Douglas Few

• MS Computer Science
• Group Leader at Idaho National Laboratory

Methods, computer readable media, and apparatuses provide robotic explosive hazard detection. A robot intelligence kernel (RIK) includes a dynamic autonomy structure with two or more autonomy levels between operator intervention and robot initiative A mine sensor and processing module (ESPM) operating separately from the RIK perceives environmental...

A virtual track or rail system and method is described for execution by a robot. A user, through a user interface, generates a desired path comprised of at least one segment representative of the virtual track for the robot. Start and end points are assigned to the desired path and velocities are also associated with each of the at least one segmen...

CMMAD is a risk reduction effort for the AMDS program. As part of CMMAD, multiple instances of semi autonomous robotic mine detection systems were created. Each instance consists of a robotic vehicle equipped with sensors required for navigation and marking, countermine sensors and a number of integrated software packages which provide for real tim...

Payloads for small robotic platforms have historically been designed and implemented as platform and task specific solutions. A consequence of this approach is that payloads cannot be deployed on different robotic platforms without substantial re-engineering efforts. To address this issue, we developed a modular countermine payload that is designed...

Mobile robots are increasingly used in dangerous domains, because they can keep humans out of harmpsilas way. Despite their advantages in hazardous environments, their general acceptance in other less dangerous domains has not been apparent and, even in dangerous environments, robots are often viewed as a ldquolast-possible choice.rdquo In order to...

The dispatching of robots into mission critical environments is becoming more and more commonplace as hardware evolves to a level of ruggedness demanded in these scenarios. Despite the advances in hardware platforms, novel control strategies to support effective human-robot interaction languish behind. Researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory (...

This paper introduces a methodology for human-robot interaction (HRI) experiments that involves soliciting the general public for participation. In particular, it reviews a series of HRI usability experiments with visitors to the Saint Louis Science Center and the Museum of Idaho's annual Science and Engineering Expo between the years 2003 and 2006...

When compared to the current military baseline, the mixed-initiative system produced a fourfold decrease in task time to completion and a significant increase in detection accuracy.This is particularly interesting since previous attempts to create robotic demining systems had failed to match human performance. The difference between past strategies...

This paper describes two steps in the evolution of human-robot interaction designs developed by the University of Massachusetts Lowell (UML) and the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to support urban search and rescue tasks. We conducted usability tests to compare the two interfaces, one of which emphasized three-dimensional mapping while the other d...

At the INL we have been working towards making robots generally easier to use in a variety of tasks through the de-velopment of a robot intelligence kernel and an augmented-virtuality 3D interface. A robot with the intelligence kernel and the most recent interface design were demonstrated at the AAAI 2006 robot exhibition and took part in the scave...

This paper evaluates collaborative tasking tools that facilitate dynamic sharing of responsibilities between robot and operator throughout a search and detection task. The goal is to arbitrate human and robot initiative such that the user can provide input at different levels without interfering with the robot's ability to navigate, avoid obstacles...

This paper evaluates collaborative tasking tools that facilitate dynamic sharing of responsibilities between robot and operator throughout a search and detection task Participants who utilize Collaborative Tasking Mode (CTM) do not experience a significant performance penalty, yet benefit from reduced workload and fewer instances of confusion. In a...

The Robot Intelligence Kernel (RIK) is a portable, reconfig- urable suite of perceptual, behavioral, and cognitive capabili- ties that can be used across many different platforms, environ- ments, and tasks. The RIK coupled with a virtual D interface have been shown to dramatically improve human-robot inter- actions across a variety of navigation an...

This paper describes two robot systems designed for urban search and rescue (USAR). Usability tests were conducted to compare the two interfaces developed for human-robot interaction (HRI) in this domain, one of which emphasized three-dimensional mapping while the other design emphasized the video feed. We found that participants desired a combinat...

Emergency response demands a very different kind of robotic solution than those created for known environments (e.g. factory robots) and well understood tasks (e.g. power plant maintenance). This paper discusses efforts undertaken by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to develop highly mobile, highly dexterous robots that can function autonomously...

This chapter presents research designed to study and improve an operator's ability to navigate or teleoperate a robot that is distant from the operator through the use of a robot intelligence architecture and a virtual 3D interface. To validate the use of the robot intelligence architecture and the 3D interface, four user-studies are presented that...

This chapter presents research designed to study and improve an operator’s ability to navigate or teleoperate a robot that is distant from the operator through the use of a robot intelligence architecture and a virtual 3D interface. To validate the use of the robot intelligence architecture and the 3D interface, four user-studies are presented that...

