Electrical Engineering C106B — Robotic Manipulation and Interaction (4 Units)

Course Overview

Summary

EE C106B is the sequel to EE C106A/Bioengineering C125 and EE206A which covers kinematics, dynamics and control of a single robot. This course will cover dynamics and control of groups of robotic manipulators coordinating with each other and interacting with the environment including people. Concepts will include an introduction to grasp modeling with friction, grasp planning, and Dex-Net a data driven approach to robust robot grasping and manipulation based on a data set of 3D object models that currently includes over 10,000 3D object models and 2.5 million parallel-jaw grasps.. The course will also cover constrained manipulation, perception guided manipulation, including concepts of holonomy and non-holonomy. Throughout, the course emphasizes design, human-robot interactions, and applications in manufacturing, service robotics, and locomotion.

Prerequisites

  • EE C106A

Recommended

  • EE 120
  • Math 110
  • Physics 7A

Topics Covered

  • Review Inverse Kinematics Methods for Serial Chain Manipulators
  • Configuration Space Vs. Workspace Analysis
  • Joint Velocities and Joint Torques
  • Spatial and Body Jacobians
  • Lagrangian Mechanics with Generalized Coordinates
  • PID Control (Position, Velocity, Joint Torque)
  • Derivation of Contact Models and Grasp Maps
  • Force Closure and Manipulability of Grasps
  • Hand Jacobians and Constrained Manipulation
  • Grasp Quality Metrics
  • Holonomic and Non-Holonomic Constraints
  • Motion Planning
  • Special Topics Lectures

Workload

Course Work

  • Weekly homeworks
  • Labs assignments every 2-3 weeks
  • Final group project at end of semester
  • No midterms
  • No final

Time Commitment

  • Average time per week (lectures, homeworks, labs, discussion) is about 10 - 15 hours.
  • The final project is very time consuming, end of semester about 15 - 25 hours per week.

HKN Tips

  • Try to find final project partners early!
  • Lab, discussion and homework groups are extremely useful for learning difficult material.
  • Attending discussion is essential as the material can be very theoretical.
  • Think about final project ideas in the beginning of the semester and start early! This final project is formatted in a way to promote continued research on the topic after course completion, so plan accordingly.

Choosing the Course

Category

  • Robotics
  • Human Robot Interaction

When to take

If you are interested in robotic grasping and human robot interaction, take this class as soon as possible, preferably after you’ve taken the listed prerequisites above. This class is usually only offered during Spring semesters.

What next?

EE C106B is the second course in the C106 series. It prepares you well for research topics in the robotics field as well as other graduate level robotics courses. Usefulness for Research or Internships Research and Internships: Since the class has a major final project, a strong final project can help you get research positions and internships in robotics and related fields. The final project is designed to promote continuation of its research after completing the course.

Additional Comments

This course is usually only offered during the Spring semesters.

Last Updated: Summer 2020