CCL

Robotics Laboratory and Curriculum Development
A Proposal Submitted to NSF ILI Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE)

National Science Foundation
4201 Wilson Boulevard Arlington, VA 22230
Principal Investigator: Vijay Kumar

Co-Principal Investigator: Camillo Taylor
Names appearing on the NSF cover sheet

Vijay Kumar, Camillo Taylor, James Ostrowski, Jorge Santiago-Aviles, Nelson Dorny
Participating Faculty
Kostas Daniilidis (CIS), Nelson Dorny (SYS), Jean Gallier (CIS/Math),
Vijay Kumar (MEAM/CIS/SYS), Dimitris Metaxas (CIS), Max Mintz (CIS),
James Ostrowski (MEAM/CIS), Camillo Taylor (CIS), and Jorge Santiago-Aviles (EE)
Project Duration
August 1999 – July 2002
Check list
1. Cover Sheet (NSF Form 1207, Rev. 10/97)
2. Information about Principal Investigators (NSF Form 1225)
3. Project Data Form (NSF Form 1295)
i
4. Table of Contents
1. Cover Sheet (NSF Form 1207, Rev. 10/97)_________________________________i
2. Information about Principal Investigators (NSF Form 1225)__________________i
3. Project Data Form (NSF Form 1295)_____________________________________i
4. Table of Contents_____________________________________________________ii
5. Project Narrative_____________________________________________________1
Introduction_________________________________________________________________1
The Current Situation_________________________________________________________2
Objectives___________________________________________________________________4
Plan for Curriculum Development______________________________________________4

Changes in existing courses___________________________________________________________4
New courses_______________________________________________________________________6
The robotics minor__________________________________________________________________8
Plan for Laboratory Development_______________________________________________9
Equipment_________________________________________________________________11
Equipment on hand________________________________________________________________11
Equipment requested_______________________________________________________________11
Plan for Acquisition and Maintenance__________________________________________________11
Evaluation_________________________________________________________________14
Faculty____________________________________________________________________14
Dissemination_______________________________________________________________15
Summary__________________________________________________________________15
6. References__________________________________________________________1
7. Biographical Sketches of the Principal Investigators________________________1
Kostas Daniilidis_________________________________________________________2
C. Nelson Dorny__________________________________________________________4
ii
Jean Gallier_____________________________________________________________6
Dimitris N. Metaxas_______________________________________________________8
Max Mintz______________________________________________________________10
Vijay Kumar____________________________________________________________12
James P. Ostrowski_______________________________________________________14
Jorge Juan Santiago-Aviles________________________________________________16
Camillo Jose Taylor______________________________________________________18
8. Budget_____________________________________________________________1
The equipment request________________________________________________________1
Budget justification___________________________________________________________1
9. Current and Pending Support___________________________________________1
10. Appendices__________________________________________________________1
Letter from Professor John Vohs, the Associate Dean, School of Engineering and Applied
Science_____________________________________________________________________1
Computing and Educational Technology Services (CETS)___________________________3
Current facilities_____________________________________________________________3
GRASP Laboratory_________________________________________________________________3
RCA Laboratory____________________________________________________________________3
Manufacturing Technologies Laboratory (MTL)___________________________________________4
The General Motors Undergraduate Laboratory (MTL)_____________________________________4
Description of relevant courses_________________________________________________4

Existing courses affected by the proposed project__________________________________________4
Existing courses that are related to the proposed project_____________________________________7
Outreach programs in robotics_________________________________________________9

