Today is a break from my normal activities. I’m off to the Open University, for RoboFesta UK. I started research into signal processing and computer modelling, in the OU’s Energy Research Group, around 20 years ago. And that circle of interest is closed today.
We develop software to improve internet advertising. Some of that software is derived from my interest in robotics and control systems. You can think of the changing pattern of bids and adverts as signals. Signal analysis can be used to extract the results (changes in paid price, sales, etc) and using techniques from probabilistic control systems, we can feed back the signal in such a way as to improve the result. This is similar to designing robots… except that our robots write adverts and make bids.
I’m looking forward to seeing what UK educators are up to in robotics these days. And, even better, I’ll be with my son, who was one of the UK participants in this years RoboCup Junior in Bremen.
I hope that I’ll be meeting the amazing teacher, Dr Nicky Hughes, behind the success of the UK’s top junior Robot Dance Team, Flight of the Phantom Phoenixes, the international winners at RoboCup 2006. It was depressing, as an employer, that the British press ignored the successes of the UK teams. The teachers that support creative engineering talents seem to be working with little support from the education system here, and no interest whatsoever from the press.
A lot of the activity by teachers to support robotics seems to be extramural, often with borrowed equipment. It seems to be supported better by organisations such as BLEBP rather than by effort or even equipment found within the education system. As far as I could find out, all the winning teams from the UK, were using equipment additional to that supplied by schools, placing yet another burden on the hardworking teachers and team supporters.
I’m hoping that we’ll see some examples of robotics kits suitable for teenagers, perhaps e-Puck. My son has to pick the platform he wants, if he’s to participate in RoboCup 2007. Lego’s MindStorms, which he used in RoboRescue Junior, had limited sensor capabilities. Some of the better teams used an 8 bit colour sensor. We’ve been looking at using a STAMP or PIC and building up everything from scratch. It’s quite an exercise, to develop all the sensors and learn new programming languages!
One of the things that constantly surprises me is just how robotics connects to so many issues. For example, robotics is an exploration of philosophy (what is the nature of reality, what constitutes a recognisable table or teapot and why do we categorise that way; what is thought and consciousness; what responsibility does a designer have for an autonomous robot? etc). Effective household robots, with limited objectives such as vacuum cleaning, are already available. The trip to making more advanced household, emergency, support and exploration robots will need a lot of ingenuity - and I’ll be seeing some of the teachers helping to shape that, today. Fun.
