Bøger af Thomas Braunl

This book emphasizes software design as the most important topic in modern robotics and demonstrates practical code examples in Python and C. The book introduces the free simulation system EyeSim in combination with EyeBot robots, which can be built from inexpensive embedded processors, sensors and motors ¿ or by adapting the control inputs of model cars. EyeSim is a free software for MacOS, Windows and Linux, which uses a realistic physics simulation engine and is source-code compatible to the EyeBot mobile robots. So, each robot program can first be tested on the simulator before running it on a real robot. EyeSim includes modules for driving, walking, swimming and diving robots, as well as for robot manipulators. EyeSim also runs on the Meta/Oculus Quest, providing a fully immersive robotics experience in virtual reality. Beginning with simple driving algorithms and sensor data processing for distance sensors, Lidar and camera, the book progresses to more complex localization and navigation tasks, as well as vision-based navigation and genetic algorithms. It concludes with artificial intelligence applications for mobile robots in traffic scenarios and full-size autonomous vehicles. This book is suitable as a text for undergraduate and graduate courses in Robotics, Automation and Artificial Intelligence, as well as a self-study guide for practitioners and hobbyists. All robot application programs in this book are available as free downloads for MacOS, Windows, Linux, and Raspberry Pi OS.

This book introduces the area of image processing and data-parallel processing. It covers a number of standard algorithms in image processing and describes their parallel implementation. The programming language chosen for all examples is a structured parallel programming language which is ideal for educational purposes. It has a number of advantages over C, and since all image processing tasks are inherently parallel, using a parallel language for presentation actually simplifies the subject matter. This results in shorter source codes and a better understanding. Sample programs and a free compiler are available on an accompanying Web site.

In this book the author stresses software as the most important topic in modern robotics. In particular the book concentrates on software for mobile robots, and the author demonstrates how inexpensive solutions can be constructed by mounting Raspberry Pi controllers and cameras onto model cars or other simple mechanical drive systems.

It is structured in three parts, dealing with Embedded Systems (hardware and software design, actuators, sensors, PID control, multitasking), Mobile Robot Design (driving, balancing, walking, and flying robots), and Mobile Robot Applications (mapping, robot soccer, genetic algorithms, neural networks, behavior-based systems, and simulation).