PRIME___________________________________________________________________________9
FIRST Robotics Competition_________________________________________________________9
PENNLincs_______________________________________________________________________9
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5. Project Narrative
Introduction
The Robotics Institute of America defines a robot as follows:
A robot is a reprogrammable multifunctional manipulator designed to move material,
parts, tools or specialized devices through variable programmed motions for the
performance of a variety of tasks.
A lay person, perhaps guided by Asimov’s science fiction and Hollywood’s movies,
might argue that a robot must have sensors and be able to make decisions and act based
on sensory information, just as human beings do. It is this lay person’s definition of a
robot that is the goal of much of the research and higher education in robotics. Broadly
speaking, robotics is the technology and the underlying science that integrates computer
and information science, mechanical systems, and electronics with the goal of
synthesizing and automating some aspects of human function [5, 7].
Robotics, as an industry, has a growth rate that has averaged over 20% over the last
three years. A recent report by the United Nations Economic Commission and the
International Federation of Robotics projected the growth rate for industrial robotics to
be around 15% a year for the next several years [6]. And this study was limited in scope
to industrial robotics and did not consider the multi-billion dollar entertainment industry
(virtual reality, rides, animated cartoon figures, and robotic pets) [22] or the
mushrooming service robot industry that includes personal care robots, custodial robots,
robot assistants to surgeons and robot gas station attendants [7,21].
While one cannot deny the need for education and training in the science and
technology underlying robotics, we argue that there is another, and more significant
benefit to focusing on robotics at the undergraduate level. Robotics, by definition, is an
interdisciplinary field and it offers a broad-based education. In today’s quickly changing
technological environment, such a broad education is preferable to a curriculum that
makes students specialize at a very early stage in the curriculum [1]. By specializing,
1
students are forced into committing themselves to a set of courses1 that might not equip
them to adapt to unforeseen changes in technology [2].
Another benefit of teaching robotics is that robotics, as a subject, lends itself to top-
down education. Most traditional engineering curricula are taught in a bottom-up fashion
where often the student takes two years of coursework in science, math and engineering
science before finally getting a glimpse of engineering problems and methodology [13].
One reason this is the modus operandi is because of the nature of engineering courses. It
is difficult to teach, for example, attractive courses in aerospace engineering before
students have had any exposure to fluid mechanics, which is in turn taught after
thermodynamics and therefore after a substantial exposure to physics and mathematics
[16-18]. As we show later, it is possible, however, to start teaching robotics at the
freshman level and injecting engineering and design content into the curriculum at a very
early stage [3]. This provides perspective to beginning students [4], who currently
perceive that engineering consists only of theoretical physics and mathematics.
Finally, we believe that a robotics curriculum will help us to attract more liberal arts
students into our courses in the engineering school. Robotics is one of the few disciplines
that has the “glamour” as well as the “intellectual content” to attract good students with
different interests. This is one way that Engineering schools can help the liberal arts
colleges infuse technological literacy into their curricula.
The Current Situation

