ICS
691:
Advanced topics in robotics -- Exploration, self-organization and
self-assembly. This course uses Laulima. This course is an advanced class,
targeted at graduate students with
experience in robotics.
You do not have to be an ICS student to take the course, but you do
have to be proficient in the following:
Installing and running software.
Programming.
(Applied) Mathematics (at least calculus and linear algebra).
Reading technical papers.
Literature searches, and using the library.
English (reading and writing).
The purpose of this course is to
think about robotic exploration. Can we think about some simple
principles such that, built into the robot, they enable the robot to
explore its environment effectively and efficiently? Can these
principles also lead to other self-organized behavior, such as movement
coordination, cooperation inrobot swarms, and even self-assembly?
The course is organized as a
competition.
In the beginning of the semester, we cooperatively decide on
objectives. At this point, students can, to a certain extend, shape the
course.
Students then break off into teams. Each team works on their own
solution strategies. Teams exchange "notes" regularly and produce
progress reports.
After 11 weeks, we hold a competition with the teams' robots. We
declare a winner and enjoy the party (virtually).
The remaining time of the semester is spent cooperatively, producing a
semester report that has the form of a technical paper. We will use a robotic simulator.
You can choose which one you want to use. Examples include: