with a good treatment of perception and action in animals as motivation. Goes on to discuss different aspects of behavioural control, including formal methods, architectures, various implementations, theoretical limitations, and so on.

I use this book as a reference, to help me with my own research into control architectures. Arkin is a leader in this field. Many (most!) of the recent research papers that I've seen cite this book. I think it should be on your bookshelf if you're a researcher or practitioner of AI.

Excellent at nothing (ok, I guess the cover is nice)
From reading this text, it is unclear whether it set out to be a review of or an introduction to behavior based robotics.Although it discusses some the most important and popular work in behavior based AI from the past 20 years, the coverage of these subjects is quite weak.Many pages are devoted to explaining the obvious or irrelevant in excruciating detail.This text is lacking in substance and is definitely not worth its...price tag. ... Read more

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Robot motion planning has become a major focus of robotics. Research findings can be applied not only to robotics but to planning routes on circuit boards, directing digital actors in computer graphics, robot-assisted surgery and medicine, and in novel areas such as drug design and protein folding. This text reflects the great advances that have taken place in the last ten years, including sensor-based planning, probabalistic planning, localization and mapping, and motion planning for dynamic and nonholonomic systems. Its presentation makes the mathematical underpinnings of robot motion accessible to students of computer science and engineering, relating low-level implementation details to high-level algorithmic concepts. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Not perfect but better than anything else out there

The good news is that this book covers a range of topics in sufficient detail and accuracy
to give students a good understanding of the topic.

Here are some reasons I could not give it 5 stars.

First, the book is uneven. Some details don't seem to really go any place (such as some of the advanced
topics in configuration space). On the other hand, students what to know about SLAM, SLAM and well, more SLAM
(I do not know if I agree with student here... )
Also what about multi-robot systems? Flying robots (are they mobile robots? ).Legged robots?

Also, being an old-school trained robotics person, I thought the discussion kinematics and dynamics was inadequate
and could be beefed up. Perhaps the authors felt that it would take them too far off the main theme? I don't know,
but no D-H parameters? Really?


The text has about 2x as many words as it needs to cover the same material. It could benefit from tighter editing to make
the meaning clearer and the text less wordy.By way of analogy, in the software world K&R probably said everything
there was needed to be said, in a concise way, about C. But, there are many much more wordy books out there..

Oh, and lets see what else.. ahh the algorithms presented. My feeling is that some may obfuscate rather than elucidate.

However, given these defects, this bookhas a coverage which would be hard to match in several books, and I enjoyed reading it and learning from it...

Comprehensive coverage of the field
At the outset one might expect this book to be pure about motion planning or motion control. In reality the book is remarkably comprehensive in coverage of perception, planning and control with in-depth coverage of basic kinematics, basic planning mechanisms and applied estimation such as Kalman filters for robot perception. The book was written/edited by the first authors with in-depth coverage in particular chapters by the other authors. In the end it is a very coherent, up-to-date and comprehensive book. The book is written to have enough detail for a 1 term senior under-graduate or junior graduate course in robotics or as a reference for practitioners. Truly a great book

Great book on mobile robotics
This is a great book on mobile robotics, a lot of methods are explained in the book and its writing is clear and easy to understand. I have used it on several undergraduate and graduate courses that I have taken, I fully recommend it. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great Intro to Robotics
This is a great introduction to robotics and science for budding scientists.There's not really enough books on robots for students.I wish this were a little longer, but it is a fun and interesting read -- especially for young scientists (who express an interest in robots).Many of the other books on robotics are very technical and too long for young readers.

This, on the other hand, is a short introduction that will excite young minds.The title is very fitting (Cool Science).

... Read more

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Science fiction becomes science fact in this intriguing series that explores the extraordinary scientific advances modern man is making - and their impact on society, economics and our future. ... Read more

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Robotics: Theory and Industrial Applications is an introduction to the principles of industrial robotics, related systems, and applications. This text is a comprehensive tool in learning the technical aspects of robotics and includes coverage of power supply systems, degrees of freedom, programming methods, sensors, end effectors, implementation planning, and system maintenance. Each chapter begins with an outline of topics, learning objectives, and a listing of technical terms. The key concepts are discussed using a systems approach to enhance student learning.

