Transcript Beyond robotics

Beyond Robotics
New European
research initiative
Pekka Karp
Future and Emerging
Technologies
DG Information Society
Scope & objectives
Incorporation of IT into embodied artifacts

Three long-term objectives
– Cognitive robots
– Hybrid bionic systems
– Autonomous microrobot groups
(‘cognitive companions‘)
(‘human augmentation’)
(‘robot ecologies’)
Scope & objectives

Cognitive companions
– “Purpose of life”: to serve humans as assistants or ‘companions’
– active and non-predetermined learning of new skills and tasks in the
context of embodied systems and beyond fixed domains and
environments
– evolving perception and reasoning capabilities over years of use
– to live and grow in constant interaction and co-operation with humans
– to adapt to, to complement and to compensate the master’s skills
Scope & objectives

Human augmentation
– augmenting human capabilities in perception of the environment, motion,
interaction with other humans, etc., including new perception-action
capabilities going beyond the current physical limitations
– smooth integration of robotic and information systems with human
perception-action systems using bi-directional interfaces with the human
nervous system
– flexibility in terms of physical interaction and skill and task adaptation
– capability to function as a regular part of the human body
– tight coupling between the human and the artifact (e.g. intelligent
prosthetics such as artificial sensory organs, limbs)
– not in scope: artificial organs outside the conscious control (artificial
pancreas, kidneys, liver, etc.
Scope & objectives

Robot ecologies
– autonomous microrobot groups
– many heterogeneous members exhibiting collective behaviour and
intelligence
– able to self-organise, adapt, co-operate and evolve in real-world
unstructured environments in order to attain a global objective
– parallel systems in terms of perception, reasoning and action generation
– related to the Complex Systems Research initiative
Implementation
Advisory
Board
European
Commission
Reviewing Experts
Stakeholders
Instruments
National programmes
IP-2
IP-1
NoE
IP-3
Complementary (?) IPs
Instruments & Budgets (1)
Integrated Projects
EXAMPLE:
• Common core
Task-2
– System issues (architectures,
integration, evaluation)
Task-1
Task-3
Core
Task-n
Task-4
...
• Tasks
– Study what underlies the
collective behaviour in animals
(birds, bees, wolves, fish,…)
– Design
– Build
– ...
Additional Issues
IP Indicative Budget & Duration
• Links to national initiatives
• EC funding: 5 - 8 m EUR
• International co-operation
• Duration: 4 - 5 years
Instruments & Budgets (2)
Networks of Excellence
- Strategy development
- Shared experimental facilities
- Joint research projects, e. g.
exploratory R&D projects
- Exchange of researchers & sites for
hosting excellence
Additional Issues
• International Co-operation
Indicative Budget & Duration
- Training of researchers
• EC funding: 3 - 5 m EUR
- Dissemination of results
• Duration: 4 - 5 years