National Robotics Engineering Center

Last updated

Carnegie Mellon's National Robotics Engineering Center
NREC Photo.png
EstablishedMay 1, 1994 (1994-05-01)
Budget $35 million (2020)
Field of research
Robotics
Director Dr. Herman Herman
Staff 182
AddressTen 40th Street
LocationPittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
15201
Operating agency
Carnegie Mellon University
Website www.nrec.ri.cmu.edu

The National Robotics Engineering Center (NREC) is an operating unit within the Robotics Institute (RI) of Carnegie Mellon University. NREC works closely with government and industry clients to apply robotic technologies to real-world processes and products, including unmanned vehicle and platform design, autonomy, sensing and image processing, machine learning, manipulation, and human–robot interaction.

Contents

NREC research objectives and approach

NREC applies robotics technologies to build functional prototype systems from concept to commercialization. [1] A typical NREC project includes a rapid proof-of-concept demonstration followed by an in-depth development and testing phase that produces a robust prototype with intellectual property for licensing and commercialization. Throughout this process, NREC applies best practices for software development, system integration, and field testing. Sponsors and partners include industrial companies, technology startups, and federal agencies such as DARPA, the Department of Transportation, NASA, the Air Force Research Laboratory, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

NREC's research model is based on

NREC history

In 1994, the Carnegie Mellon Field Robotics Center scientists realized that the mobile robotics field was mature enough for commercial application in agriculture, construction, mining, utilities, and other markets. Consequently, the National Robotics Engineering Consortium (NREC) was chartered with a mission to develop and transition robotic technology to industry and federal agencies. Original funding for the center included $2.5 million seed funding from NASA. [1]

In 1996, the organization moved to its current facility in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood and was renamed the National Robotics Engineering Center. The NREC is housed in a renovated, 100,000-square-foot foundry building on a reclaimed industrial brownfield site.

Tartan Rescue's CHIMP cuts wallboard at the 2013 DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials CHIMP cuts triangle at 2013 DRC Trials.png
Tartan Rescue's CHIMP cuts wallboard at the 2013 DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials
Tartan Racing wins the DARPA Urban Challenge Urban Challenge Victory.jpg
Tartan Racing wins the DARPA Urban Challenge
President Barack Obama with NREC's Sensabot robot President Obama Visits NREC.jpg
President Barack Obama with NREC's Sensabot robot

NREC timeline

YearKey milestone
1994NASA funds the creation of NREC
1996NREC moves into current facility
1997Pioneer system developed for Chernobyl disaster response
1997Demeter project leads to the development of an automated, self-propelled harvester
2000Robotics Academy is launched to nurture STEM[ clarification needed ](Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) and robotics education for students and teachers
2000NREC wins DARPA's UGCV and PerceptOR programs,[ clarification needed ] leading to the development of the Crusher unmanned ground combat vehicle [2]
2001M-2000 Robotic Hydro-blasting System, providing an environmentally safe and cost-effective solution to stripping ship hulls. The system is now in commercial production as the ENVIROBOT. [3]
2005 Gladiator tactical unmanned ground vehicle, developed for the US Marine Corps. [4]
2006Crusher unmanned ground vehicle begins 2 years of field trials for off-road autonomous navigation
2007CMU's Tartan Racing team wins the DARPA Urban Challenge unmanned vehicle competition [5] [6]
2008Development of high-speed machine vision system, to monitor conveyor belts in coal mines, improving productivity and worker safety
2009Implementation of autonomous agricultural equipment for harvesting, spraying, and mowing
2010Sensabot robot delivers inspection capabilities for gas and oil facilities
2011President Obama visits NREC to launch the National Robotics Initiative [7]
2012DARPA selects NREC's Tartan Rescue Team to compete in the DARPA Robotics Challenge [8]
2013Tartan Rescue's CHIMP robot (CMU Highly Intelligent Mobile Platform) takes 3rd place in the DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials [9] and qualifies for the finals [10]
2015Dr. Herman Herman becomes NREC's new Director
2016NREC celebrates its 20th Anniversary[ citation needed ]
2017Initial robotic prototyping to support mat sinking operations on the Mississippi River with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
2018 Honeywell, CMU Develop Advanced Supply Chain Robotics and AI Solutions for Connected Distribution Centers
2019Activation of U.S. Army AI Task Force, hosted at NREC
2019 Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) partners with Carnegie Mellon University's NREC and Robotics Academy to grow a skilled, technical workforce
2020Demonstration of ARMOR 1 Prototype for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
2021CMU Releases Impact Report on NREC's 25 Years

Project case studies

DARPA robotics challenge

CHIMP is a human-sized robot that, when standing, is 5-foot-2-inches tall and weighs about 400 pounds. Tartan Rescue Team engineers designed CHIMP to work in dangerous, degraded environments that were built for people, not robots. CHIMP operates semi-autonomously and can plan and carry out high-level instructions given by its operator. Its near-human form, strength, precision, and dexterity enable it to perform complex, human-level tasks. CHIMP is not a dynamically balanced walking robot. Instead, it is designed to move on stable, tank-like treads incorporated into its four limbs. When it needs to operate power tools, turn valves, or otherwise use its arms, CHIMP can stand and roll on its leg treads. The robot’s long front arms (almost 5 feet) give it an ape-like appearance.

