ME CS 132 2017
This is the homepage for ME/CS 132(a,b) (Introduction to Robotic Perception and Navigation) for Winter/Spring 2017.
Course Staff, Hours, Location
| Position | Name | Office | Office Hours (changing weekly) | Phone | |
| Instructor | Joel Burdick | 245 Gates-Thomas | send mail for an appointment | jwb at robotics dot caltech dot edu | 626-395-4139 |
| Teach Asst. | TBD | 205 Gates-Thomas | TBD | 626-395-???? | |
| Teach Asst. | TBD | 205 Gates-Thomas | TBD | 626-395-???? | |
| Administrative | Sonya Lincoln | 250 Gates-Thomas | 7:30am-noon; 1:00pm-4:30pm | lincolns at caltech dot edu | 626-395-3385 |
- Lecture Schedule: To be determine at the Organizational Meeting
Announcements For ME/CS 132(a.b)
- 01/04/17: The permanent lecture hours and location will be determined at the course organizational meeting.
Course Text and References
The main text for the first half of the course is:
- Planning Algorithms by Steve LaValle (UIUC).
You can buy this book on-line at Amazon. A preprint of the text is available freely on-line, and is adequate for all activities of this course. This book provides a comprehensive summary of classical motion planning Beyond the basics of motion planning, the text also includes excellent reference material on information-space approaches to planning, and evasion-pursuit algorithms (some of LaValle's research). While these subjects are beyond the immediate scope of this class, they are accessible to interested students.
The following book is recommended (but not required):
- Principles of Robot Motion: Theory, Algorithms, and Implementations, by Howie Choset, Kevin Lynch, Seth Hutchinson, George Kantor, Wolfram Burgard, Lydia Kavraki, and Sebastian Thrun.
This text is available at Amazon in both new and used versions.
Interested students may wish to also consult the following classic (but now out-of-print) text on motion planning: Robot Motion Planning by J.C. Latombe. A copy is available in the Caltech library.
Course Mechanics, Grading, and Collaboration Policy
Grading
The final grade will be based on homework sets, and a final exam or final project:
- Homework (70%): Homework sets will be handed out every 7-10 days, and are due at 5 pm on the due date (which will always coincide with a class meeting). Homeworks can be dropped off in class, or deposited in the box outside of 245 Gates-Thomas. Some homeworks will require computation. MATLAB or Mathematica should be sufficient to solve every homework posed in this course, though students can choose their favorite programming language. Code is considered part of your solution and should be included in with the problem set when appropriate.
- Final exam/project (30%): Students have the option to take a final exam (a limited time take-home format exam which is open book, open note, and computer allowed) or select a final project. The final project must incorporate some aspect of the course, and the topic and scope my be approved by the course instructor. The final exam will due at 5:00 pm the last day of finals. The final project is similarly due at 5:00 pm on the last day of finals.
- Late Homework Policy: Students may automatically take a 2-day extension on two homeworks during each quarter.
Collaboration Policy
Collaboration on homework assignments is encouraged. You may consult outside reference materials, other students, the TA, or the instructor, but you must cite any use of material from outside references. All solutions that are handed in should be written up individually and should reflect your own understanding of the subject matter. Computer code and graphical plots are considered part of your solution, and therefore should be done individually (you can share ideas, but not code). No collaboration is allowed on the examinations.
