IEEE Robotics and Automation's Technical Committee
on:

Networked Robots

A "networked robot" is a robotic device connected to a communications network such as the Internet or LAN. The network could be wired or wireless, and based on any of of a variety of protocols such as TCP, UDP, or 802.11. Many new applications are now being developed ranging from automation to exploration. There are two subclasses of Networked Robots:

1) Tele-operated, where human supervisors send commands and receive feedback via the network. Such systems support research, education, and public awareness by making valuable resources accessible to broad audiences.

2) Autonomous, where robots and sensors exchange data via the network. In such systems, the sensor network extends the effective sensing range of the robots, allowing them to communicate with each other over long distances to coordinate their activity. The robots in turn can deploy, repair, and maintain the sensor network to increase its longevity, and utility. A broad challenge is to develop a science base that couples communication to control to enable such new capabilities.

Networked robots pose a number of technical challenges related to network noise, reliability, congestion, fixed and variable time delay, stability, passivity, range and power limitations, deployment, coverage, safety, localization, sensor and actuation fusion, and user interface design. New capabilities arise frequently with the introduction of new hardware, software, and protocol standards.

The IEEE RAS Technical Committee on Internet and Online Robots was founded in May 2001. It originally focused on Internet-based tele-operated robots, but expanded to reflect a broader set of problems and applications. The name Networked Robots was approved and adopted in May 2004.

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• International Conference on Ubiquitous Robots and Ambient Intelligence   Event - conference    November 2, 2005 - Daejeon, Korea
  Contact Information: Nak Young Chong (nakyoung at jaist dot ac dot jp)

  The aim of this conference is to bring together researchers, engineers, and practitioners to present their ideas and recent works related to the various aspects of ubiquitous robots and ambient intelligence.

• IROS 2005 Tutorial on Network-based Robot Simulation and Remote Control Using Open Technologies Java and Java3D   Tutorial    August 3, 2005 - Edmonton, CA
  Contact Information: Igor Belousov
• IROS 2005 Workshop on CORBA Networking   Event - workshop    August 2, 2005 - Edmondton, Canada
  Contact Information: Ken Goldberg (goldberg at ieor dot berkeley dot edu)

  this workshop highlights uses of the CORBA system for Networked Robots

• IROS 2005 Plenary Talk: Networked Robotic Observatories for the Biosciences   Talk    May 1, 2005 - Berkeley, CA
  
• Our Technical Committee shared the award for Most Active Technical Committee   Award    April 20, 2005 - Barcelona
  

  announced at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation in Barcelona

• Networked Robot Project   Announcement    April 3, 2005 - Japan
  Contact Information: Norihiro Hagita

  Japan's ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratory announces its Networked Robot Project Led by Norihiro Hagita (ATR), its mission is to develop network-based intelligent robots for applications such as service, medical, and safety

• Workshop on Network Robot Systems: Toward Intelligent Robotic Systems Integrated with Environments   Workshop    April 1, 2005 - Barcelona, Spain
  Contact Information: Norihiro Hagita, Alberto Sanfeliu, Hiroshi Ishiguro
• Networked Robot Forum   Announcement    January 1, 2005 - -
  Contact Information: Hideyuki Tokuda

  Networked Robot Forum , chaired by Hideyuki Tokuda (Keio University), it promotes R&D and standardization on network robots through activities to support awareness campaigns and verification experiments in collaboration among wide-ranging parties. Includes over 100 industry and academic members.

• Networked Robotics: Issues, Architectures and Applications   Talk    October 1, 2004 - Sendai, Japan
  Contact Information: Gerard T. McKee, Paul S. Schenker
• Workshop on Wireless and Networked Robots   Workshop    April 1, 2004 - New Orleans
  Contact Information: Wolfram Burgard, Ken Goldberg, Yasuharu Kunii
• Ubiquitous Robotic Companion (URC) Project   Announcement    April 1, 2004 - Korea
  
• Special Issue on Online Robots and E-Automation: International Journal of Automation and Computing   Publication - Journal    April 1, 2004 -
  Contact Information: Huosheng Hu (hhu at essex dot ac dot uk)
• IEEE ICIT'03 (International Conference on Industrial Technology 2003). Special Session on Internet Teleoperation   Talk    December 10, 2003 - Maribor, Slovenia
  
• EURON 2003: International Summer School on Internet and Online Robots for Telemanipulation   Program    September 15, 2003 - Jaume I University, Spain
  
• 2003 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation: Workshop on New Research Directions in Internet Tele-Robotics   Workshop    September 14, 2003 - Taipei, Taiwan
  Contact Information: Imad Elhajj, Liu Yu hui
• Special Issue of Autonomous Robotics Journal on Online and Internet Robots. 2003, v15   Publication - Journal    September 1, 2003 -
  
• Special Issue of IEEE Proceedings on: Networked and Intelligent Robots Through the Internet   Publication - IEEE Proceedings    March 1, 2003 -
  Contact Information: Ren Luo, Toshio Fukuda
• 2002 IEEE Workshop on Educational Applications of Online Robots. IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation   Workshop    May 12, 2002 - Washington, DC
  Contact Information: Gerard McKee
• Your wish is my command   Publication - Article    December 22, 2001 -
  
• Beyond Webcams: An Introduction to Online Robots   Publication - Anthology    December 1, 2001 - MIT Press
  

  Anthology of articles on Online Robots from MIT Press, 2002.

• The Robot in the Garden: Telerobotics and Telepistemology in the Age of the Internet   Publication - Book    June 1, 2000 -
  Contact Information: Ken Goldberg

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• URL:http://www.informatik.uni-freiburg.de/~burgard/tc/
• Founding Date: May 1, 2001
• Member Count: 201
• Spring 2006 Committee Chairs:
  • Chong, Nak Young (nakyoung at jaist dot ac dot jp)
    • JAIST
  • Burgard, Wolfram (burgard at informatik dot uni-freiburg dot de)
    • University of Freiburg, Department of Computer Science
  • Sukhatme, Gaurav (gaurav at usc dot edu)
    • University of Southern California
• Committee Chairs Emeritus:
  • Goldberg, Ken (goldberg at ieor dot berkeley dot edu)
    • University of California, Berkeley