CHIMP ranked third in the DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials in December 2013. [9] [11] Scoring 18 out of a possible 32 points during the two-day trials, the team demonstrated the system's ability to perform such tasks as removing debris, opening doors, cutting a hole in a wall, and closing a series of valves. The system was selected as one of nine eligible for DARPA funding to prepare for the DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals in 2015. [10]

Urban challenge

Carnegie Mellon University's Tartan Racing team [6] and General Motors built an autonomous SUV that won first place in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge. [5] The Urban Challenge race was held on November 3, 2007, at the Victorville training facility in California. Eleven teams competed against each other to finish a 60-mile city course in less than six hours. Their vehicles had to execute simulated missions in a mock urban area while obeying traffic laws, safely merging into moving traffic, navigating traffic circles, negotiating busy intersections, and avoiding other vehicles – all without human intervention.

Automation and machine learning for agriculture

Vehicle safeguarding: Being able to detect obstacles and terrain hazards significantly increases the safety of both manned and unmanned agricultural vehicles. The project uses machine learning techniques to build a robust obstacle detection system that can be easily adapted to different environments and operating conditions. NREC integrated its add-on perception packages onto a team of three computer-controlled tractors developed by John Deere. These autonomous tractors were used in harvesting operations in a peat bog. The robotic peat harvesting team was tested for a full season, completing over 100 harvesting missions in a working peat bog. Their behavior imitated manual peat harvesting operations while maintaining a safe operating environment.

Strawberry Plant Sorter: Building upon expertise in vision, mechanisms, and manipulation, NREC built an automated strawberry plant sorter that streamlines the harvesting process, improves efficiency, and ensures consistent plant quality. The machine vision system is trained to sort strawberry plants using samples harvested by a human, sorting plants of different varieties and levels of maturity while operating under realistic conditions, where rain and frost change plants' appearance and roots may contain mud and debris. Lassen Canyon Nursery and other growers, representing approximately 85% of California's strawberry plant nursery market, supported this project and plan to use the technology in their operations.

Orchard Spraying: NREC developed a retrofit kit that allows a tractor to operate without a driver. Its software accurately estimated the vehicle’s location and enabled it to autonomously follow a predetermined path. The autonomous tractor sprayed water while following a seven-kilometer-long path through an orange orchard without any human intervention. To achieve the path teach/playback capability, NREC developed a positioning system that uses an extended Kalman filter for fusing the odometry, the GPS information, and the IMU measurements. The path following system is based on the Pure Pursuit algorithm.[ clarification needed ]

Defense robotics for convoy safety

NREC and Oshkosh Defense are developing autonomous unmanned ground vehicle technologies for logistics tactical wheeled vehicles used by the US Marine Corps. CARGO Unmanned Ground Vehicles (CARGO UGVs or CUGVs) are designed for autonomous use in convoys that combine manned and unmanned vehicles. An operator in another vehicle supervises one or more unmanned vehicles, which drive autonomously in convoy formation day and night, in all weather, and when dust and smoke limit visibility.

Technologies developed under this project are part of Oshkosh Defense’s TerraMax™ UGV kit, which supports unmanned convoy operations. [12]

Sensabot

Sensabot is a rugged robot designed to safely carry out on-site inspections in hazardous environments, isolated facilities, and other places that are difficult or dangerous for personnel to access. Benefits include reduced risk and improved efficiency of operation.

The system consists of a mobile robotic base equipped with a sensor boom that is fitted with inspection sensors. It is capable of operating in extreme temperatures, as well as explosive and toxic atmospheres. The robot is remotely controlled by a human operator who utilizes the sensors to conduct inspections on pipes, fittings, and valves. Sensabot has been designed to conform to the IECEx Zone 1 standards for explosive environments, as well as the ANSI safety standards for guided industrial vehicles. [13]

Advanced Robotic Laser Coating Removal System (ARLCRS)

The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Concurrent Technologies Corporation (CTC), and NREC are developing an environmentally friendly system to remove coatings from U.S. Air Force aircraft through funding from Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC).

