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1 | f59acf11 | Dan Shope | |
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2 | <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
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5 | <meta name="description" content="A low cost, versatile research platform for autonomous systems in collaborative robotics"/> |
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6 | <meta name="keywords" content="low cost, research platform, robotics, Carngie Mellon, Scout, engineer, program"/> |
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27 | <!--[if lte IE 7]><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/mainIE.css" /><![endif]--> <title>Introduction | ColonyScout.com</title> |
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28 | |||
29 | </head>
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30 | <body bgcolor="#eeeeee"> |
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31 | |||
32 | <div id="general"> |
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33 | <div id="top"> |
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34 | <a href="index.php"><img src="/images/scout_logo.gif"></a> |
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35 | <div id="top-navigation"> |
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36 | <a title="Introduction to the Scout robot" href="/intro.php">Introduction</a> |
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37 | <a title="Mechanics of the Colony Scout" href="/mechanics.php">Mechanics</a> |
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38 | <a title="Sensors and Communications" href="/sensors.php">Sensors & Communication</a> |
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39 | <a title="Platform: Software and Hardware" href="/platform.php">Platform</a> |
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40 | <a title="Applications for the Colony Scout" href="/applications.php">Applications</a> |
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41 | <a title="Video of the Scout in Action" href="/gallery.php">Video</a> |
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42 | <a title="Meet the Scout Team" href="/contact.php">Contact</a> |
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43 | <a title="Contact The Scout Design Team" href="/team.php">Team</a> |
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44 | </div>
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45 | </div>
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49 | <div class="white-top"></div> |
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50 | <div class="white-body text-box"> |
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51 | <div class="content-box"> |
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52 | <h1>What is the Colony Scout?</h1> |
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53 | <p><b>Swarm intelligence</b><i>\'swòrm in-'te-lə-jən(t)s\</i> describes the collective behavior of decentralized, |
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54 | self-organized systems, natural or artificial.</p>
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55 | |||
56 | <img src="images/intro_colony3.jpg" alt="Colony 3"/> |
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57 | |||
58 | <p>The Colony project of the <a href="http://www.roboclub.org" target="about:blank">Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Club</a> |
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59 | demonstrates the capabilities of a colony of |
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60 | simple low-cost robots that are able to localize relative to each other using <em>"swarm intelligence".</em> Each device |
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61 | gathers information about its environment via simple one-dimensional sensors, such as IR beacons, and shares data |
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62 | via an ad hoc wireless network.</p>
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63 | |||
64 | <img src="images/intro_scout.jpg" alt="Colony Scout Accessories"/> |
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66 | <p>The Scout is designed as an evolution of the current platform employed by the Carnegie Mellon project. It builds on the
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67 | technology of the Colony III robots (top picture) and offers new functionality to each individual robot. In this way each robot |
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68 | can offer more intelligence to the swarm, operate over more extreme terrain, and cover larger distances more quickly. Scout takes |
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69 | the lessons gleaned from several years of research and aims to provide a simple interface into a powerful set of reliable |
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70 | technologies.</p>
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71 | |||
72 | <div class="hr"></div> |
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73 | |||
74 | <h1>Project Goals</h1> |
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75 | <p>At the outset of the Scout project in April of 2009, several goals were defined. The new robot should have:</p> |
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76 | <ul>
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77 | <li>enhancements over the current sensor array</li> |
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78 | <li>a more robust localization scheme</li> |
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79 | <li>be physically capable of traversing complex terrain (indoor, possibly outdoor)</li> |
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80 | <li>an adaptable design that can be modified for different purposes</li> |
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81 | <li>be capable of object/environment manipulation</li> |
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82 | <li>similar form factor and power requirements</li> |
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83 | <li>Must be low-cost (sub $500 in qty)</li> |
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84 | </ul>
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85 | <p>The cost restriction has been a major driving factor for most design decisions and even the motivation for the project. There are
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86 | many commerical solutions that offer compact and capable robots, but at a price point unsuitable for undergraduate studies and |
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87 | invididual research.</p>
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88 | |||
89 | <p>We aimed to develop a platform enticing to individuals, companies, and research institutions, but at a price point that doesn't
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90 | hinder innonvative research.</p>
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91 | </div>
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92 | |||
93 | <div class="side-box gray"> |
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94 | <img src="images/intro_kiva.jpg" alt="Kiva storage rack handling robots"/> |
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95 | <p><small><i>Kiva's robots carrying package racks (Credit: Forbes.com)</i></small></p> |
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96 | <p>Colonies of robots have many applications. They can solve larger problems than individual
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97 | robots. The Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory has developed a colony of robots that seeks out |
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98 | liquid spills. They surround the spill by having each robot locate part of the edge of the spill. Kiva's orange package carrying |
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99 | robots perform orchestrated dances in warehouses across the United States, enhancing productivity of the entire delivery system.</p>
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100 | </div>
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101 | </div>
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102 | |||
103 | <div class="white-body text-box"> |
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104 | <div class="hr"></div> |
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105 | |||
106 | <h1>Feature Comparison</h1> |
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107 | <table>
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108 | <tr><th><strong>Tech</strong></th><th><strong>Colony III</strong></th><th><strong>Scout</strong></th></tr> |
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109 | <tr><td>Processor</td><td>8MHz 8-bit AVR</td><td>600MHz 32-bit ARM9 + 16MHz 8-bit AVR</td></tr> |
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110 | <tr><td>Rangefinders</td><td>5 Position (1.5-12in) IR</td><td>48 Position, 360-degree coverage (0-20ft) Sonar</td></tr> |
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111 | <tr><td>Battery</td><td>6.0VDC 2.6Ah NiMH</td><td>7.4VDC 4.0Ah Lion</td> </tr> |
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112 | <tr><td>Locomotion</td><td>2 Wheel Differential Drive</td><td>4WD Skid Steer</td> </tr> |
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113 | <tr><td>Ground Clearance</td><td>None</td><td>1.34" Clearance with Rocker Pivot to conform to terrain</td> </tr> |
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114 | <tr><td>Cliff Detection</td><td>None</td><td>3 Side Drop-off Detection</td> </tr> |
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115 | <tr><td>BOM</td><td>16 Point IR</td><td>4 Point IR with modulation</td> </tr> |
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116 | <tr><td>Wireless</td><td>Zigbee, 300 ft range</td><td>IPv6, 1 mile range</td> </tr> |
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117 | <tr><td>Charging</td><td> Removable</td><td>Integrated homing and charging contacts</td> </tr> |
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118 | <tr><td>Extension</td><td>None</td><td> Accessory/Expansion hardpoints and power/data connection</td> </tr> |
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119 | <tr><td>Production</td><td>Botrics</td><td>In-house design and manufacturing for full control over device lifetime</td> |
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120 | </tr>
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121 | </table>
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122 | |||
123 | <p><h2>Eager to learn more? Explore the rest of ColonyScout.com.</h2></p> |
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124 | |||
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130 | <a href="/mechanics.php">Mechanics</a></li> |
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