The second edition is updated with full-color illustrations and photos that reflect changes n both the field of robotics and technology in general. The content has been revised to keep pace with robotic technology and reorganized to maximize student comprehension. Various features throughout the text address special interest topics, including pioneers in the file of robotics, careers in robotics, and exciting applications of robotic technology. ... Read more

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Basic, Advanced, and Robotic Laparoscopic Surgery, by Tommaso Falcone, MD and Jeffrey M. Goldberg, MD, is the ideal way to enhance your skills in this key area of gynecologic surgery. In this volume in the Female Pelvic Surgery Video Atlas Series, edited by Mickey Karram, MD, hours of video footage, together with detailed discussions and illustrations, clarify how to most effectively perform a variety of laparoscopic operations and manage complications. Case-based videos take you step by step through endometriosis surgery, myomectomy, hysterectomy, robotic surgery, and more.

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Swarm robotics can be defined as the study of how a swarm of relatively simple physically embodied agents can be constructed to collectively accomplish tasks that are beyond the capabilities of a single one. Unlike other studies on multi-robot systems, swarm robotics emphasizes self-organization and emergence, while keeping in mind the issues of scalability and robustness. These emphases promote the use of relatively simple robots, equipped with localized sensing ability, scalable communication mechanisms, and the exploration of decentralized control strategies.

This state-of-the-art survey is the first book devoted to swarm robotics. It is based on the First International Workshop on Swarm Robotics held in Santa Monica, CA, USA in July 2004 as part of SAB 2004

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What do a drought in New York and an earthquake in Seattle have to do with a "nanotube" a few billionths of a meter long at the University of Tokyo?

Our Molecular Future reveals a striking new possibility: We are on the verge of being able to protect ourselves from nature’s worst attacks. Tools such as carbon nanotubes may help us cope in ways that until now have been described as science fiction.

If we succeed, we might solve a troubling question about scientific research: Why risk it? Why risk powerful new technologies that may destroy us?

With compelling evidence, Douglas Mulhall shows that the answers to such questions may be found by focusing on what the environment does to us, rather than only what we do to the environment.

His book shows where our technologies might be heading, what may stop us from getting there, and how to use the benefits to minimize the downsides.

The good news is that we may enter a future that's so fantastic, it's unbelievable.

The bad news is that many of us don't believe it, and so we may not be ready to cope.

By revealing the threads that tie our fate to new technologies, this book helps us get ready.

First, we have to ask the right questions. Mulhall emphasizes that this book defines those questions, rather than pretending to have quick or detailed answers.

Here are examples:

Molecular technologies aren’t just confined to a few university think tanks. Nor are they confined to an elite among the superpowers, big business, or government. Their roots are embedded in the fabric of our industries, research institutes, and military. They are found in wealthy and poor nations alike. The foundations for these technologies are so pervasive that it’s hard to describe them without starting an encyclopedia.

Our Molecular Future condenses this knowledge and gives us broad overviews of who’s doing what, where. By so doing, the book shows us why these technologies pose such deep challenges to conventional thinking about business and environment.

Yet, how vulnerable is this technological juggernaut to being thrown backward or blasted down the wrong path by nature’s violent attacks?

In ninety seconds, the Great Kanto Earthquake annihilated Japan’s centralized economy in 1923. It was so severe that the country was in no shape to weather the Great Depression. Such instability helped open the door for a military government. After the military took over, war in Southeast Asia—and then the Pacific—broke out.

Might this recur today? What about similar such risks in America? What if the largest earthquake in America’s history was to hit again? Surprisingly, it didn’t occur in San Francisco, or on the quake-prone West Coast. Our Molecular Future reveals the location and the implications.

Property loss is increasing worldwide, due to unrestricted development in risky hurricane and earthquake zones. Perversely, this can actually improve economic conditions for some sectors in the short term, by fueling construction booms after disasters. Such short-term rebounds are often generated by insurance settlements.

Yet underneath, a cancer grows. This foundation for economic stability—insurance—is collapsing. Our Molecular Future reveals the depth of the situation.

To inoculate ourselves against nature’s occasional tantrums, and avoid collapse of the insurance industry, we may have to construct powerful molecular defenses. Yet, these defenses themselves may threaten our existence, due to their potential for abuse. Some say that the risks outweigh the potential gains.

So, if it’s such a risk, why go there?

Evidence suggests there may be no alternative. Our Molecular Future explains why.

By tracing disruptions of the past and advances of the present through to technologies of the future, it becomes more than a book: it's a whole new field of study; a multifaceted approach to our past, our present, and our potential futures.

Because of this, the book appeals to a wide range of readers.

Read it if you are...

...striving to understand the molecular world that we may soon live in

...wondering about your job prospects or health care in an age of disruptive technologies

...looking for ways to cope with climate extremes or natural disasters

The book also has special relevance if you’re one of these individuals:

A business or economics student: Here are ideas about what startups might flourish in a molecular economy. "Genetic computing" may make most manufacturing processes and patents obsolete.Moreover, new industries might emerge from our capacities to cope with natural hazards.

A lecturer or student in environment, natural science, and ethics. The book is a valuable supplement to course materials:

--For environment, it identifies challenges to the Precautionary Principle and the doctrine of sustainable development.

--For natural science, it summarizes new discoveries about naturally occurring climate changes and ecological disruptions that are changing our views about the stability of the natural world. --For scientific ethics, it gives an overview of the ethical questions associated with development of powerful new tools.

An executive positioning your company for the approaching molecular era. Here is information about startups that might flourish in a molecular economy.

An insurer or corporate manager who plans disaster recovery strategies. This summarizes natural risks and technologies that may alter the way that businesses prepare for them. A health care provider. Research into nanobacteria and robotic surgery may alter the way we treat disease. A scientist confronted by environmental opposition to your technologies: Here's one way out of the impasse between the life sciences and environmentalists. An environmentalist who forecasts how technology might alter the ecology: Molecular technologies and natural changes may upend the Precautionary Principle and the doctrine of sustainable development.

The book also has an extensive index and endnotes, with links to authoritative Web sites. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

More like a fancy futuristic trip than an informative tome
You can see this book was written by a journalist rather than a scientist.

Yes, it contains a big deal of information, but this is casually scattered all over the text with little resemblance of order. The feeling you get is that the author searched the internet for a few weeks looking for anything he could find about future technologies and than casually slapped the lot on paper interspersing it with his own rants. I'm not saying this is what he actually did, but surely it is what it feels like.

A lot of futuristic gizmos are described but how are they really supposed to work, how likely is that they are ever really realized and when, if ever, they will be available hardly is.
So the author describes how in the future nanobots will swim in our blood vessels cleaning it from all sort of impurities. That's all good and well but how will, in practice, this bots work? How will they be built? Where will they get the energy to function from? What kind of intelligence will they have to perform their task? What are the collateral risks of such technology? When can we expect them to be available? Which scientists and researchers think building such devices is possible and which think it is not, and especially why? This kind of information is hardly present and when it is appears shallow in content and scattered seemingly at random all over the book.

If I wanted fancy scenarios rather than hard facts I would have bought a science fiction novel. As a matter of fact a lot of the gizmos the author mentions I personally already encountered in science fiction, only better explained.

Fact is, if I just wanted scattered information I would have searched the internet myself at a much cheaper cost than the book's. Nowadays most of what you need to know is online, if you buy a book you are looking for a tidy summary and/or a deeper analysis. Did this part of the present technological revolution escape such a futurist author?

Prophets of Reality
Anyone familiar with Ray Kurzweil and/or the notion of the Singularity will not be surprised by this book.The difference between Mulhall and other technological prophets is the degree of detail.Actually, the book should have been expanded into two - the first covering background and possible trends, the second dealing with societal and individual reaction and responses to this coming future.