The Advanced Robotic Laser Coating Removal System (ARLCRS) uses a powerful laser stripping tool and state-of-the-art mobile robots to automatically remove paint and coatings from aircraft. The complete system is scalable for use from fighters to cargo and tanker aircraft. ARLCRS will reduce hazardous waste, air emissions, maintenance costs, and processing time. CTC is developing the laser coatings removal and particle capture systems. NREC is developing the mobile robots, sensors, and autonomy system.

Operator assistance for underground coal mining

NREC has worked with coal mining industry partners to develop operator assistance technology for longwall mining. This includes a complete navigation system for a continuous mining machine, laser rangefinder-based perception for robot localization, planning for cluttered spaces, and integration and simulation tools. This system was successfully demonstrated in a working mine in West Virginia.[ citation needed ] Related research and objectives include automated mine surveying, haulage, and multiple-machine interaction.

ARMOR 1: mat sinking system

ARMOR 1 is an automated robotic system for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to perform revetment operations along the Mississippi River. Once deployed, ARMOR 1 will replace the old Mat Sinking Unit, originally built in 1948. The goal is to increase the speed of revetment operations and improve the safety and working conditions of the employees who perform this vital work.

When completed, ARMOR 1 will include six, independent robotic cranes. These cranes will pick up the large concrete squares from the supply barge and place them on the "mat deck" of ARMOR 1's manufacturing barge. There, the individual squares will be tied together into one 140 ft wide (and up to 900 ft long) flexible "mat" by an automated tie system. The completed mat will be launched from the barge and will be submerged along the banks of the Mississippi River, while more mats are continuously being assembled on the deck.

Contribution to education

The Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy (CMRA) is an educational outreach of Carnegie Mellon University and part of the university's world-renowned Robotics Institute. In 2000, CMRA's administrative staff and development team became housed at NREC's facilities.

The Computer Science STEM Network (CS2N) is a collaborative research project between Carnegie Mellon University, including the Robotics Academy, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) designed to increase the number of students pursuing advanced Computer Science and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (CS-STEM) degrees.

See also

Related Research Articles

An autonomous robot is a robot that acts without recourse to human control. Historic examples include space probes. Modern examples include self-driving vacuums and cars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Military robot</span> Robotic devices designed for military applications

Military robots are autonomous robots or remote-controlled mobile robots designed for military applications, from transport to search & rescue and attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carnegie Mellon School of Computer Science</span> School for computer science in the United States

The School of Computer Science (SCS) at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US is a school for computer science established in 1988. It has been consistently ranked among the best computer science programs over the decades. As of 2024 U.S. News & World Report ranks the graduate program as tied for No. 1 with Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and University of California, Berkeley.

The DARPA Grand Challenge is a prize competition for American autonomous vehicles, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the most prominent research organization of the United States Department of Defense. Congress has authorized DARPA to award cash prizes to further DARPA's mission to sponsor revolutionary, high-payoff research that bridges the gap between fundamental discoveries and military use. The initial DARPA Grand Challenge in 2004 was created to spur the development of technologies needed to create the first fully autonomous ground vehicles capable of completing a substantial off-road course within a limited time. The third event, the DARPA Urban Challenge in 2007, extended the initial Challenge to autonomous operation in a mock urban environment. The 2012 DARPA Robotics Challenge, focused on autonomous emergency-maintenance robots, and new Challenges are still being conceived. The DARPA Subterranean Challenge was tasked with building robotic teams to autonomously map, navigate, and search subterranean environments. Such teams could be useful in exploring hazardous areas and in search and rescue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robotics Institute</span> Division of the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University

The Robotics Institute (RI) is a division of the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. A June 2014 article in Robotics Business Review magazine calls it "the world's best robotics research facility" and a "pacesetter in robotics research and education."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unmanned ground vehicle</span> Type of vehicle

An unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) is a vehicle that operates while in contact with the ground without an onboard human presence. UGVs can be used for many applications where it is inconvenient, dangerous, expensive, or impossible to use an onboard human operator. Typically, the vehicle has sensors to observe the environment, and autonomously controls its behavior or uses a remote human operator to control the vehicle via teleoperation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Whittaker</span> American robotisict

William L. "Red" Whittaker is an American roboticist and research professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon University. He led Tartan Racing to its first-place victory in the DARPA Grand Challenge (2007) Urban Challenge and brought Carnegie Mellon University the two million dollar prize. Previously, Whittaker also competed in the DARPA Grand Challenge, placing second and third place simultaneously in the Grand Challenge Races.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unmanned underwater vehicle</span> Submersible vehicles that can operate underwater without a human occupant

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">TerraMax</span> Trademark for autonomous/unmanned ground vehicle technology

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gladiator tactical unmanned ground vehicle</span> US Marine Corps robot

