[Tiny-tux] [Arc-hive] [Swarm] Weevils, TEND, Swarm, Arc-hive, what's next? Autonomy for Robotic performance art
Michael Prados
mprados at gmail.com
Tue Dec 4 04:28:45 UTC 2012
Sorry, all, not going to make it tonight, but keep us posted!
-mike
On Nov 29, 2012 12:43 AM, "Corey McGuire" <coreyfro at coreyfro.com> wrote:
> Sounds good!
>
> On Wed, Nov 28, 2012 at 7:15 PM, Xandor <xandoru at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hey All,
>>
>> Let's do Monday, as tomorrow is a little too short notice. 12/3 at
>> 8:30pm; email me off-list for my address (in Castro, SF).
>>
>> -mark
>>
>>
>> On Nov 27, 2012, at 8:35 PM, Corey McGuire <coreyfro at coreyfro.com> wrote:
>>
>> I will have my kiddo on Monday, but Thursday might be a little short
>> notice. Thursday works better for me.
>>
>> On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 7:23 PM, Niladri Bora <niladri.bora at gmail.com>wrote:
>>
>>> I will have to be a little late (9:15 ish) on Thursday but Monday 8:30
>>> works fine.
>>>
>>>
>>> On Nov 27, 2012, at 5:44 PM, Mark Alexander <xandoru at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> Yup - 11/29 and 12/3 at 8:30pm are good. For those interested in
>>> attending -- do these times work for you?
>>>
>>> -mark
>>>
>>> On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 4:22 PM, Mark Alexander <xandoru at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>
>>>> Marnia,
>>>>
>>>> I'll need to confirm with Martin, but likely times are either this
>>>> Thursday 11/29 or Monday 12/3 at 8:30pm.
>>>>
>>>> -mark
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 4:11 PM, Marnia Johnston <marnia at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Mark, when would be a good time/day?
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 4:07 PM, Mark Alexander <xandoru at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Corey,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I too am interested in an in-person download of all this. I can host
>>>>>> 8-10 people (will be quieter / less distracting than Chieftan or
>>>>>> Noisebridge), but if it's going to be more than that we'll need a bigger
>>>>>> venue.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Looking forward to XBee finger dertying,
>>>>>> mark
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 12:34 AM, Corey McGuire <
>>>>>> coreyfro at coreyfro.com> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Hey Nil!
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I am available most of the time. Marnia and I work over near you at
>>>>>>> TechShop Thursdays and Fridays. We're putting in at least 8 hours a week
>>>>>>> on the CNC Mill. Usually starting at 2PM.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> While Techshop is picky about how long people stay, we can always
>>>>>>> meet and the Chieftain for fish, chips, and BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I can meet around that, of course, but giving you a quick tour of
>>>>>>> Techshop after lunch seems like fun.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Swarm!
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Mon, Nov 26, 2012 at 2:57 PM, Niladri Bora <
>>>>>>> niladri.bora at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Hey Corey,
>>>>>>>> Sorry for the late reply. I am available over the holidays to
>>>>>>>> work on "stuff" (between christmas and new year). Are you available during
>>>>>>>> that time? I would also like to take a peek at what you have put together
>>>>>>>> so far. Maybe a demo at NB soon?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On Wed, Nov 21, 2012 at 10:39 AM, Corey McGuire <
>>>>>>>> coreyfro at coreyfro.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Who's ready for the next autonomous robotic performance art
>>>>>>>>> project?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I am working on a platform that allows people to create their own
>>>>>>>>> vision of a robot and include it in an ad hoc swarm of robots created by
>>>>>>>>> other people. However, there is no reason this system couldn't be used for
>>>>>>>>> swarms of similar robots with a singular vision, aesthetic, or purpose.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Another design goal is to make this as off the shelf as possible
>>>>>>>>> so we leverage mature, community supported platforms. Of course, there are
>>>>>>>>> critical components that will not be off the shelf, namely, the swarming
>>>>>>>>> software components. I want to keep OUR work focused to that.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I have had success with the control solution portion of the
>>>>>>>>> complete Rover swarming system. At this moment, I can script anything to
>>>>>>>>> follow designated way points with purely off the shelf equipment.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Let's talk about the current state of my work. The components
>>>>>>>>> required for an "Off the shelf" rover are as follows:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> - Rover (two channel drive platform with control over throttle
>>>>>>>>> and steering, so a differential drive system like a tank will require a two
>>>>>>>>> motor speed control that handles channel mixing, such as the Sabertooth
>>>>>>>>> used in the Weevils:
>>>>>>>>> http://www.dimensionengineering.com/products/sabertooth2x60)
>>>>>>>>> - Ardupilot Mega 2.5 (same as the 2.0 but a more streamlined
>>>>>>>>> design) or Mav Link compatible autopilot.
