基于OPenGL的真空机器人三维图形仿真

Vacuum robot is an essential device in advanced semiconductor manufacturing. This paper introduces the kinematic modeling of a kind of parallel vacuum robot and the implementation of 3D graphical simulation based on OpenGL and STL files in Visual C＋＋ program interface, which also lays the foundation of real-time online monitoring of the robot.     

A Graphical-based educational simulation tool for Wireless Sensor Networks

Many routing protocols have been developed to improve the lifetime, bandwidth reusability and scalability of the Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). The operation of routing protocols is difficult to understand and some problems may occur while developing these protocols. Simulation is a relatively fast way of estimating these protocols and understating what is happening in the network. Thus, this paper presents an open source Graphical-based educational simulation tool called Gbest-WSN for simulating routing protocols of the static and mobile, homogeneous and heterogeneous WSNs. Gbest-WSN tool has a user-friendly interface that helps the user to select the routing protocol and define the network configuration. It is provided with four routing protocols; namely LEACH, LEACH-Mobile, immune algorithm-based and genetic algorithm-based routing protocols. Also, it allows the user to update the existing routing protocols and add a new routing protocol. Gbest-WSN is provided with radio, coverage and mobility models for modeling the hardware of the sensor node. It shows a detailed 2D and 3D graphical perception for what is happing during the routing process. Also, it has the ability to compare the simulation results of different simulation methods or different network configurations. In addition, it allows the user to save and load simulation scenarios and also exports the graphical results on PDF files and the statistical results on excel or mat files. Moreover, Gbest-WSN is provided with html help documents to help the user how to use it. The illustrative simulation examples clarified that the Gbest-WSN is a helpful tool for the students, teachers and researchers who work in the field of WSNs.     

A methodology for knowledge engineering using an interactive graphical tool for knowledge modelling

A basic feature of human nature is the propensity to construct boundaries which define territorial possession. Such assumed possessions are often jealously guarded by their owners, and a consequence of this primitive instinct is the emergence of subject specialists who exercise in-depth ‘lordship’ over their domain of expertise. For many years computer science has made attempts to relate to this phenomenon of expert intellectual property by developing mechanisms in software to emulate reasoning capability. Correspondingly this has resulted in the development of intelligent knowledge-based (or expert) systems, along with their attendant processes of knowledge elicitation, representation and exploitation. This paper attempts to define a context for knowledge engineering, the term being used to define spanning the void between domain expertise and the intelligent knowledge based system. It goes on to describe the systemic development of a particular solution to the knowledge engineering problem which is underpinned by a software environment called VEGAN (a Visual Editor for the Generation of Associative Networks). Many attempts have been made at bridging this gap, and VEGAN represents a significant aid to the knowledge engineering task, in the context of frame-based systems. Rather than attempt to create a unidirectional information path from expert to computer system (or knowledge engineer), VEGAN presents a common forum for discussion about, and exploration of, the expertise of the domain specialist. By doing so it helps the flow of information between the two parties. VEGAN represents an approach to a human-natured design of a software system which:

• 1.empathises with the ‘culpture’ of the expert,
• 2.provides a bridge between the expert and the computer system by shielfing the expert from the underlying complexity of the system,
• 3.aids the study of the organization of expertise, and thus induces further information.

     

The Tinker tool for graphical tactic development

PSGraph (Grov et al. in LPAR. Springer, Berlin, pp 324–339, 2013) is a graphical language to support the development and maintenance of proof tactics for interactive theorem provers. By using labelled hierarchical graphs this formalisation improves upon analysis and maintenance found in traditional tactic languages. Tool support for PSGraph is achieved by Tinker (Grov et al. in UITP 2014, ENTCS, vol 167. Open Publishing Association, London, pp 23–34, 2014; Lin et al. in Tools and algorithms for the construction and analysis of systems. Springer, Berlin, pp 573–579, 2016): a theorem prover-independent system, which is connected to several different provers, with a graphical user interface including novel features to develop and debug proof tactics graphically. In this paper we provide a detailed and formal account of PSGraph and show how theorem prover independence is achieved by Tinker. We then show practical use of PSGraph and Tinker by developing several proof patterns using the language and tool.

