A robótica móvel é uma área de pesquisa que está obtendo grande atenção da comunidade científica. O desenvolvimento de robôs móveis autônomos, que sejam capazes de interagir com o ambiente, aprender e tomar decisões corretas para que suas tarefas sejam executadas com êxito é o maior desafio em robótica móvel. O desenvolvimento destes sistemas inteligentes e autônomos consiste em uma área de pesquisa multidisciplinar considerada recente e extremamente promissora que envolve; por exemplo, inteligência artificial, aprendizado de máquina, estimação estatística e sistemas embarcados. Dentro desse contexto, esse trabalho aborda o problema de navegação e monitoramento de ambientes utilizando robôs móveis. Dada uma representação do ambiente (mapa topológico) e uma lista com urgências de cada uma das regiões do mapa, o robô deve estimar qual o percurso mais eficiente para monitorar esse ambiente. Uma vez que a urgência de cada região não visitada aumenta com o tempo, o trajeto do robô deve se adaptar a essas alterações. Entre as diversas aplicações práticas desse tipo de algoritmo, destaca-se o desenvolvimento de sistemas de segurança móveis inteligentes / The mobile robotics is a research area that has started to get some serious attention from the scientific community. The development of robots able to interact with the environment - to learn and make correct decisions so their tasks are successfully completed - is the biggest challenge in mobile robotics. The development of these intelligent and autonomous systems consists of a multidisciplinary research area considered recent and very promising that involves, for example, artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistical estimation and embedded systems. Within this context, this paper addresses the problem of navigation in dynamic environments with priorities using mobile robots. Given a representation of the environment (topological map) and a list of priorities for each region of the map, the robot must estimate what is the most efficient way to monitor this environment. As the dynamic priority of each region increases with time since the last visit of the robot, its trajectory must adapt to these changes. This approach is similar to the traveling salesman, but a solution that specifically addresses the problem described in this dissertation was not found in the literature. Among the many practical applications of this type of algorithm, we highlight the development of smart mobile security systems

Robotic grasping and manipulation of three-dimensional deformable objects is a complex task that currently does not have robust and flexible solutions. Deformable objects include a wide variety of elastic and inelastic objects that change size and shape during manipulation. The development of adaptable methods for grasping and autonomously controlling the shape of three-dimensional deformable objects will benefit many commercial applications, including shaping parts for assembly in manufacturing, manipulating food for packaging and controlling tissues during robotic surgery. Controlling a deformable object to a desired shape requires first choosing contact points on the object's surface. Next, the robotic hand is positioned in the correct position and orientation to grasp and deform the object. After deformation, the object is assessed to evaluate the quality of the shape control procedure. In many cases, this process is completed without knowing the object's properties or behaviour before deformation. This work proposes and implements the framework for a robotic arm and hand system to control the shape of a previously unseen deformable object autonomously. Significant original contributions are made in developing an original algorithm to plan contact points on a three-dimensional object for grasping and shape control. This research uses a novel object representation to reduce the dimensionality of the deformable object manipulation problem. A path planning algorithm guides the robot arm to the optimal valid grasp pose to deform the object at the determined contact points. Additional contributions include developing a multi-view assessment strategy to determine the quality of the deformation towards the desired shape. The system completes the objectives using depth and colour images captured from a single point of view to locate and identify a previously unseen three-dimensional object within a robotic workspace. After estimating the unknown object's geometry, initial grasp contact points are planned to control the object to the desired shape. The grasp points are used to plan and execute a collision-free trajectory for the robot manipulator to place the robotic hand in the optimal position and orientation to grasp and deform the object. After the deformation is complete, the object is moved to a variety of assessment positions to determine the success of the shape control procedure. The system is validated experimentally on a variety of deformable three-dimensional objects.

Background: Due to the complexity involved in robotic software development, the progress in the field has been slow. Component-based software engineering was observed to have a strong influence on the improvement of the robotic software development process and its adoption achieved good results. DevOps was seen to be compatible and produced efficient results in software engineering. Objectives: The aim of this thesis work is to present the potential usage of DevOps practices in robotic software development. 15 DevOps practices were selected from prior research from software engineering and mapped to the robotic software development process and checked for success in terms of applicability and effectiveness. Methods: By performing a research synthesis of the literature, the usage of DevOps practices in robotic software development is proposed and presented. Interview based survey was performed by approaching industry experts on robotic software development to get their response on the results of the research synthesis. Results: The applicability of the DevOps practices in robotic software development is presented and the implications of the potential usage of the practices in the proposed manner are discussed. The potential advantages and limitations of the proposed mapping are discussed and presented. Conclusions: DevOps, like other software development frameworks, has various observable advantages when applied in robotic software development. The interviews confirmed the need for DevOps to be adapted into robotic software development and the benefits it has.

