TiLR

Last updated
Telepresence internet-connected Low cost Robot (TiLR)
TiLR Red HeroShot.jpg
ManufacturerRobo Dynamics
Country United States
Year of creation2007
Price$10,000 [1]
PurposeTelepresence

TiLR is the world's first enterprise-grade telepresence robot developed by RoboDynamics Corporation. The Telepresence internet-connected Low cost Robot (TiLR) enables a user to instantly transport to a remote location whereby the robot would embody the user in the remote location. The advantage of robotic telepresence is reduced travel and downtime as well as increase throughput and collaboration.

Contents

Description

TiLR is essentially a video conferencing system on wheels. The user is able to commandeer the robot by remote control, driving the robot and controlling the pan/tilt/zoom function of the robot's camera. As such TiLR provides a means for frictionless ad hoc face-to-face conversations as well as remote audio and visual monitoring.

Operations

TiLR Command Center Screenshot.jpg

There are two components to the TiLR telepresence system. The robot TiLR is stationed at the remote site. The second component is the TiLR Command Center (TCC) software that installs on any PC with a webcam and broadband connection. The user simply launches the TiLR Command Center and logs into TiLR. Once logged in, there is bi-directional video/audio between the robot and the TCC. The user is then able to commandeer the robot from remote, take snapshots, and even record the session for later viewing. TiLR Command Center is currently only supported on Windows XP/Vista. The next incarnation of the TiLR Command Center will be based on Flash technology where users will be able to log into TiLR and commandeer the robot from the World Wide Web.

Development

TiLR was introduced in late 2007 by RoboDynamics following the MILO telepresence platform which was introduced in 2004. This makes TiLR a 14th generation [2] telepresence robot developed by RoboDynamics. In August 2008 RoboDynamics kicked off their Beta Program by placing robots into various organizations in exchange for feedback. The very first program participant was the Google Lunar X Prize [3] team of the X Prize Foundation. RoboDynamics planned to continue the TiLR Beta Program until the end of 2008.

Related Research Articles

AIBO is a series of robotic dogs designed and manufactured by Sony. Sony announced a prototype Aibo in mid-1998, and the first consumer model was introduced on 11 May 1999. New models were released every year until 2006. Although most models were dogs, other inspirations included lion cubs, huskies, Jack Russell terriers, bull terrier, and space explorers. Only the ERS-7, ERS-110/111 and ERS-1000 versions were explicitly a "robotic dog", but the 210 can also be considered a dog due to its Jack Russell Terrier appearance and face. In 2006, AIBO was added into the Carnegie Mellon University Robot Hall of Fame.

Telepresence refers to a set of technologies which allow a person to feel as if they were present, to give the appearance or effect of being present via telerobotics, at a place other than their true location.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telerobotics</span>

Telerobotics is the area of robotics concerned with the control of semi-autonomous robots from a distance, chiefly using television, wireless networks or tethered connections. It is a combination of two major subfields, which are teleoperation and telepresence.

A digital video recorder (DVR) is an electronic device that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card, SSD or other local or networked mass storage device. The term includes set-top boxes with direct to disk recording, portable media players and TV gateways with recording capability, and digital camcorders. Personal computers are often connected to video capture devices and used as DVRs; in such cases the application software used to record video is an integral part of the DVR. Many DVRs are classified as consumer electronic devices; such devices may alternatively be referred to as personal video recorders (PVRs), particularly in Canada. Similar small devices with built-in displays and SSD support may be used for professional film or video production, as these recorders often do not have the limitations that built-in recorders in cameras have, offering wider codec support, the removal of recording time limitations and higher bitrates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Videotelephony</span> Real-time video communication

Videotelephony is the two-way or multipoint reception and transmission of audio and video signals by people in different locations for real-time communication. A videophone is a telephone with a video camera and video display, capable of simultaneous video and audio communication. Videoconferencing implies the use of this technology for a group or organizational meeting rather than for individuals, in a videoconference. Telepresence may refer either to a high-quality videotelephony system or to meetup technology, which can go beyond video into robotics. Videoconferencing has also been called visual collaboration and is a type of groupware.