The University of Pennsylvania, founded in 1740, has grown to be a multidisciplinary
educational institution, and the site of major teaching and research efforts in humanistic
and scientific fields. Its full time faculty of approximately 1,800 teaches approximately
25,000 students in all the major disciplines. The School of Engineering and Applied
Science (SEAS) consists of seven Departments, a full-time tenure track faculty of 96,
approximately 1,600 undergraduate, and 650 graduate students. All courses are taught by
faculty. The main departments participating in this proposal are: (a) Computer and
Information Science (CIS); (b) Electrical Engineering (EE); (c) Mechanical Engineering
1
This was in fact the situation in the 70’s when a large number of students enrolled in nuclear engineering
and physics programs only to have to go through a process of retraining in the 80’s when the perceived
energy crisis apparently disappeared.
2
and Applied Mechanics (MEAM); and (d) Systems Engineering (SYS). Each department
is briefly described next.
Computer and Information Science The Computer and Information Science (CIS)
Department runs the Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) undergraduate program
as well as the graduate MSE and PhD program. The courses in digital systems, hardware,
computer vision, motion planning and robotics are taught by Professors Daniilidis,
Gallier, Metaxas, Mintz and Taylor. The current undergraduate enrollment in the CSE
undergraduate program is: Freshman 58, Sophomores, 79, Juniors 75, Seniors 119.
Electrical Engineering The EE department is represented by thirteen faculty members
with primary appointments in the Electrical Engineering Department, and seven
Electrical Engineering secondary appointees from other engineering departments in the
School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS). The current undergraduate
enrollment in the department is: Freshman: 53; Sophomores: 33; Juniors: 33; Seniors:
61. Professor Santiago teaches courses on sensors, actuators and microfabrication.
Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics The curriculum in Mechanical
Engineering (ME) was established at the University in 1872. Today, it is an ABET
accredited program which focuses on three major areas: thermo-fluid sciences and energy
engineering, solid mechanics and mechanics of materials, and mechanical systems
including design and manufacturing. The current undergraduate enrollment in the
department is: Freshman: 27; Sophomores: 33; Juniors: 18; Seniors: 36. Professors
Kumar and Ostrowski teach courses in robotics, mechatronics, dynamics and control.
Systems Engineering Systems Engineering as an academic discipline began at the
University of Pennsylvania in 1953. The curriculum in System Science and Engineering
(SYS) is an accredited academic program focusing on the core skills and methodology
common to the solution techniques of large scale systems, and allowing the student to
direct these skills to a career oriented focus. The enrollment in the System Science and
Engineering program is: Freshman: 5; Sophomores: 33; Juniors: 58; Seniors: 47. The
courses in controls, systems integration, and robotics are taught by Professor Dorny.
Robotics Club The University of Pennsylvania Robotics Club (UPRC) was established
by the students because of an overwhelming interest in robotics and a desire to participate
in student competitions at the national and international level. The current undergraduate
3
student membership is close to 100 and spans all departments in SEAS and other schools
(e.g., the School of Arts and Sciences and the Wharton Business School).
Objectives
The main goals of the proposal are to:
1. Develop new courses and modify existing courses toward a comprehensive
curriculum in robotics leading to a minor for students in any discipline (including
students in non engineering majors); and
2. Develop the Laboratory for Undergraduate Robotics Education, LURE, a well-
equipped laboratory that will support undergraduate instruction in robotics and related
areas.
We envision that the Laboratory for Undergraduate Robotics Education (LURE) will
support the project activities of the Robotics Club and the ongoing outreach activities
described later in the proposal.
Plan for Curriculum Development

The proposed robotics curriculum builds on existing courses in the different departments.
The main goal is a sequence of courses that rely on a minimal set of pre-requisites
allowing students from different engineering departments and from other schools to take
these courses. We describe here only those courses that will be revised in the proposed
project and new courses that will be developed during the project.
Changes in existing courses2