>>>>>>>>> - XBee's, preferably 900Mhz (to avoid interfearence with other
>>>>>>>>> 2.4Ghz signals which may be utilized for remote control and administration)
>>>>>>>>> - Three Channel (or more) Hobby Radio transmitter
>>>>>>>>> and receiver. Three channels are for throttle, steering, and a 3 position
>>>>>>>>> "mode" (Manual Drive, Program Waypoints, Follow waypoints)
>>>>>>>>> - Laptop
>>>>>>>>> - Mission Planner
>>>>>>>>> - Optional Sensors (dead-reckoning or "flow sensors" and sonar)
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> The Ardupilot is configured and provides telemetry over the XBee
>>>>>>>>> connection to the laptop. The Laptop runs the mission planner which has a
>>>>>>>>> comfortable interface for observing the state of the rover, handling
>>>>>>>>> "flight planning", updating software, and tuning the behavior of the rover.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Talking to the Ardupiolt (or, indeed, select other auto pilots) is
>>>>>>>>> standardized using a common protocol called MAV-Link (
>>>>>>>>> http://qgroundcontrol.org/mavlink/start). It is stateless and
>>>>>>>>> fairly robust, but it primarily deals with waypoints and not much else.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> *Going forward:*
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> None of this is true autonomy. This is, purely, a control bundle
>>>>>>>>> awaiting commands from a brain such as to brains in our heads...or a brains
>>>>>>>>> we create. What obviously comes next is a brain which takes in
>>>>>>>>> choreography as inputs for behaviors and give coordinates as outputs.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Choreography could simply be an extension to the mission planner,
>>>>>>>>> or the Swarm Timeline concept. What is more important is how we handle
>>>>>>>>> coordination and behavior. There are two modes:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> - Mother node
>>>>>>>>> - Locally
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> We could create a mothernode that handles the execution of
>>>>>>>>> choreography and runs the behaviors centrally, then issues commands
>>>>>>>>> remotely, or we can upload choreography to the constituent rovers which
>>>>>>>>> coordinate in realtime and execute behavior locally.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> There are arguments for either, but I feel we don't have to
>>>>>>>>> choose. If we opt to make this system modular, there isn't any reason that
>>>>>>>>> we can't seamlessly move execution from remotely to locally.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Attached is the diagram for the proposed "Weevils". Right now, we
>>>>>>>>> have completed the "Drone Phase". From the drone phase, we could begin
>>>>>>>>> developing the Mothernode to begin remote execution of the Rovers.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Here is what I propose for the platform going forward:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> - Consider an embedded hardware platform we can develop on for
>>>>>>>>> Localized Behaviors (Currently, I am favoring the BeagleBone
>>>>>>>>> http://beagleboard.org/bone)
>>>>>>>>> - Select a tool chain which allows common code to run on the
>>>>>>>>> mothernode or on the embedded system (Currently, I am favoring JAVA since
>>>>>>>>> bytecode should be executable on both platforms without cross compiling and
>>>>>>>>> it should perform much better than python.)
>>>>>>>>> - Getting our hands very dirty with XBee. How do we make this
>>>>>>>>> a robust protocol for bidirectional communication from a number of nodes?
>>>>>>>>> This is the next piece of the puzzle for me and I have begun to work on
>>>>>>>>> this problem this week.
>>>>>>>>> - Begin evaluating the state of the Swarm timeline software,
>>>>>>>>> the extensibility of the Ardupilot Mission Planner, or rolling a new
>>>>>>>>> solution (which might not be too hard, since mission planning can be
>>>>>>>>> handled with embedded hardware
>>>>>>>>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cy2BE3Dzl3s)
>>>>>>>>> - Begin developing the mothernode solution
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> One important question that might beg some consideration, however,
>>>>>>>>> is "Who's got ideas for a project that might utilize these tools?" It
>>>>>>>>> would be great if we had a cohesive project that would allow us to make
>>>>>>>>> proposals for burningman, robodock, awesome foundation, kickstarter, etc.
>>>>>>>>> The vision of a multicultural robot swarm is great, but it would be easier
>>>>>>>>> to promote a cohesive project, first.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>>>>> Arc-hive mailing list
>>>>>>>>> Arc-hive at fluxfoundation.org
>>>>>>>>> http://fluxfoundation.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/arc-hive
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> --
>>>>>>>> Soul For Sale - Single owner, low mileage, best offer
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> --
>>>>>>> Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler - Albert
>>>>>>> Einstein <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein>
>>>>>>> Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - Leonardo Da Vinci<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_Da_Vinci>
>>>>>>> Perfection is reached not when there is nothing left to add, but
>>>>>>> when there is nothing left to take away - Antoine de Saint Exupéry<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_de_Saint_Exup%C3%A9ry>
>>>>>>> Keep It Simple Stupid - Kelly Johnson<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Johnson>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> ---- SWARM, A Large Scale Kinetic Art Project
>>>>>>> ---- http://orbswarm.com
>>>>>>> http://lists.lee.org/listinfo.cgi/swarm-lee.org
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> ---- SWARM, A Large Scale Kinetic Art Project
>>>>>> ---- http://orbswarm.com
>>>>>> http://lists.lee.org/listinfo.cgi/swarm-lee.org
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>> ---- SWARM, A Large Scale Kinetic Art Project
>>> ---- http://orbswarm.com http://lists.lee.org/listinfo.cgi/swarm-lee.org
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Arc-hive mailing list
>>> Arc-hive at fluxfoundation.org
>>> http://fluxfoundation.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/arc-hive
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler - Albert
>> Einstein <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein>
>> Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - Leonardo Da Vinci<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_Da_Vinci>
>> Perfection is reached not when there is nothing left to add, but when
>> there is nothing left to take away - Antoine de Saint Exupéry<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_de_Saint_Exup%C3%A9ry>
>> Keep It Simple Stupid - Kelly Johnson<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Johnson>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler - Albert
> Einstein <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein>
> Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - Leonardo Da Vinci<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_Da_Vinci>
> Perfection is reached not when there is nothing left to add, but when
> there is nothing left to take away - Antoine de Saint Exupéry<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_de_Saint_Exup%C3%A9ry>
> Keep It Simple Stupid - Kelly Johnson<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Johnson>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Tiny-tux mailing list
> Tiny-tux at lists.noisebridge.net
> https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/tiny-tux
>
>
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