It is a truism but the wild blue yonder never seems wild or blue or so yonder.What we now casually accept as part of everyday life - the ability to communicate with anyone at anytime, the abundance of free knowledge, the vast capabilities of computers, machines without moving parts, the merging of radio, camera, computer and telephone into a single device - this would have seemed almost miraculous even 15 years ago.I have an idea that a future in which we can have whatever we want through nanotech is still a long way off.The problem is two fold:How will such power be controlled and who will do the controlling.

This is yet another opportunity for increasing the authority of the State when, on the face of it, these creations should lead to individual empowerment.The best parts were the technical discussions, what will or will not be possible, when and how all this will come about.The preachy parts were the worst and should have been in another book.When I see the word "should" as in "what we should do is" I feel a warning.Perhaps the most poignant warning was an event that is today occurring:The forgetting of culture and the past. It seems as if our new technology has made all things new without any reference to the past.Like the Hopi (his example), we may once remember this society by our leftovers.The discussion on democracy was good but not nearly extensive enough.If we are to maintain any notion of individual worth, privacy, "rights" and community, this problem must be dealt with even as we advance.My grade:B

Great Book about Nanotechnology.
I have just finished reading this book, and i must say wow!This is a amazing read from start to end.The book goes over what Nanotechnology is now, and what possiblities are there in the future.I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in reading about Nanotechnology.

Get up to speed on nanotechnology and your future
If there is a better book that can get one up to speed on the ramifications of nanotechnology, then I'd like to know about it.

The media does a poor job on covering nanotechnology.Forget the media; read this book instead.

The author was on the Art Bell show recently.Three hours was not enough time to do this book and subject justice.

Art Bell fans will love this book.It covers many of the catastrophe scenarios that Art and George Noory talk about.

Art and George spend little time talking about nanotechnology.Again, read this book and you'll enjoy their next show on nanotechnology even more.

If you believe this book, then nanotechnology will change your life like nothing that has ever come before.

It's like reading a science fiction novel, only minus the fiction.

Lets use these technologies to save our future
If I had to sum up the main theme of this work, I would say it's about preservation of the human species.A large portion of this work is devoted to how humans (or our progeny) can avoid extinction by natural and man-made disaster.All other discussions seem to lead to this point in one form or another. The author believes that the underlying technologies in the title can and perhaps will provide for our salvation if we play our cards right.

The author has done his research and has a large source of information to draw from.This book gives the reader a good overview of real scientific advancements as well as other insights from prominent leaders and theorists in these fields.There are ample notes and anecdotes to give the reader the option to pursue more detailed information on the topics.

A few parts of the book drag due to some repetitiveness and some of the discussions don't appear to have a firm scientific base and don't seem too plausible, especially if you have decent scientific knowledge in the particular subject.If you are a scientist or engineer with some expertise in the fields you may find that some theories lack a firm foundation.However one theme that comes with the author's optimism is that throughout history, even the most prominent experts have been proven wrong through natural progressions and even breakthroughs!

This work is not incredibly deep or profound though quite entertaining and at times it appears to feel more like a novel than a documentary of the future.It is suitable for readers of all walks of life. ... Read more

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Niku offers comprehensive, yet concise coverage of robotics that will appeal to engineers. Robotic applications are drawn from a wide variety of fields. Emphasis is placed on design along with analysis and modeling. Kinematics and dynamics are covered extensively in an accessible style. Vision systems are discussed in detail, which is a cutting-edge area in robotics. Engineers will also find a running design project that reinforces the concepts by having them apply what they’ve learned. ... Read more

Product Description
Whether you're just beginning with your LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT set or are already an expert, you'll be inspired by these animal-like models that walk, crawl, hop, and roll!

The first part of the book introduces you to the NXT kit and reviews the parts you'll need in order to begin building. Next, you'll learn how to program with the NXT-G programming language, including how to make miniprograms called My Blocks that you can use to build larger programs. Finally, you'll learn how to build each robot and program it to act like its real animal cousins.