Au cours des dernières décennies, l'étude des puces microfluidiques capables d'exécuter des processus chimiques et biologiques sur quelques centimètres carrés a été un domaine de recherche actif. De telles plateformes offrent un environnement fermé et contrôlable qui permet une mesure reproductible et évite toute contamination externe. Cependant, ces environnements sont fermés, ce qui empêche l'utilisation de sondes de mesure ou d'effecteurs fixés à l'extérieur de la puce microfluidique. Pour répondre à ce besoin, nous proposons d'utiliser des microrobots rotatifs hélicoïdaux évoluant dans un fluide. Les microrobots proposés sont conçus grâce à la lithographie 3D par laser. Ils présentent une forme hélicoïdale de 5.5 µm de diamètre et environ 50 µm de longueur. Une couche mince ferromagnétique déposée sur ces microrobots permet de les propulser et de les contrôler grâce à un champ magnétique tournant homogène.Le premier défi est l'intégration stable de microrobots à l'intérieur d'un environnement microfluidique. Dans cette thèse, nous avons donc d'abord prouvé que ces microrobots peuvent utiliser leur propre mobilité pour s'intégrer individuellement à l'intérieur d'une puce microfluidique en utilisant un microcanal relié à un réservoir ouvert. Pour cela, nous avons développé un mouvement 3D où le microrobot évolue dans le fluide et deux mouvements 2D où il évolue sur une surface. En passant facilement d'un mouvement à l'autre, les microrobots peuvent utiliser les différents avantages de chaque mouvement pour obtenir une mobilité suffisante à cette intégration. Nous avons nommé ce modèle de microrobot "Roll-to-Swimm"(RTS).Ensuite, pour utiliser un microrobot comme capteur de force sur puce microfluidique, il est nécessaire de caractériser la force générée par l'hélice de chaque RTS. Une méthode de caractérisation est proposée, dans laquelle les différents paramètres d'environnement tels que le flux parasite, le gradient de température et l'impact des surfaces, sont contrôlées avec précision grâce à l'environnement microfluidique. Nous en concluons que le modèle de microrobot "RTS" peut appliquer une force de 10 à 45 piconewton avec une erreur maximale de 38 %. La composante principale de cette erreur (73 %) est due à l'évolution de l'aimantation du RTS. Par conséquent, les efforts visant à réduire cette erreur doivent d'abord se concentrer sur la propriété de magnétisation du RTS. Cette erreur peut également être temporairement réduite en caractérisant la RTS juste avant son utilisation dans une expérience.Enfin, nous présentons trois preuves de concept pour démontrer que notre méthode de caractérisation rapproche les microrobots hélicoïdaux des applications potentielles. Tout d'abord, nous mesurons la diminution de la force du RTS lorsqu'il pousse une microbille. Cette mesure est essentielle pour connaitre la force appliquée par le RTS sur un objet ou pour mesurer l'état de surface en utilisant des billes comme interface. Une microbille de 10 µm de diamètre à la pointe du RTS réduit la propulsion de 6 %. Deuxièmement, nous utilisons la caractérisation du RTS pour mesurer la vitesse locale de l'écoulement dans un canal. Puis nous proposons d'utiliser cette mesure de vitesse pour le contrôle du microrobot grâce à un contrôle automatique du RTS qui adapte le type de mouvement en fonction de la vitesse de l'écoulement. Ce contrôle a été testé expérimentalement avec différentes conditions d'écoulement. Troisièmement, nous utilisons la caractérisation du RTS pour effectuer des simulations numériques afin de trouver une stratégie de contrôle dans des microcanaux de taille inférieure à 20 fois le diamètre du RTS. Le modèle de cette simulation a été validé en comparant ces résultats avec des données expérimentales. Finalement, nous proposons un système de contrôle permettant de maintenir le RTS centré à l'intérieur de microcanaux courbes évoluant en 3D, en utilisant seulement une acquisition d'image en 2D. / Microfluidic chips that could perform chemical and biological processes on a few centimeter square footprint have been an active area of research in the past decades. Among other advantages, this platform offers a closed and controllable environment that allows reproducible measurements and avoids external contamination. However, such closed environments prevent the use of tethered probes to measure or apply a specific force on an element inside the microfluidic chip. Therefore we propose to use a helical rotating microrobot inside a microfluidic chip to answer this need. The proposed microrobots are designed with 3D laser lithography, and have a helical shape of 5.5 µm in diameter and around 50 µm length. A thin ferromagnetic layer is deposited on these microrobots which allows us to propel and control them with a homogenous external rotating magnetic field.The first challenge is the stable integration of these microrobots inside microfluidic environments. Therefore, in this thesis we first proved that these microrobots can use their own mobility to integrate themselves selectively (one by one) inside a microfluidic chip through a microchannel connected to an open reservoir. For this, we have developed a 3D motion where the microrobot evolves in the fluid and two different 2D motions where it evolves on a surface. By switching easily from one motion to another, the microrobots can use the different advantages of each motion to get sufficient mobility required for this integration. We named our microrobot design Roll-To-Swimm (RTS) in reference to this characteristic.Then in order to use a microrobot as on-chip force sensor, a precise characterization of the force generated by the helical shape is necessary for each RTS. A characterization