CSCI 5551: Introduction to Intelligent Robotic Systems (Fall'09)
Course
webpage:
http://www-users.itlabs.umn.edu/classes/Fall-2009/csci5551/
Course Blog:
http://blog.lib.umn.edu/isler008/csci5551fall09/
3 credits
Lectures: 12:45 P.M. - 02:00 P.M., Tu,Th (09/08/2009 -
12/16/2009)
Location: MechE 108
Instructor: Ibrahim
Volkan Isler
Office: EE/CS 4-213
Office Hours: Tu, Th 2-3PM
Email: isler (at) cs
Office Phone: 612-625-1067
Teaching Assistant: Faraz Mohammad-Mirzaei
Office Hours: F 10:30--11:30 Location: EECS 2-140B
(Robotics Lab)
Email: faraz (at) cs
Deadlines and lecture schedule can be
found here.
Please use the address csci5551-help@cs for course
related emails (this alias forwards to both isler and faraz)
Course Description
The primary goal of this course is to introduce students to robotics:
the study of robots! Even though we can not build Transformers or the
Terminator (yet), the field of robotics witnessed tremendous advances in the
last couple of decades, and we are well on our way to building autonomous
robots that can be used in applications of societal importance
(neither Transformers nor the Terminator were built by humans anyway.). Robotics is an inherently
interdisciplinary field that lies at the intersection of Computer
Science, Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. This has two
consequences: (1) There is no single "right" background for
robotics. (2) It is impossible to cover all aspects of robotics in
depth in a single course. However, after taking this course, you will:
-
Learn about basic tools and techniques for designing (and analyzing) algorithms for robots
-
Become familiar with active research challenges in robotics
-
Gain hands-on experience in building robotic systems
Topics Covered and Text Book
The lectures will be conceptually divided into two parts:
Part 1 will primarily focus on mobile robotics, in particular
techniques to compute collision-free paths for mobile robots. The
main text-book for this part of the course is:
We will focus mainly on chapters 2 -- 8, 10, 12.
In part 2, we will focus on robotic manipulators. We will cover the first
5 chapters from Craig's book:
Some of the content in chapters 7 and 9 will be covered in the context
of mobile robots.
There are a few other books which you might find
useful. The three books on course reserve are:
In addition, you might find these books useful:
Prerequisite Information
You need to be familiar with basic concepts in calculus (Math 1271/1371) , linear
algebra (Math 2243), and discrete math (CSci 2011). Proficieny in a programming language (C,
C++, Java) is important for the project. If you have not taken
equivalents of these courses, you need permission from the instructor.
Some background in analysis
of algorithms, perception (e.g. computer vision) and linear systems is useful but not required.
Expectations
As mentioned earlier, robotics is an interdisciplinary field. This
is an introductory course taken by students from various
disciplines. I will do my best to make sure that the material is
accessible to all students. However, at times, you might find that the
current topic is quite challenging (or rather basic). For example,
dynamic programming may be easy to grasp for a student who has taken
advanced algorithms courses. The same student may find the concept of
Jacobian quite challenging.
Here are some tips that you might helpful:
-
Do not rely on a single source to learn the material. If the
description of angular velocity in the textbook does not make sense,
do not hesitate to review other robotics books, or even basic texts
such as your physics textbook. If you need guidance, do not hesitate
to talk to your instructor or the TA.
-
Learn from each other. The diversity of this class is a big asset.
-
Work regularly. As the list of topics is quite diverse, make sure that
you review the material in a timely fashion.
Evaluation
Evaluation will be composed of the following components:
- Course Project (35%): In groups of 3-4, you will face a grand
challenge that you propose. Your mark will be based on your
proposal (where you will identify the challenge, and list the roles
of members) and the novelty of your idea, final report and
demonstration. See the project page for
more information.
- Term Paper (20%): The objective is to become familiar with
research topics in robotics. You will skim 10-15 papers from top
robotics journals, then identify two or three papers that address
a particular problem. You will write a detailed report on these selected
papers. The report should contain background material and a
critique. In addition to the report there will be a 10 min class
presentation. To be done individually. See
this page for
more information.
- Homeworks (24%): Three homeworks to reinforce the material
presented in the lectures. The homeworks must not be the result of
cooperative work. Each student must work individually in order to
understand the material in depth. You may discuss the problems with
each other but can not copy the homework of somebody else. Any
student caught cheating will receive an F as a class grade and the
University policies for cheating and plagiarism will be followed.
- Midterm (13%): An in-class exam focusing mainly on the mathematical foundations.
- Class Participation (8%): based on a number of subjective
measures such as your participation in discussions in and outside
the class, or the class blog.
Grades:
93.0% or above yields an A,
90.0% A-,
86% = B+,
82% = B,
78% = B-,
74% = C+,
70% = C,
67% = C-,
63% = D+,
60% = D,
and less than 60% yields an F.
Other grade related issues: Late submission policy will be posted on each assignment
separately. Questions about a specific mark should be raised within 10 days after the mark is given.
Incompletes (or make up exams) will, in general, not be given. Exceptions will be considered only when a
provably serious family or personal emergency arises, proof is presented, and the student has already completed all
but a small portion of the work.
Scholastic misconduct is broadly defined as "any act that violates the right of another student in academic work or
that involves misrepresentation of your own work. Scholastic dishonesty includes, (but is not necessarily limited
to):
cheating on assignments or examinations; plagiarizing, which means misrepresenting as your own work any part of work
done by another; submitting the same paper, or substantially similar papers, to meet the requirements of more than one
course without the approval and consent of all instructors concerned; depriving another student of necessary course
materials; or interfering with another student's work."
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