Course Lecture Schedule for ME/CS 132(a)
| Week | Date | Topic | Reading | Optional Reading | Homework |
| 1 |
Introduction and Review of Rigid Body Kinematics | ||||
| 4 Jan (Wed.) | Class Overview | Course Overview | -No Homework- | ||
| 6 Jan (Fri.) | Planar Rigid Body Kinematics, Planar displacements |
MLS Ch 2.1, Pages 19-23 | -N/A- | ||
| 2 |
From Planar Rigid Body Kinematics to Spherical Kinematics | ||||
| 9 Jan (M) | Displacement groups, poles Planar Displacements (PowerPoint) |
-N/A- | Homework 1, Solution 1 | ||
| 11 Jan (W) | Centrodes: Ellliptical Trammel, Trammel, V 1, V 2, compliation Intro to Spherical Kinematics |
MLS Pages 22-26, Notes on the Elliptical Trammel, |
Archemides Trammel (Wikipedia) Polyhedral Linkages Synthesized Using Cardan Motion Along Radial Lines |
||
| 13 Jan (F) | Spherical Kinematics (continued), Classical Matrix Groups |
MLS Ch 2.2, 2.3, Notes on the Classical Matrix Groups |
-N/A- | ||
| 3 |
Spherical Kinematics | ||||
| 16 Jan (M) | No Class: Marin Luther King Holiday | -N/A- | -N/A- | No Homework | |
| 18 Jan (W) | Cayley's Theorem, |
MLS 27-31, Notes on Rotations |
-N/A- | ||
| 20 Jan (F) | No Class | MLS 31-34 | -N/A- | ||
| 4 |
Spherical Kinematics (continued) | ||||
| 25 Jan (M) | Angle/Axis Representation and Rodriguez Formula | MLS 34-39 | Notes on Algebras | -N/A- | |
| 27 Jan (W) | No Class | -N/A- | -N/A- | ||
| 29 Jan (W) | No Class | -N/A- | -N/A- | ||
| 5 |
Spatial Kinematics | ||||
| 1 Feb (M) | No Class | -N/A- | -N/A- | Homework 2, Solution 2 | |
| 3 Feb (W) | Exponential Coordinates and Euler Angles | MLS Ch 2.2, 2.3 | -N/A- | ||
| 5 Feb (F) | Quaternions | MLS Pages 51-52 | -N/A- | ||
| 6 |
Spatial Kinematics (continued) | ||||
| 8 Feb (M) | Quaternions (continued), Intro to Spatial Kinematics |
MLS 34-39 | Notes on Algebras | Homework 3, Solution 3 | |
| 8 Feb (M) | Spatial Displacments, Chasle's Theorem, Exponential Coordinates |
MLS Pages 35-50 | -N/A- | ||
| 10 Feb (W) | Motion Capture Rigid Body Velocities |
MLS Pages 51-61; Rodriguez' Displacement Equation; | -N/A- | ||
| 12 Feb (F) | No Class | -N/A- | -N/A-
| ||
| 7 |
Spatial Kinematics: Velocities and Wrenches | ||||
| 15 Feb (M) | No Class: President's Day Holiday | MLS Ch 2.3; | -N/A- | Homework 4, Solution 4 | |
| 17 Feb (W) | Rigid Body Velocities (continued) | MLS Ch 2.3 | -N/A- | ||
| 19 Feb(F) | Transformation of Velocities Wrenches and Poinsot's Theorem |
MLS Ch 2.4-2.5 | -N/A- | ||
| 8 |
Robot Manipulators | ||||
| 22 Feb (M) | Wrenches (continued), Screw Theory |
-N/A- | -N/A- | No Homework | |
| 22 Feb (M) | Robot Manipulators: Introduction | MLS Chapter 3, pages 81-94 | -N/A- | ||
| 23 Feb (W) | Denavit Hartenberg Convention | MLS Chapter 3, pages 81-94 | -N/A- | ||
| 25 Feb(F) | Forward Kinematics via the Denavit-Hartenberg Convention | MLS Ch 3, | DH-Parameters (from Wikipedia), Scan from Craig Book on D-H Parameters | ||
| 9 |
Forward/Inverse Kinematics | ||||
| 29 Feb (M) | Denavit-Hartenberg Convention (continued), Examples | MLS Ch 3; Rodriguez' Displacement Equation; | -N/A- | Homework 5, Solution 5 | |
| 2 Mar (W) | Product of Exponentials Formula | MLS Ch 3 | -N/A- | ||
| 4 Mar(F) | Inverse Kinematics | MLS Ch 3 | -N/A- | ||
| 10 |
Jacobian Matrix and Singularities | ||||
| 7 Mar (M) | Manipulator Jacobian Matrices | MLS Ch 3, pages 115-120; | -N/A- | Optional Homework 6 | |
| 7 Mar (M) | Jacobian Matrix (continued), End-effector forces | MLS Ch 3, 121-123; | -N/A- | ||
| 9 Mar (W) | Manipulator Singularities | MLS Ch 3, pp 123-127 | -N/A- | ||