Robot software is the set of coded commands or instructions that tell a mechanical device and electronic system, known together as a robot, what tasks to perform. Robot software is used to perform autonomous tasks. Many software systems and frameworks have been proposed to make programming robots easier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lego Mindstorms NXT</span> Programmable robotics kit

Lego Mindstorms NXT is a programmable robotics kit released by Lego on August 2, 2006. It replaced the first-generation Lego Mindstorms kit, which was called the Robotics Invention System. The base kit ships in two versions: the Retail Version and the Education Base Set. It comes with the NXT-G programming software, or optionally LabVIEW for Lego Mindstorms. A variety of unofficial languages exist, such as NXC, NBC, leJOS NXJ, and RobotC. The second generation of the set, the Lego Mindstorms NXT 2.0, was released on August 1, 2009, featuring a color sensor and other upgraded capabilities. The third generation, the EV3, was released in September 2013.

Robotics is the branch of technology that deals with the design, construction, operation, structural disposition, manufacture and application of robots. Robotics is related to the sciences of electronics, engineering, mechanics, and software. The word "robot" was introduced to the public by Czech writer Karel Čapek in his play R.U.R., published in 1920. The term "robotics" was coined by Isaac Asimov in his 1941 science fiction short-story "Liar!"

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Personal robot</span>

A personal robot is one whose human interface and design make it useful for individuals. This is by contrast to industrial robots which are generally configured and operated by robotics specialists. A personal robot is one that enables an individual to automate the repetitive or menial part of home or work life making them more productive.

The RS Media is another product in WowWee's line of biomorphic robots, based on a walking system designed by Mark Tilden. The RS Media uses basically the same body as the Robosapien V2, but a different brain based on a Linux kernel. As the name implies, the RS Media's focus is on multimedia capabilities, including the ability to record and playback audio, pictures and video. he retains and builds upon the Robosapien V2's sensor array and programmability.

A virtual fixture is an overlay of augmented sensory information upon a user's perception of a real environment in order to improve human performance in both direct and remotely manipulated tasks. Developed in the early 1990s by Louis Rosenberg at the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Virtual Fixtures was a pioneering platform in virtual reality and augmented reality technologies.

Boston Dynamics is an American engineering and robotics design company founded in 1992 as a spin-off from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, Boston Dynamics has been owned by the Hyundai Motor Group since December 2020, but having only completed the acquisition in June 2021.

There are a number of competitions and prizes to promote research in artificial intelligence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anybots</span>

Anybots Inc. is an American robotics company based in Santa Clara, California. It was founded in 2001 by Trevor Blackwell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RoboLogix</span> Robotics simulator

RoboLogix is a robotics simulator which uses a physics engine to emulate robotics applications. The advantages of using robotics simulation tools such as RoboLogix are that they save time in the design of robotics applications and they can also increase the level of safety associated with robotic equipment since various "what if" scenarios can be tried and tested before the system is activated. RoboLogix provides a platform to teach, test, run, and debug programs that have been written using a five-axis industrial robot in a range of applications and functions. These applications include pick-and-place, palletizing, welding, and painting.

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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domestic robot</span> Type of service robot

A domestic robot is a type of service robot, an autonomous robot that is primarily used for household chores, but may also be used for education, entertainment or therapy. While most domestic robots are simplistic, some are connected to Wi-Fi home networks or smart environments and are autonomous to a high degree. There were an estimated 16.3 million service robots in 2018.

Cloud robotics is a field of robotics that attempts to invoke cloud technologies such as cloud computing, cloud storage, and other Internet technologies centered on the benefits of converged infrastructure and shared services for robotics. When connected to the cloud, robots can benefit from the powerful computation, storage, and communication resources of modern data center in the cloud, which can process and share information from various robots or agent. Humans can also delegate tasks to robots remotely through networks. Cloud computing technologies enable robot systems to be endowed with powerful capability whilst reducing costs through cloud technologies. Thus, it is possible to build lightweight, low-cost, smarter robots with an intelligent "brain" in the cloud. The "brain" consists of data center, knowledge base, task planners, deep learning, information processing, environment models, communication support, etc.

References

  1. "Taking a Ride Inside RoboDynamics TiLR Tele-Robot (Video)". 13 August 2010.
  2. Google Tech Talks - Five Years of Exploring Robotic Telepresence, Fred Nikgohar (RoboDynamics Corporation)
  3. "Fun with Robots! RoboDynamics let's the X PRIZE test the first TiLR robots". Archived from the original on 2008-10-16. Retrieved 2008-11-12.