Robotics and Automation
Research Faculty
Robotics Research
Coursework
Options
Robotics and Automation applies innovative technologies to problems in robotics, robot-human interaction, manufacturing and health care. Our research ranges from artificial intelligence to autonomous and remotely operated robot technologies, including applications in additive manufacturing, underground mine safety, magnetic guidance for placement of probes for deep brain stimulation and remote telesurgery. We use both high-performance computational and physical prototyping methods to advance research in these areas.
Research Faculty
George P. Kontoudis
Contact
Research Group: Motion Planning, Active Learning, and Autonomy (MPALA) Lab.
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Robotic motion planning
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Multi-agent systems
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Distributed machine learning
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Optimal control
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Robot hands for grasping and manipulation
Andrew Petruska
Contact
Research Group: M3 Robotics
- Complex system modeling and design
- Dynamics and control
- Advanced magnetic manipulation
Xiaoli Zhang
Contact
Research Group: Intelligent Robotics and Systems Lab
- Smart human-machine/robot interaction and cooperation
- Shared autonomy
- Efficient and robust machine learning for robots and autonomous systems
- Adaptive design of experiments
- Artificial intelligence-powered automation and acceleration of engineering process optimization and science discovery
Research Centers and Groups
Labs and Capabilities
Intelligent Robotics and Systems Laboratory
Researchers in the Intelligent Robotics and Systems Lab seek to develop artificial intelligence techniques to improve the flexibility, adaptability and robustness of robots and complex systems so they can deal with changing or new problems and situations.
Toward this goal, IRSL researchers develop cognitive architectures to achieve a relatively high level of robot autonomy. These architectures allow robots to understand high-level, abstract, implicit knowledge and use this knowledge in a flexible way to generate behaviors that compensate for limitations or changing conditions or to handle new situations or tasks.
Teleoperation Zone:
- Free Hand Teleoperation through Optitrack IR cameras and RGBD cameras paired with a VR headset to infer human hand pose and user intent
- Tool Use Teleoperation through a 3D Systems Touch haptic joystick and Tobii eye gaze tracker to provide feedback to a user during cooperation tasks
Robots:
- 6 DoF Kinova MICO arm to complete teleoperation and autonomous tasks
- Softbank's Pepper/Nao to mimic human motion in remote environments
- Hummingbird Quadcopter high payload capacity, used for maneuver learning
- Turtlebot: lightweight easy to use mobile robot. Used for teaching and introducing students to mobile robotics
- ROSbot: lightweight differential drive mobile robot
- Magni: High payload(100kg) differential drive mobile robot
Contact: Dr. Xiaoli Zhang (xlzhang@mines.edu)
Website: xzhanglab.mines.edu
M3 Robotics Laboratory
Researchers in the M3Robotics lab perform fundamental and applied research to enable transformative technologies in the areas of medical robotics, mining and GPS-denied robotics, and magnetic manipulation. Examples of ongoing work include applying probabilistic methods to enable magnetically manipulated flexible catheters for incision-free surgeries and simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) for navigation or augmented reality display in underground environments. Students make contributions in the areas of model development, system identification, and experimental evaluation.
Software:
- Extensive in-house library of C++ codes to support the application of Markov process estimators and real-time control of complex dynamic systems
- Efficient codes for the modeling and calibration of DC magnetic fields from multiple sources
- Analysis packages: COMSOL, MatLab, SolidWorks
Hardware:
- 2x Quadrotors for autonomous navigation experiments
- ClearPath Husky for ground navigation experiments
- 4 LiDAR scanners and 3 mmWave radar scanners
- 6-Coil Helmholtz magnetic system (10 cm workspace, 30 mT fields)
- Clinically sized permanent magnet system (60 cm workspace, 50 mT fields)
- ABB industrial 6-DoF robotic arm
Contact: Dr. Andrew Petruska (apetruska@mines.edu)
Website: m3robotics.mines.edu
Coursework Options
Read below for advice on how to structure your coursework to support a career in robotics.