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Crusher is a 13,200-pound (6,000 kg) autonomous off-road Unmanned Ground Combat Vehicle developed by researchers at the Carnegie Mellon University's National Robotics Engineering Center for DARPA. It is a follow-up on the previous Spinner vehicle. DARPA's technical name for the Crusher is Unmanned Ground Combat Vehicle and Perceptor Integration System, and the whole project is known by the acronym UPI, which stands for Unmanned Ground Combat Vehicle PerceptOR Integration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Agricultural robot</span> Robot deployed for agricultural purposes

An agricultural robot is a robot deployed for agricultural purposes. The main area of application of robots in agriculture today is at the harvesting stage. Emerging applications of robots or drones in agriculture include weed control, cloud seeding, planting seeds, harvesting, environmental monitoring and soil analysis. According to Verified Market Research, the agricultural robots market is expected to reach $11.58 billion by 2025.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DARPA Grand Challenge (2007)</span> Third driverless car competition of the DARPA Grand Challenge

The third driverless car competition of the DARPA Grand Challenge was commonly known as the DARPA Urban Challenge. It took place on November 3, 2007 at the site of the now-closed George Air Force Base, in Victorville, California, in the West of the United States. Discovery's Science channel followed a few of the teams and covered the Urban Challenge in its RobocarsArchived 2008-07-30 at the Wayback Machine series.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to robotics:

The Learning Applied to Ground Vehicles (LAGR) program, which ran from 2004 until 2008, had the goal of accelerating progress in autonomous, perception-based, off-road navigation in robotic unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs). LAGR was funded by DARPA, a research agency of the United States Department of Defense.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driverless tractor</span> Autonomous farm vehicle

A driverless tractor is an autonomous farm vehicle that delivers a high tractive effort at slow speeds for the purposes of tillage and other agricultural tasks. It is considered driverless because it operates without the presence of a human inside the tractor itself. Like other unmanned ground vehicles, they are programmed to independently observe their position, decide speed, and avoid obstacles such as people, animals, or objects in the field while performing their task. The various driverless tractors are split into full autonomous technology and supervised autonomy. The idea of the driverless tractor appears as early as 1940, but the concept has significantly evolved in the last few years. The tractors use GPS and other wireless technologies to farm land without requiring a driver. They operate simply with the aid of a supervisor monitoring the progress at a control station or with a manned tractor in lead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of self-driving cars</span> Overview of the history of self-driving cars

Experiments have been conducted on self-driving cars since 1939; promising trials took place in the 1950s and work has proceeded since then. The first self-sufficient and truly autonomous cars appeared in the 1980s, with Carnegie Mellon University's Navlab and ALV projects in 1984 and Mercedes-Benz and Bundeswehr University Munich's Eureka Prometheus Project in 1987. In 1988, William L Kelley patented the first modern collision Predicting and Avoidance devices for Moving Vehicles. then, numerous major companies and research organizations have developed working autonomous vehicles including Mercedes-Benz, General Motors, Continental Automotive Systems, Autoliv Inc., Bosch, Nissan, Toyota, Audi, Volvo, Vislab from University of Parma, Oxford University and Google. In July 2013, Vislab demonstrated BRAiVE, a vehicle that moved autonomously on a mixed traffic route open to public traffic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Argo AI</span> Autonomous driving technology company

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Torc Robotics (Torc), an independent subsidiary of Daimler Truck, is an American autonomous truck company headquartered in Blacksburg, Virginia, with operations in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Austin, Texas; and Stuttgart, Germany. Torc is testing autonomous trucks in Virginia, New Mexico, and Texas and is taking a pure play approach to commercialization – focusing at first on one platform in one region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Urmson</span> CEO of self-driving technology company Aurora

Chris Urmson is a Canadian engineer, academic, and entrepreneur known for his work on self-driving car technology. He cofounded Aurora Innovation, a company developing self-driving technology, in 2017 and serves as its CEO. Urmson was instrumental in pioneering and advancing the development of self-driving vehicles since the early 2000s.

References

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  5. 1 2 DARPA Urban Challenge Archived 2014-03-05 at the Wayback Machine , archived web site
  6. 1 2 Carnegie Mellon Tartan Racing, official web site
  7. Obama Commanding Robot Revolution, Announces Major Robotics Initiative, IEEE Spectrum.
  8. Carnegie Mellon Four-Limbed Robot Will Compete In DARPA Robotic Challenge Trials This December, Carnegie Mellon University press release, July, 2013
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  10. 1 2 DARPA Robotics Challenge Archived 2016-04-28 at the Wayback Machine , official web site.
  11. "DARPA Robotics Challenge: Meet the contenders (pictures)". CNET. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  12. Unmanned Ground Vehicle, Oshkosh Defense official web site
  13. Sensabot: A Safe and Cost-Effective Inspection Solution, Journal of Petroleum Technology, October 2012