     

A graphical tool for parasite genome annotation

A graphical tool to facilitate rapid primary annotation of genomic sequence has been developed. Within a single interface the user can import sequences or database entries, run feature prediction programs and similarity searches, filter results, add additional manually found features and notes, and finally export annotations for database submission. Integrated rule-based feature corroboration and a novel decision support heuristic using ORF orientation, length and base-composition further enhances the efficiency of the annotation process without compromising flexibility. The program has been explicitly tailored to use in protozoan parasite genome projects, but can constitute a useful tool for prokaryote annotation as well. It is successfully being used by our lab in the Trypanosoma cruzi genome project, and can be obtained from the authors upon request.     

QUICK: a tool for graphical user-interface construction by non-programmers

The last decade has placed the superiority of graphical user interfaces over traditional text-based approaches beyond dispute. In almost all contexts, users have found graphical interfaces easier to learn, faster to use, and less error-prone. However, it has been shown that the creation of powerful graphical interfaces takes up to 80% of the time required to develop an application. In our work, we seek to extend the benefits of graphical interaction to the next layer of computer user—the interface designer. Our work in this area is distinguished from other efforts by two important differences. First, while other efforts focus primarily on the design of standard user interfaces, our approach emphasizes the creation of unique and innovative interfaces by supporting, among other things, arbitrary user-designed graphical representations, direct specification of animation, and digitized sound. Second, our goal is to cater to the nonprogrammer. Thus, we address a challenging trade-off: maximizing power and flexibility in an extremely simple environment. We explore the utility of the prototype object-oriented paradigm, a high-level userinterface language, and a direct-manipulation programming environment in this context.     

A tool for graphical network modeling and analysis

GMA, a generic graphical modeling and analysis package that satisfies both commercial users and performance evaluation researchers is described. Using a graphical interface, both novices and experts can analyze the performance of diverse networks simply by loading a configuration file and traffic data. GMA accommodates a variety of networks and modeling techniques. Its structure and use are described, and a simple four-node network is analyzed as an example     

A graphical query language for simulation databases

In this paper we propose a graphical query language to analyse simulation runs which are stored in databases with a temporal dimension. A simulation run is a sequence of system states produced by discrete simulation. It may become very large, such that manual analysis based on database browsing is no longer feasible. Hence simulation databases require a specific query language to analyse the simulation data. Queries may be related to single states (e.g. Is there a state where condition c1 holds? ) or to state sequences (e.g. Is there a state sequence, where first c1 holds, then c2 and finally c3? ).An existing Petri net simulation environment has been extended to support the described concepts.     

PpcProject: An educational tool for software project management

The University degrees about engineering in general, and software engineering in particular, contain subjects related with Project Management. In this subject, the most commonly used software for practical classes and homework is MS-Project. Nevertheless, the students find that MS-Project is not easy to use and that it requires a high knowledge about Project Management and about the use of the software package. To fill this gap, a new educational software tool, called PpcProject, has been developed and introduced in Software Project Management classes in front of MS-Project. When assessed in practical classes, it was shown to be more useful for educational purposes than Microsoft Project both, in terms of usability and of students performance.     

An educational tool for fuzzy control

This paper presents an educational library to be used with the MATLAB/Simulink package from the Mathworks company for the design of fuzzy controllers. This free library, named FlouLib, has its foundations in a clear representation of the fuzzy interfaces (fuzzification, inference, defuzzification). First, Mamdani-type conventional fuzzy logic controllers are presented, including when rulebases are chained. Then, from the modal equivalence principle, advanced Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy controllers are introduced especially those relying on input-output linearization techniques. Examples, all available in FlouLib demos, are used to show the potentialities of FlouLib for control engineering curricula.     