method is proposed, where the different environment parameters (parasite flow, temperature gradient and impact of near surfaces on the flow) are controlled precisely thanks to the microfluidic environment. The characterization shows that the force range of the RTS is between 10 and 45 piconewton with a maximum error of 38 %. We also conclude that the main component of this error (73 %) is due to the evolution of the RTS magnetization. Therefore the efforts to reduce this error should first focus on the magnetization property of the RTS. This error can also be temporarily reduced by characterizing the RTS just before its use in another experiment.Finally, we present three different proofs of concept to demonstrate that our characterization method brings helical microrobots closer to potential on-chip force sensing applications. Firstly, we show that it is possible to measure the diminution of the RTS force when it is pushing a micro spherical bead. This is essential toward applying force on an object with this RTS or to use beads as an interface between the RTS and the surface to measure friction forces. A microbead with 10 µm in diameter at the tip of the RTS reduces it propulsion of 6 %.Secondly, we use the RTS characterization to measure local flow speed. We demonstrate this feature by measuring flow profiles in fluid channels. We show the potential use for of microrobot control by proposing an automatic control of the RTS that adapts the motion to the measured flow. This control has been tested experimentally with different flow conditions. Thirdly, we use the characterization of the RTS to perform numerical simulations in order to find a control strategy in small microchannels. Indeed we demonstrate that for microchannels below 20 times the RTS diameter, the channel walls have an impact on the RTS motions. The model of this simulation has been validated by comparing this result with experimental data. Finally we propose a control scheme for maintaining the RTS centered in a curved microchannel by only using a 2D image feedback.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The aim of the study is to assess the impact of robot service on hotel guest experiences. Application of technology in tourism and hospitality services is growing each day. Using robots in hospitality establishment is becoming more and more popular, mainly because it can help cut down the labor costs, increase efficiency and reduce human contacts. Very few studies, however, have been done on examining customer experience regarding robots used in the hotel. Social media sites such as TripAdvisor are popular platforms where people share their first-hand experiences. Hence, this study focuses on studying the reviews of robotic hotels. Using the software Leximancer, reviews were studied and categorized in different themes to understand if the presence of the robot would create positive or negative experience for customers. The sample of the study included total of 2383 reviews related to robotic hotels from TripAdvisor from January 2011 to October 2020. The findings highlighted the major themes as Room, Robot, Hotel and Staff and their relationship with the ratings. It also provided insights into the contribution of robot service to consumer’s hotel experiences. / 2021-12-01

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the oropharynx affects nearly 50,000 individuals in the United States each year, and, with the rising incidence of the human papillomavirus (HPV), the number of patients diagnosed with SCC is expected to continue to grow (American Cancer Society 2018; Coughlan and Frick 2012). Oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) has traditionally been treated with wide surgical extirpation often involving removal of portions of the oral cavity, pharynx, and jaw; this kind of surgery can be disfiguring and has been associated with significant post-operative complications (Brickman and Gross 2014). In the late 20th century, clinicians began favoring the use of chemoradiation therapy instead of surgery in an effort to spare patients the morbidity associated with surgical techniques at the time (Mercante et al. 2015). While chemoradiation offers excellent survival for patients with SCC, this therapeutic strategy has been observed to have its own debilitating post-treatment side effects (Hamilton and Paleri 2017). An important advancement in the management of OPSCC occurred about 20 years ago with the advent of transoral robotic surgery (TORS), a surgical technique that uses a robotic system to operate through the natural opening of the mouth. Proponents of TORS suggest that the technology improves on conventional surgery and may provide patients with functional outcomes superior to those seen with chemoradiation with no sacrifice in survival (Yeh et al. 2015; Hay et al. 2017). This review investigates the validity of the concept that TORS has significant advantages in the modern-day treatment of OPSCC. This report includes three components. First, the TORS technology, its advantages, and its drawbacks are explained. Second, relevant medical literature is reviewed to provide an understanding of the rationale for utilizing TORS in the treatment of OPSCC. Review and analysis of published reports show that TORS can provide patients with excellent post-operative function, good quality of life, and acceptable survival rates. Notable exceptions include patients with advanced disease. Third, this review discusses future studies that will better inform caregivers about the utility of TORS in the treatment of OPSCC. TORS is a relatively new technology that seems to offer the possibility of helping to improve the lives of patients with OPSCC.