CSE 240: Introduction to Computer Architecture: This is an introduction to computer
architecture which teaches the students the basic hardware and allows them to go behind
the operating system and high-level language programs. We propose to use the assembly
language of the Motorola 68HC11 processor and the Handy Board as the experimental
platform. The Handy Board distribution supports an Interactive-C development kit as
well as the 6811 Assembler. Students will use the board with an elementary set of sensors
and actuators to construct very simple creatures and implement such simple intelligent
behaviors as avoiding an approaching hand or following a light source.
2
A description of each course in its present form is included in the Appendix.
4
CSE 390 Computer Vision: This junior/senior level course in robotics and computer
vision will be modified to reflect lower pre-requisites (see Table 1) and to emphasize
computer vision. The course will include a laboratory component that was absent before.
Students will use the cameras, image-processing boards and related hardware in the
LURE facility to develop, test, and evaluate computer vision algorithms. Further, Robix
robots will be used to teach the basics underlying inverse and forward kinematics.
SYS 305 Feedback Control Systems: The LURE facility will enable the students to carry
out an actual real-time control project instead of the design and computer simulation
project that is currently used. Specifically, we will use the mechatronics kits (see Table
2) to develop such projects.
MEAM 410 Mechatronics: There is currently a significant lab component in this course
which emphasizes the use of embedded microprocessors for controlling actuators and
taking sensor measurements. The basic equipment that would be found in the LURE
would greatly enhance the teaching of this course, by providing for state-of-the-art
facilities for testing and debugging of electromechanical systems. Furthermore, the
labwork will be modified to incorporate the robotic components that are developed under
this proposal, with an emphasis on the easily reconfigurable and programmable systems
such as the Robix and the Mindstorm systems.
MEAM 513 Modeling and Control of Mechanical Systems: Many of the examples that
are studied in this linear controls course come from the area of robotics. Currently,
however, there is no lab work that accompanies this course. The hardware in the LURE
would be used to develop new labs on robot control, whereby the students could gain
hands-on experience designing controllers for physical systems. The desktop robots in
LURE will allow students to experiment with robot controllers by changing gains and
calibration parameters and study the resulting performance.
MEAM 420 Robotics and Automation: The students will use the desktop robots in the
LURE facility to learn calibration, robot assembly, robot interfaces to accessories like
conveyors, and vision-based control of robot tasks. Further, they will use LURE and the
Manufacturing Technologies Laboratory (MTL) to design and build prototype robots in
group projects.
5
CIS 580 Machine Perception: The frame grabber boards, cameras and the required
software will allow students to use a high level library of image acquisition and
processing routines callable from Microsoft Visual C++ to develop new algorithms and
demonstrate new ideas. Students will prototype versions of calibration algorithms, feature
tracking systems, face recognition schemes and other applications. The availability of
actual implementations will allow the students to gain valuable insights into how these
algorithms perform (and fail to perform) under various imaging conditions.
New courses3
EAS 1xx Introduction to Robotics: This freshman level course will introduce students in
engineering and non engineering disciplines to the basics of robotic systems, including
design, analysis, building, and experimentation. The lectures will cover topics in
kinematics, geometry, electrical circuits, amplifiers, sensors, actuators, control, real-time
systems and programming. They will be exposed to latest advances in manufacturing
automation and applications of robotics in the service sector. The lectures will be
augmented by 3 plant trips and 6 laboratory exercises. The lab exercises will include
exposure to such computer-aided-analysis tools as Matlab, prototyping with foam board
and plexiglass, bread boarding electrical circuits, and working with the Lego Mindstorm
Robot Kits (See Table 2).
EAS 0xx Electromechanical Systems Workshop: This half course unit workshop course
can be taken by any student at any time during their undergraduate studies. The course