AthenaTV: an authoring tool of educational applications for TV using android-based interface design patterns

Education has become a key component of any society since it is the means by which humanity functions and governs itself. It allows individuals to appropriately integrate into a given community. For this reason, new ways of interaction between students and educational contents are emerging in order to improve the quality of education. In this context, devices such as computers, smartphones, or electronic tablets represent new ways of accessing educational resources which do not limit students to their usage merely inside the classroom since these devices are available anywhere. Nowadays, television has become one of these technological tools able to support the teaching–learning process through documentary films or movies, among others. However, two main issues appear. First, some of these educational contents are not those needed by a professor since information is restricted, and second, the development of TV-based applications requires an integrative approach involving the support of several specialists in education who provide the guidelines needed to build high-quality contents, as well as application designers and developers who are able to deliver the educational applications demanded by students. This work presents a system called AthenaTV to generate android-based educational applications for TV. AthenaTV takes into account the 10-foot design scheme used by Google to develop interfaces based on interface design patterns established in Google TV, and it is based on the android development guidelines and HTML5 standard.     

Intelligent control system simulation of an agricultural robot

An intelligent control system for an agricultural robot which performs in an uncertain and unstructured environment was modelled as distributed, autonomous computing modules that communicate through globally accessible blackboard structures. The control architecture was implemented for a robotic harvester of melons. A CAD workstation was used to plan, model, simulate and evaluate the robot and gripper motions using 3-D, real-time animation. The intelligent control structure was verified by simulating the dynamic data flow scenarios of melon harvesting. Control algorithms were evaluated on measured melon locations.Picking time was reduced by 49% by applying the traveling salesman algorithm to define the picking sequence. Picking speeds can be increased by a continuous mode of operation. However, this decreases harvest efficiency. Therefore, an algorithm was developed to attain 100% harvest efficiency by varying the vehicle's forward speed. By comparing different motion control algorithms through animated visual simulation, the best was selected and thereby the performance improved.Journal Paper No. 13043, Agricultural Experiment Station, Purdue University, W. Lafayette, IN 47907, U.S.A. This research was supported by Grants No. US-1254-87 and US-1682-89 from BARD, the United States-Israel Binational Agricultural Research and Development Fund.     

ER designer toolkit: a graphical event definition authoring tool

Modern assistive environments have the ability to collect data from various distributed sources and need to react swiftly to changes. As information flows, in the form of simple, source events, it becomes more and more difficult to quickly analyze the collected data in an automated way and transform them into operational knowledge. Event recognition (ER) addresses this problem. Several tools exist for defining ER rules, but only a few of them offer graphical design environments. Each such tool supports a single ER language, either query-based or rule-based. Also, many of these systems do not support the addition of user-defined operators, thus limiting the flexibility in rule design. This paper presents the Event Recognition Designer Toolkit (ERDT), a graphical authoring tool, with which a domain expert can design event recognition rules and produce standalone ER. The goal was to develop a user-friendly graphical tool with a basic set of operators, so that a user could easily produce recognizers for different domains and, when needed, easily extend the tool in order to satisfy domain-specific requirements. The ERDT uses an extendable pool of ER language libraries (at the moment SQL and Event Calculus are supported) and transforms the designed rules into Event Recognizers that use the preferred ER language. The same rule can be expressed in different languages without any changes to the design. Furthermore, the authoring tool is cross platform, free, and open source, so that it can be shared with the community, maximizing its potential impact and possible extension.     

Problem-solving processes in an educational construction simulation game

The growing adoption of educational simulation games in construction pedagogy has significantly impacted student learning. One game, the Virtual Construction Simulator 4 (VCS4), has been found to support student learning of how to solve complex construction problems. However, further research is warranted to evaluate the thinking processes that students engage while playing the game. This study examines those thinking processes by analyzing verbal protocols collected as students thought aloud while playing VCS4 game modules and resulting verbal protocols were coded to capture both cognitive and metacognitive operations. Patterns of thought revealed by this coding were then compared to the patterns expected based on the intentions of game design. The results show that students do generally exhibit the expected patterns. These findings support the claim that students engaged in complex higher-order thinking processes and skills, which evolved based on the types of construction projects.     