Learn to build and program the following robots:

• Ribbit, a jumping frog
• Bunny, a hopping rabbit
• Sandy, a walking camel
• Spiderbot, an eight-legged spider that avoids objects and walks forward and backward
• Snout, a walking alligator that opens and closes its jaws
• LEGOsaurus, a four-legged, plodding dinosaur
• Pygmy, a walking elephant that raises and lowers its head
• Polecat, a skunk on wheels that lifts its tail and shoots "darts"
• Strutter, a peacock on wheels that turns and flutters its tail feathers

Troubleshooting tips help you avoid problems like misarranged gears and incorrect programming, while a list of Internet resources is included to help guide you in further exploration with the NXT. Teachers and home educators will appreciate an appendix with helpful suggestions for using the models in the classroom.

The models in this book have been tested repeatedly -- and built successfully -- by novice builders, so all you have to do is follow the directions and watch them go. Now, let the building begin! (Note: These specific models require additional NXT/TECHNIC parts. Check out the part lists at thenxtzoo(DOT)com.) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

Misleading title,description - This is for NXT Educational Version
If you buy this book, make sure you have the Educational NXT set PLUS the Educational Resource set. It is not for the regular Mindstorms NXT set that a consumer would most likely buy.

I wasn't going to rate this book so low, but an editor is on here saying that its people buying the book's fault for not researching the website to find the part list BEFORE buying the book. This is nuts. Where does it say that there even is a website to check out parts list.

Disappointing that I can't use the book without buying the $80 Educational Resource Kit and disappointing that those involved in editing this book are so rude to their customers who are PAYING for the book!

Good book. . . only if you have the parts
Even though this book is geared toward kids, I would not say it is completely "Kid friendly" especially if you just got the Lego NXT. If you want to build the frog, rabbit, or skunk you have to have the education resource kit in addition to the base kit. You will need even more parts to make the SIX other models; Fay Rhodes does tell you were to get the parts and sometimes shows you where you can substitute. In order to make the elephant, skunk, and peacock, you will need to use fishing line for the pulleys. I tried for over 30 minutes to attach the string on the skunk to get it to "spray" and I eventually gave up and tore it apart. The building instructions are not the best, the pins and other parts never fully attach.
It is hard to get the walking animals legs in alignment. I tried for 20 minutes to get the alligator to walk and it just would not work, but maybe that is because I built it wrong.

I admit, the animals are pretty cool. My favorites are the spider and the elephant.

Over all you should only get this book if you have the parts and you have some experience with the NXT.

Great book filled with creative ways to learn with LEGO MINDSTORMS
Not everyone who wants to build a robot wants it to go fast! Some teachers/students want to teach/learn about building, programming, collaboration and teamwork without being part of a competition. This books provides ideas for learning the concepts MINDSTORMS is famous for while reaching a new audience. The models are creative, educational, artistic, and lend themselves to a variety of discussions and lessons that aren't normally associated with building a robot. I definitely recommend this book. Watch what students can do!

Fantastic robots, easy to use instructions
I have had this book for a while, and I am still taken by the inventiveness and, for lack of a better term, FUN of the designs.I admit I am writing this review in large part to combat some of the wrong-headed low-rating reviews provided by others, all of whose sole complaint, it seems to me, is that THEY DIDN'T SO MUCH AS READ THE VERY FIRST PAGE OF THE BOOK (conveniently available for preview right here on Amazon) BEFORE BUYING IT.Mrs. Rhodes is very up-front about the fact that the models were designed with the expanded kit in mind, and she provides links to places where additional parts may be found, in some cases for pennies a piece.In this she is actually a fair bit more responsible than some other authors publishing in the same field.Furthermore, it seems to me that half the fun of books like Mrs. Rhodes is not just about making the given robot, but for inspiring one about the many possibilities.Simply go onto youtube and you will find a host of variant spiders, peacocks, skunks and other LEGO robots that are similar to, inspired by, but not exactly like these, because the creators saw what was done here, then took the ball and ran with it.I hope that you, review reader, might do the same.