will teach the students the basic tools that are required for designing, building and testing
robotic systems: (a) the basic machining processes and the use of the band saw, drill
press, lathe, and milling machine; (b) the basics of bread boarding, soldering, wire-
wrapping, shielding, and grounding; the basics of the personal computer, the hardware,
expansion slots, cards, the fundamentals of digital/analog conversion, the PC bus, and the
basics of programming real-time systems. A student, after taking this course, will be
“licensed” to work in any of the laboratories described in this proposal during working
hours without direct supervision.
3
The new courses do not have assigned numbers. The first digit indicates the year in which students are
expected to take the course (E.g. 1xx is a freshman level course). 0xx is a course that can be taken by any
student. EAS refers to Engineering and Applied Science. EAS courses will be team taught by faculty from
different departments.
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EE 2xx Fundamentals of Sensors and Actuators: This is a new sophomore course dealing
with the fundamental physical and chemical phenomena leading to the concept of specific
transducers and actuators. The technology of micro and meso fabrication is discussed in
the context of small dimension sensor/actuator system design and fabrication. We will
include topics in transducer characteristics and structures, sensing and actuating elements
such as contact, resistive, capacitive and inductive, resonant, acoustical, flow-metering,
heat exchange, and solid state as they apply to the realization of physical/chemical
sensing and actuation systems. In addition, we will teach the basic tools of linear systems
theory with the goal of understanding the functioning and design of amplifiers and filters.
The mechatronics kits in the LURE facility will be used in this course.
CSE 3xx Robot programming and control: This course will focus on the issues involved
in writing programs to control robotic systems. In addition to covering lower level issues
such as interfacing to sensors and actuators via A/D systems and handling interrupts, the
course will also explore the issues that are unique to robotic systems which must
constantly monitor their environment, reason about their situation and react
appropriately. In this context we will look at various software architectures, like behavior
based control, the implementation of task planning and task execution systems, and
algorithms for processing sensor data to recover information about the environment. The
course will center around such laboratory as programming behavior based control
systems (with LegoMmindstorm kits), developing sophisticated task execution and
planning systems (Nomadics Super Scouts), and developing real time vision-based robot
control systems. (See Equipment Request in Table 2).
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CSE 3yy Trajectory generation methods in robotics, vision, and graphics: This
sophomore/junior level elective introduces the basic geometric techniques and algorithms
that are used for designing curves and motions for robotics, computer vision and
computer graphics. The three main topics that will be introduced are approximating
curves, interpolating data points, and rendering smooth curves. Specific topics will
include introduction to affine maps and rigid body motions, Bezier curves, B-splines,
and Voronoi diagrams, and applications to path planning. Students will use the mobile
robots in LURE to implement path planning algorithms and study their performance.
EAS 4xx Independent study: Students can take 0.5 or 1.0 unit of independent study
toward a minor in robotics. This study may either take the form of an individual or a
team design and fabrication project under the supervision of one of the faculty members
listed here. Alternatively, students in applied science, business, or arts and science majors
may pursue a societal project related to robotics.
Table 1 Courses that count toward the robotics minor with pre-requisites
Courses Pre-requisites
EAS 0xx, EAS 1xx, CSE 110, CSE 115 Freshman standing
EE 2xx, CSE 390 Sophomore standing, high school physics, freshman math4
CSE 240, CSE 3yy freshman math, high school programming or CSE 110
CSE 3xx and SYS 390 sophomore standing and CSE 240 or EE 2xx or EAS 1xx
SYS 305 sophomore standing and EAS 1xx or EE 2xx
CIS 390 junior standing, EAS 1xx or EE 2xx, high school physics
MEAM 410, MEAM 420 junior standing, EAS 1xx or EE 2xx or SYS 390
EAS 4xx junior standing with at least four other courses in this list
CIS 580 Senior standing, CSE 240
MEAM 513, MEAM 535 Senior standing in SEAS
The robotics minor