Robota: Clever toy and educational tool

Therapeutic and educational applications of robots have created a demand for robots showing a number of social skills. These skills include the capacity to imitate, to learn from demonstration, to interpret gestures and to recognize speech. Robot toys are an ideal platform to investigate the potential and limitations of human–robot social interactions.

This paper presents Robota, a mini-humanoid doll-shaped robot. Robota is used in an introductory robotics class at the undergraduate level. The class offers an introduction to different tools necessary for building human–robot social interactions. Through a series of hands-on projects, students learn how to use vision and speech processing and how to design learning algorithms. The goal of each project is to create an educational and entertaining game for normal and disabled children.     

Putting AI in entertainment: an AI authoring tool for simulation and games

We have been working on techniques to write better AI behavior for simulations and games. We are focusing on a visual authoring tool that provides a way to quickly synthesize complex behavior, and are building a corresponding AI engine to run with a simulation or game. For game development uses, we see our tool as making the AI understandable to game designers and end users, as well as improving developers' productivity. This work will also be useful for simulation developers and subsequently for analysts, operators, and instructors. We explain some of our tool's features and how the AI engine processes the resulting content.     

An educational tool for artificial neural networks

Artificial neural networks are some kind of data processing systems, which try to simulate features of the human brain and its learning process. So, they are widely used by researchers to solve different problems in optimization, classification, pattern recognition, associative memory and control. In this paper, an educational tool, which can be used to work on different kinds of neural network models and learn fundamentals of the artificial neural network, is described. At this point, the whole tool environment provides an advanced system to ensure mentioned functions. The developed system supports using MLP, LVQ and SOM models and related learning algorithms. It employs some visual, interactive tools, which enable users to compose their own neural networks and work on the developed networks easily. By using these tools, users can also understand and learn working mechanism of a typical artificial neural network, using features of different models and related learning algorithms.     

Hybrid modeling and simulation for the design of an advancedindustrial robot controller

This paper proposes the application of discrete event and hybrid modeling in the architectural design of a new commercial robot controller featuring force control capabilities. A case study is considered and architectural aspects, such as distribution of functions over a multiprocessor structure, communication among processors and sensors and task scheduling and synchronization, are modeled and simulated together with the arm continuous time dynamics. In particular, the interaction between robot position control and force control has been investigated, exploiting the features of a specific simulation tool for the design and evaluation of the real-time control strategies and of the hardware/software architecture     

An autonomous educational mobile robot mediator

So far, most of the applications of robotic technology to education have mainly focused on supporting the teaching of subjects that are closely related to the Robotics field, such as robot programming, robot construction, or mechatronics. Moreover, most of the applications have used the robot as an end or a passive tool of the learning activity, where the robot has been constructed or programmed. In this paper, we present a novel application of robotic technologies to education, where we use the real world situatedness of a robot to teach non-robotic related subjects, such as math and physics. Furthermore, we also provide the robot with a suitable degree of autonomy to actively guide and mediate in the development of the educational activity. We present our approach as an educational framework based on a collaborative and constructivist learning environment, where the robot is able to act as an interaction mediator capable of managing the interactions occurring among the working students. We illustrate the use of this framework by a 4-step methodology that is used to implement two educational activities. These activities were tested at local schools with encouraging results. Accordingly, the main contributions of this work are: i) A novel use of a mobile robot to illustrate and teach relevant concepts and properties of the real world; ii) A novel use of robots as mediators that autonomously guide an educational activity using a collaborative and constructivist learning approach; iii) The implementation and testing of these ideas in a real scenario, working with students at local schools.