Requires additional parts to build most of the designs
The robot designs in the book are fun, but I was quite disappointed to see that they require purchasing additional parts than are available in a normal Mindstorms NXT set.I was able to partially build a few of the robots, but found the book much less useful than I expected because of this rather serious flaw. ... Read more

Product Description
Robotics began as a science fiction creation which has become quite real, first in assembly line operations such as automobile manufacturing, airplane construction etc. They have now reached such areas as the ever-multiplying - medical field. Robotic surgery is now becoming highly practised in open heart, lung, and other forms of surgery. This book covers the developing stages of robotic surgery and its expectations in the medical field. ... Read more

Product Description
This book provides a fundamental knowledge of robotic grasping and fixturing (RGF) manipulation. For RGF manipulation to become a science rather than an art, the content of the book is uniquely designed for a thorough understanding of the RGF from the multifingered robot hand grasp, basic fixture design principle, and evaluating and planning of robotic grasping/fixturing, and focuses on the modeling and applications of the RGF. Compared with existing publications, this volume concentrates more on abstract formulation, i.e. mathematical modeling of robotic grasping and fixturing. Thus, it will be a good reference text for academic researchers, manufacturing and industrial engineers and a textbook for engineering graduate students. The book provides readers an overall picture and scientific basis of RGF, the comprehensive information and mathematic models of developing and applying RGF in industry, and presents long term valuable information which is essential and can be used by technical professions as a good reference. ... Read more

Product Description
Productivity enhancement is a major concern for all manufacturing enterprises. Productivity enhancement can be achieved in many ways and many facets of its problems have been investigated over the last decades. A number of methods, tools and technologies have emerged to efficiently increase productivity and rationalize management of manufacturing enterprises. International experts from both academia and industry share their experiences in this collection of articles contributing to the latest advances in the many facets of productivity enhancement in manufacturing enterprises. Themes and visions are detailed on factories of the future, new management approaches, manufacturing system integration and manufacturing information systems. These technical areas can be grouped into four major sections: factories of the future; techniques and tools for automated manufacturing; robotics; and industrial applications. The papers illustrate a pattern of appraoches to the problem of designing a new generation of robots with high enough performamce capabilities to be used in an industrial context. ... Read more

Product Description

Although advanced technologies are the cornerstone of modern life, few people understand how such technologies as robotics or nuclear science actually work. Fewer still realize how—and how dramatically—technology influences our society and culture. Robotics is a reference guide that provides nonspecialists with the most up-to-date information on seminal developments in the technology of robotics, as well as covering the social, political, and technical impacts of those developments on everyday life, both now and in the future.

Product Description

Laparoscopy has allowed surgeons to perform major surgical procedures through small incisions. The introduction of laparoscopy has revolutionized the field of minimally invasive surgery. Urologic Robotic Surgery presents accepted robotic applications to treat common urological problems. Accomplished authors demonstrate their expertise in basic instrumentation and techniques, potential applications and contraindications, with attention to patient positioning and trocar placement. Despite the increasing popularity of this technology, there remains a dearth of literature available to surgeons and patients. Urologic Robotic Surgery reveals the critical steps for each procedure, reviews robotic suturing, complications, training and credentialing.

Product Description

Rescue Robotics presents the most significant findings of the DDT Project on robots and systems for urban search and rescue. This project was launched by the Japanese government in 2002 with the aim of applying a wide variety of robotics technologies to find a solution to the problem of disaster response, especially urban search and rescue in large-scale earthquakes.

From 2002 to 2007 more than 100 researchers took part in the DDT Project, coming from a wide spectrum of research and development to make up four research groups: Aerial Robot Systems MU (Mission Unit), Information Infrastructure System MU, In-Rubble Robot System MU, and On-Rubble Robot System MU. This book discusses their development and testing of various robotic systems and technologies such as serpentine robots, traced vehicles, intelligent human interface and data processing, as well as analysing and verifying the results of these experiments.