The coursework in robotics will consist of a set of courses that rely on a minimal set of
pre-requisites. This allows students from diverse backgrounds (including non engineering
schools) to take these courses. The courses and their pre-requisites are listed in Table 1.
In order to get a minor in robotics, a non engineering student will take up to six
course units from the above list of courses. A typical course plan might include EAS 0xx,
EAS 1xx, CSE 110, EE 2xx, CSE 390, SYS 390, and EAS 4xx. A course plan for
students that are more inclined toward engineering might include CSE 3xx and MEAM
4
This is the freshman math sequence for students in the school of Arts and Sciences (See appendix).
8
420 instead of CSE 390 and SYS 390. In addition to satisfying these requirements,
engineering students cannot count more than 1.5 000 or 100 level units toward a robotics
minor, and they must satisfy a “breadth requirement” - at least two 300 or higher level
course in departments not related to their major. Examples of course plans include: EAS
0xx, EAS 1xx, SYS 305, CSE 390, MEAM 410, 420, EAS 4xx (CSE major), and EAS
0xx, EAS 1xx, EE 2xx, SYS 390, CIS 3xx, MEAM 410, 420 (MEAM major).
Plan for Laboratory Development

As shown in the photograph in Figure 1, today’s computer laboratories are sterile and
offer very little opportunities for computer interaction with the real (physical) world. In
contrast, our vision of a computing laboratory allows students to pursue the broader
agenda underlying computing – computing and reasoning in and about the physical
world. See Figure 3. A typical workstation consists of an IBM compatible Pentium II
computer equipped with standard digital/analog cards with break-out boxes. A locked
cabinet contains a kit of mechanical parts, electrical components, a breadboard, and
connectors. The shelves contain basic instrumentation (oscilloscopes, logic probes,
multi-meters, and power supplies) and manuals. Students will be able to attach bread
boarded circuits and electromechanical systems via terminal boards and program them
using a high level language or by using a cross-assembler with a microcontroller.
LURE will be used mainly for building prototypes from kits or from components or
assemblies that have been built else where. Student will use other facilities to build
prototypes from more basic materials. In particular, students will learn how to design and
prototype mechanical systems in the workshop course EAS 0xx, and in the freshman
level introductory course EAS 1xx. They will use the Manufacturing Technologies
Laboratory (MTL, see Appendix). Similarly, the RCA Laboratory and the Systems
Integration Laboratory will be used for prototyping electrical systems.
At one end of the LURE space we plan to house four desktop robots (scaled-down,
safer versions of industrial robots) that can be used to develop an industrial workcell.
Students can interface these robots to such accessories as cameras, conveyors, sensors,
and other computers to study systems integration and logistics issues that arise in
industrial systems. In the adjacent General Motors Undergraduate Laboratory, students
can deploy and test mobile robots after programming them in LURE.
9
Finally, most of the participating faculty are affiliated to the General Robotics
Automation Sensing and Perception (GRASP) Laboratory, a facility dedicated to research
and education in robotics. This facility houses industrial robots that will be used for
demonstrations in many courses and for independent study projects in EAS 4xx.
SHELVES WITH MANUALS, COMPONENTS
INSTRUMENTATION
LOCKED
PARTS KITS
COMPUTER
CHAIRS
Figure 1 A typical example of a Figure 2 The proposed carrel for

computer laboratory facility in SEAS robotics work in LURE
SOFT PARTITIONS
WALKWAY
5 FOOT HIGH WALLS

FOR SHELVING
WALKWAY
Figure 3 The layout for the proposed LURE laboratory
10
Thus LURE will serve three functions. It will provide
 a sophisticated computing environment for the programming, analysis, and control
physical systems;
 a laboratory for prototyping electromechanical systems from kits of electrical and
mechanical components or from prefabricated components; and
 a facility where students can study all aspect of complex robot systems including
industrial robot work cells, mobile robots, and computer vision systems.
Most importantly, this will be a facility that will be accessible to students from 8:00 am to
midnight, similar to most computer laboratories, where students can work without direct
supervision.
Equipment
Equipment on hand
The previous section outlined the exact role that LURE will play in our undergraduate
education and how the role of this lab will complement the roles of other facilities
currently available in SEAS. A description of the facilities is available in the Appendix.
The equipment that is currently available to satisfy the goals of this project consists of
instrumentation (for example, multimeters and oscilloscopes) and computers that belong
to other laboratory facilities (e.g., the GM Lab, the RCA Lab and the Systems Integration
Laboratory) that are distributed across departments, and research equipment that is
located at the GRASP Laboratory. The undergraduate laboratories are too small and
limited in resources for conducting anything more than one or two group projects at a
time. The research equipment (e.g., industrial robots) is too dangerous for students to use
without direct supervision.
Equipment requested
The equipment requested from NSF is shown in detail Table 2. 50% of the cost will be
covered by the University of Pennsylvania. A brief justification of the equipment is
provided along with the table. See the Budget Justification section for more details.
11
Plan for Acquisition and Maintenance
The project will be directed by the PI, Vijay Kumar (MEAM/CIS/SYS). He will be
responsible for supervising the setting up of the laboratory, the acquisition of the
equipment, the maintenance, and the supervision of the laboratory by consultants.
Table 2 The Equipment Request

