Abstract: A vehicle control device includes a decider configured to decide on a start and a cancelation of a travel mode in which a vehicle travels at or below a target speed set by a driver of the vehicle and a controller configured to control traveling of the vehicle in the travel mode in accordance with a decision result of the decider. The decider sets a state of the cancelation of the travel mode as a deferred state when the operation amount of a brake operation on a brake pedal of the vehicle is less than or equal to a threshold value if a cancelation operation is performed according to the brake operation when the start of the travel mode is decided on in accordance with a first start operation and the controller controls the traveling and decides to continue the travel mode when a second start operation different from the first start operation is performed in the deferred state.

Abstract: A driving/braking force control apparatus includes a front-wheel longitudinal force generator, a rear-wheel longitudinal force generator, a tire slip angle output unit, a tire lateral force output unit, a slip ratio output unit, a tire lateral force change rate output unit, a target yaw moment setting unit, and a driving/braking force distribution control unit. The driving/braking force distribution control unit performs a control of an output allocation ratio between the front-wheel longitudinal force generator and the rear-wheel longitudinal force generator based on a target value of an additional yaw moment, a change rate of a tire lateral force of a front wheel to a slip ratio of the front wheel, and a change rate of a tire lateral force of a rear wheel to a slip ratio of the rear wheel.

Abstract: A driver assistance method for an ego vehicle (EGO) travelling in a traffic lane, includes: identifying traffic surrounding the ego vehicle in the same traffic lane as the ego vehicle and in adjacent parallel lanes travelling in the same direction; determining a virtual barycentric target, including calculating a position of the virtual barycentric target, a speed of the virtual barycentric target, and an acceleration of the virtual barycentric target; calculating a longitudinal speed setpoint of the ego vehicle, an acceleration setpoint, and a torque setpoint, the longitudinal speed setpoint being a function of the position of the virtual barycentric target, the speed of the virtual barycentric target, and the acceleration of the virtual barycentric target.

Abstract: Systems and methods for designing, testing, and validating a robotic system for space are provided. A system includes: a robotic manipulator; a dynamic system emulator configured to simulate a motion behaviour response of a first space robotic system based on forces and moments measured by the first robotic manipulator during physical interaction of the first robotic manipulator with a second robotic manipulator emulating motion behaviour of a second space robotic system; an arm controller configured to generate a manipulator tip reference trajectory command based on the motion behaviour response simulated by the dynamic system emulator and provide the manipulator tip reference trajectory command to the robotic manipulator; and an arm mechanism in the robotic manipulator configured to track a trajectory based on the manipulator tip reference trajectory command, such that the robotic manipulator emulates motion behaviour of the first space robotic system.

Abstract: The control device 1A mainly includes a determination means 15A, an abstract state setting means 16A, and a sequence generation means 17A. The determination means 15A determines, based on at least one of environment information relating to environment observed in a workspace of a controlled device to be controlled, state information relating to a state of the controlled device, and stored information that is stored information relating to the objective task to be executed by the controlled device, whether or not the objective task can be completed. The abstract state setting means 16A sets, when determined that the objective task cannot be completed, an abstract state in the workspace based on at least one of the environment information or the stored information. The sequence generation means 17A generates, based on the abstract state and the objective task, a sequence of subtasks to be executed by the controlled device.

Abstract: A method for online authoring of robot autonomy applications includes receiving sensor data of an environment about a robot while the robot traverses through the environment. The method also includes generating an environmental map representative of the environment about the robot based on the received sensor data. While generating the environmental map, the method includes localizing a current position of the robot within the environmental map and, at each corresponding target location of one or more target locations within the environment, recording a respective action for the robot to perform. The method also includes generating a behavior tree for navigating the robot to each corresponding target location and controlling the robot to perform the respective action at each corresponding target location within the environment during a future mission when the current position of the robot within the environmental map reaches the corresponding target location.

Abstract: An apparatus for holding a cable for an electric vehicle charger includes a cable holding unit configured to restrict a charging cable extended and connected to a charging coupler, and to ascend or descend to predetermined positions, a housing unit mounted in a manner that is rotatable along a leftward-rightward direction, the cable holding unit being accommodated inside the housing unit, a driving unit configured to provide drive power for enabling the cable holding unit to ascend and descend and drive power for rotating the housing unit, and a control unit configured to control the driving unit in such a manner that the cabling holding unit and the housing unit are selectively driven when the charging coupler is removed from an electric vehicle charger or rests thereon.

Abstract: Methods and a system for estimating a coefficient of friction of a surface being traveled upon by a vehicle is disclosed. The methods and systems may be active when wheel slip is not present and while wheel slip is present. The coefficient of friction for the surface being traveled upon may be estimated as a function of time since a most recent wheel slip event.

Abstract: A safety system of a joint assembly which includes a motor and a brake coupled to the motor is provided. The safety system includes at least one set of sensors configured to detect at least one parameter associated with safety function of the joint assembly, a driving circuit coupled to the motor and the brake and arranged within the joint assembly; and a first processor and a second processor arranged within the joint assembly. The first processor and the second processor configured to receive a signal indicative of the at least one parameter from the at least one set of sensors and send a stop command directly to the driving circuit to stop the motor in response to a joint fault determined based on the signal received from the at least one set of sensors.