ME CORE Courses
Robotics is a highly interdisciplinary subject; ME students with an interest in robotics are advised to select courses that support how they would like to apply robotics. Any of the four ME CORE courses have relevant overlap with interesting robotics applications.
| Core Classes | Course Number | Course Name | Credits | On-Campus | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEGN 502 | Advanced Engineering Analysis | 3 | Fall/Spring | Fall | |
| MEGN 505 | Advanced Dynamics | 3 | Fall | Summer | |
| MEGN 514 | Continuum | 3 | Spring | Fall | |
| MEGN 551 | Advanced Fluids | 3 | Fall | Spring | |
| MEGN 571 | Advanced Heat Transfer | 3 | Spring | Fall |
ME CORE Courses
Robotics is a highly interdisciplinary subject; ME students with an interest in robotics are advised to select courses that support how they would like to apply robotics. Any of the four ME CORE courses have relevant overlap with interesting robotics applications.
| Core Classes | Course Number | Course Name | Credits | On-Campus | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEGN 502 | Advanced Engineering Analysis | 3 | Fall/Spring | Fall | |
| MEGN 505 | Advanced Dynamics | 3 | Fall | Summer | |
| MEGN 514 | Continuum | 3 | Spring | Fall | |
| MEGN 551 | Advanced Fluids | 3 | Fall | Spring | |
| MEGN 571 | Advanced Heat Transfer | 3 | Spring | Fall |
Mechanical Electives
Consider using your ME electives to gain depth of knowledge in ME robotics courses. NOTE: it is highly recommended you take MEGN 544 ROBOT MECHANICS: KINEMATICS, DYNAMICS, AND CONTROL at the first available opportunity.
| Research Focus Area | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robotics | Course Number | Course Name | Credits | On-Campus | Online |
| MEGN 540 | Mechatronics | 3 | Spring | ||
| MEGN 544 | Robot Mechanics, Kinematics, Dynamics and Control | 3 | Fall | ||
| MEGN 545 | Advanced Robot Control | 3 | Spring | ||
| MEGN 587 | Nonlinear Optimization | 3 | Fall |
Mechanical Electives
Consider using your ME electives to gain depth of knowledge in ME robotics courses. NOTE: it is highly recommended you take MEGN 544 ROBOT MECHANICS: KINEMATICS, DYNAMICS, AND CONTROL at the first available opportunity.
| Research Focus Area | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robotics | Course Number | Course Name | Credits | On-Campus | Online |
| MEGN 540 | Mechatronics | 3 | Spring | ||
| MEGN 544 | Robot Mechanics, Kinematics, Dynamics and Control | 3 | Fall | ||
| MEGN 545 | Advanced Robot Control | 3 | Spring | ||
| MEGN 587 | Nonlinear Optimization | 3 | Fall |
Technical Electives
Your technical electives can be any 500-level or above course taught at Mines. No advisor approval is required – these courses are intended for you to personalize your degree to support your own career objectives.
Some suggested courses are offered, below:
| Topic Area | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | On-Campus | Online | |
| Computer Science | CSCI 507 | Introduction to Computer Vision | 3 | Fall | |
| CSCI 508 | Adv. Topics in Perception and Computer Vision | 3 | Spring | ||
| CSCI 532 | Robot Ethids | 3 | Spring | ||
| CSCI 534 | Robot Planning and Manipulation | 3 | |||
| CSCI 536 | Human-Robot Interaction | 3 | |||
| CSCI 573 | Human-Centered Robotics | 3 | Spring | ||
| CSCI 575 | Machine Learning | 3 | Fall | ||
| Operations Research | MEGN 586 | Linear Optimization | 3 | Fall, even years | |
| MEGN 587 | Nonlinear Optimization | 3 | Fall, odd years |
Technical Electives
Your technical electives can be any 500-level or above course taught at Mines. No advisor approval is required – these courses are intended for you to personalize your degree to support your own career objectives.
Some suggested courses are offered, below:
| Topic Area | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | On-Campus | Online | |
| Computer Science | CSCI 507 | Introduction to Computer Vision | 3 | Fall | |
| CSCI 508 | Adv. Topics in Perception and Computer Vision | 3 | Spring | ||
| CSCI 532 | Robot Ethids | 3 | Spring | ||
| CSCI 534 | Robot Planning and Manipulation | 3 | |||
| CSCI 536 | Human-Robot Interaction | 3 | |||
| CSCI 573 | Human-Centered Robotics | 3 | Spring | ||
| CSCI 575 | Machine Learning | 3 | Fall | ||
| Operations Research | MEGN 586 | Linear Optimization | 3 | Fall, even years | |
| MEGN 587 | Nonlinear Optimization | 3 | Fall, odd years |
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