Item Description Manufacturer Vendor Qty. UnitPrice Total Cost
1 Dell Optiplex GX1, Pentium II 440BX chipset, Dell Computers Dell 20 $2,051 $41,020
100MHz bus, integrated 2X AGP graphics Computers
controller, 4/8 SGRAM, 19" monitor, int. audio.
2 Item 1 w/ 64 MB memory upgrade, 10 GB Dell Computers Dell 5 $3,356 $16,780
HD, 21" monitor, 2X AGP graphics controller. Computers
3 Laser printers (Black and White), 4000 N with Hewlett Computer 2 $2,100 $4,200
ethernet network cards Packard Connection
4 Data acquistion and control cards: CIO- Computer Computer 25 $768 $19,200
DAS1601/12 (16 channel 160 kHz, 12 bit), Boards, Inc. Boards, Inc.
C37FF-2 terminal board, BP-37 backplate and
cable, CIO-MINI37 Universal Terminal Board
5 The Handy Board , a 6811 based micro Gleeson Gleeson 30 $320 $9,600
controller, programmable in interactive C Research Research
6 Lego Mindstorm Robot Kits Lego Lego 20 $195 $3,900
7 Robix Robot Arms Advanced Advanced 20 $500 $10,000
Design, Inc. Design, Inc.
8 Tektronix TDS 210 oscilloscope, Digital scope Tektronix Future Active 5 $995 $4,975
9 Function generator, 15 MHz function/arbirtrary Hewlett Future Active 3 $1,795 $5,385
waveform generator, HP 33120A Packard
10 Mechatronics Kits with motors, sensors, Howard Howard 15 $529 $7,930
instrumentation
11 ER V+ Robotic Arm Package: robotic arm, Esched Esched 4 $11,300 $45,200
controller, software, cabling, teach pendant. Robotec Robotec
12 PMAC, Multi Axis Control Cards for the PC Delta Tau Data Delta Tau Data 4 $4,100 $16,400
Systems Systems
13 Nomadics Super Scouts with vision and Nomadics Nomadics 2 $8,895 $17,790
wireless ethernet
14 Camera, 8mm, F1.4 CCD Lens, camera Cosmicar Phase 1 4 $1,423 $5,692
module XC-77, 12 V power supply and cabling Technology
15 Meteor 2 PCI frame grabber card Matrox MicroDisk Inc 4 $595 $2,380
16 Matrox Image Processing Library Matrox MicroDisk Inc 1 $2,000 $2,000
TOTAL $212,452
Notes
 Items 1 and 3 provide the basic computing environment for all LURE carrels. Item 4 allows
the computers to be used to control, monitor and analyze physical systems. (All classes)
 Item 2 is an upgraded workstation for image processing software and hardware and high
resolution graphics. These machines will be installed with the frame grabber cards (Item 15)
and the image processing software (Item 16). (MEAM 420/520, CIS 390, and CIS 580.)
 Item 5 will be used to teach computer architecture in CIS 240.
 Item 6 will be used in EAS 0xx and EAS 1xx to teach robotics at the freshman level.
 Item 7 will be used to teach robot kinematics in CIS 390.
 Items 8 and 9 are general purpose instrumentation locked to wheeled carts. (All classes)
 Item 10 is a mechatronics kit consisting of actuators, sensors, couplings, gears, shafts, and
links (EAS 0xx, EE xxx, and MEAM 410).
12
 Item 11 is a scaled down model of an industrial robot used for experiments and
demonstrations (EAS 0xx, 1xx, CIS 3xx, MEAM 413, MEAM 420/520, and CIS 580). Item
12 is an interface card (for Item 2) for real-time robot programming.
 Item 13 is a mobile robot with a camera that will be used to teach vision, navigation, path
planning, and control in CIS 3xx, CIS 3yy, MEAM 420/520, and CIS 580.
 Items 14-16 are used to teach computer vision in CIS 390, MEAM 420/520, and CIS 580.
Table 3The main tasks and timeline (July 99 - June 02)