This paper presents results from three experiments in which human operators were teamed with a mixed-initiative robot control system to accomplish various indoor search and exploration tasks. By assessing human workload and error together with overall performance, these experiments provide an objective means to contrast different modes of robot aut...

The Technology Transfer project employs a spiral development process to enhance the functionality and autonomy of mobile systems in the Joint Robotics Program (JRP) Robotic Systems Pool (RSP). The approach is to harvest prior and on-going developments that address the technology needs identified by emergent in-theatre requirements and users of the...

In order to apply mobile robots to a new range of applications, we require control architectures and interfaces that support symbiotic interaction. Remote deployment of mobile robots offers one of the most compelling opportunities to merge human intelligence with machine proficiency. This paper discusses a mixed-initiative control strategy based no...

The quality of human-robot interaction trails other advances in robotics and may prove to be a limiting factor when deploying remote, mobile robots for critical applications. One reason is that most autonomous robot behaviors are not robust and often degrade in unstructured environments. Another reason is that the design of human-robot interaction...

A significant area of research in mobile robotics is in the local representation of a remote environment. In order to include a human in a mobile robot task it becomes important to present the remote information efficiently to a human. A relatively new approach to information presentation is semantic maps. Semantic maps provide more detail about an...

Panelists from defense, entertainment, industry, transportation and energy sectors will discuss the challenges of human-robot interaction in terms of operator trust Trust affects a broad range of mobile robot applications including everything from helpful robots such as automated wheelchairs and robot wedding photographers to robots used in critica...

We submit that the most interesting and fruitful human-robot interaction (HRI) may be possible when the robot is able to interact with the human as a true team member, rather than a tool. However, the benefits of shared control can all too easily be overshadowed by challenges inherent to blending human and robot initiative. The most important requi...

True human-robot teaming requires that all members are aware of the goal, and can work toward that goal with or without input from the other members. For the control architecture of a robotic system to be useful and usable, it must allow the human team member to build trust in the system, regardless of the intelligence inherent in the robotic syste...

High-school robotics competitions of all sorts are hugely popular. Robotics courses are now being widely taught in colleges and universities. Commercial applications of robotics are growing, as it becomes practical to deploy autonomous systems in the real world. Despite the activity in each of these areas, there is a lack of continuity between them...

Use of new robotics technologies is challenged by issues of system trust, unknowns regarding how the system will, can, and should be used, and possibilities for human error that may cause harm to the human operator, system, or environment. This paper discusses initial usability tests of a mixed-initiative robotic system. Participants were asked to...

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In order to realize the broad use of robotic systems in hazardous environments, shortcomings in robot interfaces, control system configurability, and overall usability must be addressed. A concerted effort was made to build a foundation of well-engineered communication, perception and autonomous behavior that is robust to changing, unstructured env...

This paper discusses the use of four different camera perspectives within a real-time virtual 3-D interface as it is used to accomplish a remote robotic exploration and mapping task. The 3-D interface is used as the basis for a Cognitive Collaborative Workspace (CCW) that supports shared understanding of the task and environment. Multiple humans an...

This paper discusses an innovative application of new Markov localization techniques that combat the problem of odometry drift, allowing a novel control architecture developed at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) to be utilized within a sensor characterization facility developed at the Remote Sensing Laboratory (RS...

This paper discusses experimental results achieved by using mixed initiative robot behavior to address the challenges of detecting and marking bur ied metal landmines. Mission requirements pertaining to communication bandwidth and operator workload precluded conventional approaches to communication and tasking. Instead, a framework for sharing cont...

A robot platform includes perceptors, locomotors, and a system controller. The system controller executes instructions for producing an occupancy grid map of an environment around the robot, scanning the environment to generate a current obstacle map relative to a current robot position, and converting the current obstacle map to a current occupanc...

A robot platform includes perceptors, locomotors, and a system controller, which executes instructions for autonomously navigating a robot. The instructions repeat, on each iteration through an event timing loop, the acts of defining an event horizon based on the robot's current velocity, detecting a range to obstacles around the robot, testing for...

From stereophonic, positional sound to high-definition imagery that is crisp and clean, high fidelity computer graphics enhance our view, insight, and intuition regarding our environments and conditions. Contemporary 3-D modeling tools offer an open architecture framework that enables integration with other technologically innovative arenas. One in...

Human-robot interaction is a subtle, yet critical aspect of design that must be assessed during the development of both the human-robot interface and robot behaviors if the human-robot team is to effectively meet the complexities of the task environment. Testing not only ensures that the system can successfully achieve the tasks for which it was de...