Abstract: A multi-robotic U-shaped disassembly line, a method for disassembling components on the multi-robotic U-shaped disassembly line, and a non-transitory computer readable medium that cause one or more processors to perform the method for disassembling components on the multi-robotic U-shaped disassembly line are provided. The multi-robotic U-shaped disassembly line uses multiple robots, assigned to multiple workstations to perform disassembly tasks without precedence and conflict relationships, so that different types of end-of-life products can be disassembled. A mathematical model is established to maximize the disassembly profit and minimize the smoothness index for the multi-robotic U-shaped disassembly line. An Improved Multi-objective Discrete Brainstorming Optimization (IMDBO) algorithm is utilized to identify improvements for the multi-robotic U-shaped disassembly line.

Abstract: A lawn vehicle network includes a charging station having a visual identifier, a lawn vehicle having a battery, a blade system, a drive system whose output effects lawn vehicle forward movement, a processor board connected to both systems, the processor board capable of processing image data and sending commands to both systems, and a vision assembly connected to the processor board and able to transmit image data to the processor board, and the processor board, having received the image data, able to, if the image data represent a first object, maintain the drive system's output at the time of that determination, if the image data represent a second object, change the drive system's output at the time of that determination, and if the image data represent the visual identifier, maintain the drive system's output or send a shutoff command to the vision assembly at the time of that determination.

Abstract: A control system for controlling a powertrain of an electric vehicle is disclosed. The powertrain comprises a traction motor and a battery for powering the traction motor. The control system is configured to detect a low state of charge of the battery and to operate the powertrain in a low state of charge mode when the low state of charge is detected. In the low state of charge mode, the control system adjusts at least one parameter of the powertrain, such as traction motor torque, powertrain cooling, accessory cooling and accessory power consumption, to reduce power drawn from the battery.

Abstract: A method and system to improve autonomous robotic system responsive behavior, to control the autonomous responsive behavior of a robotic system based on a set of simultaneously and cooperatively performed real-time action based on a plurality of acquisition sources providing relevant data about the surroundings of the system, wherein the data is processed by a set of modules globally controlled and managed by a Central Processing Module comprising a multitude of control and decision AI algorithms multidirectionally that allow define the autonomous responsive behaviors of the robotic system.

Abstract: A controller is provided for a vehicle having front and rear axles, each axle having two wheels, and first and second propulsion units. The controller controls the first and second propulsion units to generate a combined torque with reference to a total requested torque. The controller is configured to: receive a torque request signal; receive traction signals indicating available traction at at least one wheel; determine a traction torque range defined by a maximum and minimum torque for at least one of the at least first or second propulsion units in dependence on one or more of the traction signals; determine a proposed distribution of torque between each of the at least first and second propulsion units with reference to the total requested torque; and determine a proposed torque to be generated by each of the at least first and second propulsion units in dependence on the proposed distribution of torque.

Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to provide a robot controller that does not require manual correction when an applying process operation is interrupted due to occurrence of an error, and that enables automatic avoidance of occurrence of an interrupted part (gap) of the applying process and occurrence of excessive processing upon resuming the applying process operation. When an applying operation is interrupted, if the operation has stopped after further advancement of the operation site from the position of interruption, the operation site is moved back by a predetermined distance along the curved trajectory at the time of an advancing movement prior to the stopping, and the advancing movement is resumed from the moved-back position along the curved trajectory. Thus, it is possible to resume the continuous process while the operation site, at the position where the continuous process operation has been interrupted, proceeds at the same speed as when the applying operation was interrupted.

Abstract: A surgical robot system includes a surgical instrument including a shaft to be inserted through a trocar placed in a subject, an arm device that holds the surgical instrument and moves the surgical instrument with respect to the subject, a detector arranged at the arm device and configured to detect values of forces and torques acting on the surgical instrument; and a controller that calculates a value of a first external force that the surgical instrument receives from the trocar and a value of a second external force that is received from an object other than the trocar and that is abuttable on the surgical instrument, based on the values of forces and torques, and controls the arm device to move the surgical instrument, based on the value of the first external force and the value of the second external force.

Abstract: A device including a processor configured to detect an environment of an automated machine, wherein the environment comprises one or more further automated machines; determine an action taken by the one or more further automated machines; determine an action expected of the one or more further automated machines; compares the taken action with the expected action; determine an accuracy score associated with the one or more further automated machines based on the comparison.

Abstract: Systems and methods for reconfigurable, fixtureless manufacturing are provided. Material handling robots grasp and move parts within an assembly area to adjoin one another in a predetermined orientation. While the parts remain grasped and suspended within the assembly area, out of contact with any fixtures, work surfaces, jigs, and locators, a machine vision system performs an alignment scan to determine locations of datums on the parts which are transmitted to a controller for comparison against stored virtual datums for a subassembly comprising the joined parts. The location of the datums are transmitted to a joining robot which joins the parts to form the subassembly. The machine vision system performs an inspection scan of the datums on the parts after joining.

Abstract: An image recognizing device includes an image storing portion, a cylindrical distortion correcting portion, a vertical edge extracting portion; a column candidate extracting portion, a pole candidate evaluating portion, a pole foot position setting portion, a movement distance acquiring portion, a detected distance difference calculating portion, and a pole identifying portion. When the vehicle is moving toward a pole candidate, the movement distance acquiring portion acquires a movement distance moved by the vehicle during a prescribed time interval, and the detected distance difference calculating portion calculates a detected distance difference between a starting detected distance and an ending detected distance for the prescribed time interval.

Abstract: Systems and methods for automated manufacture are provided. Nominal data measurements are obtained for an article. An identification scan is performed of parts within the work area by a machine vision system. An initial scan of the parts within or adjacent to the work area identified as being needed to form said article is performed by the machine vision system to identify target points. The target points are compared at a controller with the nominal data measurements. Automated material handling machines are commanded to grasp and move the parts within said work area to form the article.