Rescue Robotics will be of interest to researchers and students, but will also prove useful for emergency response personnel. It offers an insight into the state of the art of rescue robotics and its readers will benefit from a knowledge of the advanced technologies involved in this field.

Product Description
Mini-invasive surgery deserves increasing attention to lower post-operative stays in hospitals and to lessen fall-off complications. This new book is devoted to surgical robotics, with a focus on technology and design issues of the remote-mode operation assistants. The investigation leads to define the technical characteristics of a CRHA, co-robotic handling appliance, to be purposely developed, to support the duty-split approach surgical planner. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

flat, sterile, tenuous, and whispering unknown
I am very angry of buying this one, and hope there is no another guy to be fooled.

Initially, I am so graved to be inspired by this expensive book, yes, a book of 45 pages (48 pages -3 blank pages) and cost you 30 bucks, not mentioned of shipping price. There must something being fantastic and amazing; especially there are few articles talking about the software implementation in this field. Unfortunately, this is mess, or saying, more worse.

The Contents are listed below:
Preface
Abstract
Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 Computer-Assisted Surgery
Chapter 3 The split-Duty Approach
Chapter 4 Augmented Reality Actions
Chapter 5 Conclusion
Reference
Index

First of all, the Chapter 2 tells the things you had already know.

Secondary, the Chapter 3 should be the key point that attacting you to buy. Believe it or not, except that he says "CRHA may be in KineMedic(R) arm,..., and now available with KUKA"; then, ....nothing. He also made a mistake that the surgeon did NOT need the complete autonomous arm. They want something like Da Vinci system. And, where are the algorithm or methods?

Third, chapter 4 titled as "augmented reality Actions". Well, did the authors wanna discuss something about image analysis? Wrong !! He mentioned something about task-planning operation. Every guys, who interested in robot, knows eaxactly what the "AR" means. The author miss-using the term. More worst is that what he talks about duty-mode, task-mode, etc...God! Eat me! Medical/Surgical Robot is not Industry Robot.
Though he mentioned 3 tables in page 38 and 39, and mentioned hierarchic information tree-structure as decision logic, and then, well,...again, where is the exact algorithm? or the pseudo-code? or the omparison/beneflatfit/disadvantage of the methods? or anything that biomedical engineering/computer programmer, who was delayed in project and kicked by boss, indeed desired? I really hope they teach me some tricks, but they absolute shut up like a clam.

Then, the references are also very poor. During the 34 cited references, there are 7 related to the author's previous publications. In a general situation, it is very rude and irreverent for a academic book which cited not enough of others works.

Unfortunately, because of a mistake, I cannot return this item. It means I got robbed of 30$, reading few hours, and then throw it away. ... Read more

Product Description
Industrial Robotics encompasses the entire spectrum of the state of the art. It provides a unique, interdisciplinary treatment of robotics-showing the contributions of the various fields of mechanical, electrical, and industrial engineering, and computer science, to robotics. The authors bring it all together from design to use. And there is no shirking from peripheral activities such as CAD-CAM and artificial intelligence. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great Industrial Robotics Users Guide [1986]
This is a core-text of industrial engineering undergraduate studies- a well referenced, attractively presented, comprehensive users guide [pre-1990] to robotics for industrial applications. Beyond that, is thedemonstration of the engineering approach to systems development in complexenvironments (e.g. business) that has a far wider application.

Topicsaddressed include: the fundamentals, robot technology (control systems andcomponents, robot motion analysis and control, robot end-effectors, sensorsin robotics, and machine vision), robot programming and languages(including an introduction to AI), applications engineering formanufacturing (robot cell design and control, and economic analysis forrobotics), robot applications in manufacturing (material transfer andmachine loading/unloading, processing operations, assembly and inspection),implementation principles and issues (including safety, training,maintenance and quality), and social issues and the future of robotics.

Isuspect that a more recent revised version (if available), would be asimilarly useful treatment of the subject. ... Read more