Exoskeletons for rehabilitation commonly focus on gait training, despite the variety of human movements and functional assistance needed. Cable-driven exoskeletons have an advantage in addressing a variety of movements by being non-restrictive in their design. Additionally, these devices do not require complex mechanical joints to apply forces on the user or hinder the user's mobility. This accommodation of movement makes these cable-driven architectures more suitable for everyday movement. However, these flexible cable-driven exoskeletons often actuate a reduced number of actuated degrees-of-freedom to simplify their mechanical complexity. There is a need to design flexible and low-profile cable-driven exoskeletons to accommodate the movement of the user and be more flexible in their ability to actuate them. This thesis presents cable-driven exoskeleton designs that are used during walking and or squatting. These exoskeletons can be reconfigured to apply forces that are appropriate for these functional tasks. The three designs presented in this thesis are non-restrictive cable-driven designs that add minimal weight to the user. The first design shown is the cable-driven active leg exoskeleton previously developed by the Robotics and Rehabilitation Laboratory (C-ALEX, 10kg). The second and third designs are novel cable-driven architectures: (i) the modular C-ALEX (mC-ALEX, 3kg) and (ii) the soft C-ALEX (SC-ALEX, <1kg). A preliminary evaluation of the latter two devices was performed, and the results of these studies are presented to better understand the limitations and abilities of each design. The functionalities added to the latter two designs include the ability to reconfigure the robot's cable routing and attachment geometry, allowing the devices to apply torques through cables in the non-sagittal plane. These features will enable the robot to assist in tasks other than gait while still using the original C-ALEX design methods. Another feature added to the exoskeleton controller is to allow visual feedback through an Augmented Reality headset (the HoloLens) to incorporate visual feedback during tasks better. This feature is currently missing from the rehabilitation field using exoskeletons. The effects of using the C-ALEX with post-stroke participants were carried out to ascertain the efficacy of using a cable-driven system for gait adaptations in persons with gait impairments and compare their effectiveness against rigid-linked exoskeletons. The C-ALEX was assessed to induce a change in the walking patterns of ten post-stroke participants using a single-session training protocol. The ability of C-ALEX to accurately provide forces and torques in the desired directions was also evaluated to compare its design performance to traditional rigid-link designs. Participants were able to reach 91% ± 12% of their target step length and 89% ± 13 % of their target step height. The achieved step parameters differed significantly from participant baselines (p <0.05). To quantify the performance, the forces in each cable's out-of-the-plane movements were evaluated relative to the in-plane desired cable tension magnitudes. This corresponded to an error of under 2Nm in the desired controlled joint torques. This error magnitude is low compared to the system command torques and typical adult biological torques during walking (2-4%). These results point to the utility of using non-restrictive cable-driven architectures in gait retraining, in which future focus can be on rehabilitating gait pathologies seen in stroke survivors. Visual and force feedback are common elements in rehabilitation robotics, but visual feedback is difficult to provide in over-ground mobile exoskeleton systems. A preliminary study was carried out to assess the effects of providing force-only, force and visual, or visual-only feedback to three independent groups, each containing 8 participants. The groups showed an increase in normalized step height, (force and visual: 1.10 ± .13, force-only: 1.03 ± .23 visual-only: 1.61 ± .52) and decreased normalized trajectory tracking error (force and visual: 42.8% ± 23.4%, force: 47.6% ± 18.4% , visual-only: 114.2% ± 60.0%). Visual normalized step height differed significantly from force and visual and force-only normalized step height (p<0.005). Lap-wise normalized tracking error differed significantly ($p < 0.005$) within participants. The mC-ALEX and the HoloLens were used to test the effectiveness of robot force feedback compared to visual feedback with a squat task. The squat task aimed to have the user reach targets of 25%, 75%, and 125% of baseline squats depths through each feedback modality. The kinematic and foot loading effects were considered to establish the differences in user behavior when receiving both types of feedback. The results show that visual feedback has lower errors from targets with similar lower variability in user performance. The force feedback changed joint flexion profiles without changing foot loading biomechanics. When looking at the sessions in sequence, both feedback modalities reduced depth error magnitudes further along with the sessions time-wise. This is the first study where augmented in-field-of-view visual feedback and robotic feedback are used with the aim of changing the kinematics of a squatting task. Overall, this thesis contributes to expanding the capabilities of cable-driven exoskeletons in lower limb rehabilitative tasks. Three designs are evaluated to understand their on-user performance, with the latter two devices being novel designs. The devices are used in protocols that include visual feedback to ascertain their effects on movement adaptation through the two feedback modalities.

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