Task 1. Refurbish LURE space and furnish it (See ). on or before July 99
Task 2. Acquisition of equipment (Phase 1) Aug 99
Task 3. The first EAS 1xx class - Class of 2003 (enrollment less than 20) Fall 99
Task 4. Assessment meeting by the PIs Jan 00
Task 5. The first EE 2xx class (enrollment limited to 20) Spring 00
Task 6. Assessment meeting by all stake holders May 00
Task 7. Acquisition of equipment (Phase 2) June 00
Task 8. The second EAS 1xx and EE 2xx class (enrollment 40) Fall 00, Spring 01
Task 9. Acquisition of equipment (Phase 3) June 01
Task 10. Junior year electives - Class of 2003 Fall 01, Spring 02
Task 11. EAS 4xx projects Spring 02
Task 12. Exit interviews and questionnaires, assessment by all stake holders May 02
LURE will be under the general purview of CETS, an organization responsible for
computer laboratories in SEAS (see Appendix for description). The lab will be accessible
between the hours of 8:00 and midnight. . All students will be able to use the computers
and printers but only robotics students can access the locked cabinets, the parts kits and
the instrumentation. As is the case with other computer labs in SEAS, the lab will be
staffed by two responsible undergraduate workstudy students. Their main role will be to
ensure that the students do not abuse the equipment and to call for help when needed.
While CETS will be responsible for maintaining the computers, the maintenance of other
equipment will be supported from the laboratory budget in SEAS.
Our timeline for this project starts with the refurbishment of a 2500 sq. ft. space in the
summer of 1999. The first set of students will be freshmen who will take the first classes
in Fall 1999. Accordingly the first purchases will have to be done in the last week of
August (1999). The remaining equipment will be acquired in June, 2000. This
equipment will be in place in time for classes in Fall 2000. Our evaluation paradigm
calls for assessment from the very beginning. However, the investigators will assess the
effectiveness of the laboratory and its usage at the end of every semester.
In our proposal (see layout in Figure 3) we have 20 workstations, each
accommodating two students. Thus our capacity to conduct a laboratory session with
13
instruction is limited to 40. This will be our upper limit for the class size in EAS 1xx, EE
2xx, CSE 390, CSE xxx, MEAM 410, and MEAM 420. We will however start with an
initial enrollment in EAS 1xx that will be limited to 20 and grow to 40 in Fall 2000.
Evaluation
Because of the small size of the student and faculty body and the nature of the proposed
activity, it may not be very meaningful to adopt a quantitative approach in which metrics
are used with statistical techniques to contrast the performance of a control group against
the rest of the population5. Instead, we will base our assessment on a paradigm for
evaluation called fourth generation evaluation [9,11], where all the stake holders (the
faculty and the students) collectively identify the main issues and concerns that will form
the cornerstone for the evaluation process. This does not mean we will ignore such
traditional measures as grades in core courses and performance in qualifying exams. We
can argue that they will be identified by the stake holders as issues that are central to the
educational and training process [8]. The number of students who do end up completing
a minor and the number of students who drop out of engineering are also useful indices.
However, in addition to these measures, we may be able to identify new issues or
concerns including as examples, mentoring, advisor-advisee relationship, and quality of
student-faculty interaction, student collaboration, and infrastructure support in the
laboratory [10]. The student stake holders will consist of all student members in the
Robotics Club and all students in the first EAS 1xx class who intend to pursue a minor.
The assessment process will continue through the three year project by using on-line
tools developed by Professor Ken Tobin [20]. Based on our previous experience [12, 13],
and our current experience with two other projects on education 6, we find this method
works more effectively than the more traditional first-generation evaluation method.
Faculty
The group of 9 faculty involved in robotics teaching and research are uniquely qualified
to lead this initiative. As a group, we have won three university-wide teaching awards
5
This paradigm, generally referred to as the first generation evaluation paradigm, was widely believed to
the only scientific approach to evaluation in the early 20th century. The second generation of evaluation
(mid 30's to mid 40's) emphasizes description as opposed to measurement, while the third generation of
evaluation (post-Sputnik, early 60's) emphasizes judgement.
6
Vijay Kumar and several of the other faculty are involved in projects sponsored by the U.S. Department of
Education and by the Mellon Foundation, both focussing on experiments in education.
14
(Lindback awards) and three school-wide teaching awards for innovation and excellence
in teaching. We have been individually involved in many experiments in education
funded by NSF, the Mellon Foundation, General Motors, and the University Educational
Fund (UEF). Professors Dorny, Mintz, and Kumar are undergraduate curriculum chairs
in SYS, CIS, and MEAM respectively. At the same time, we are also active in
supervising graduate students and in robotics research.
The participating faculty are involved in several outreach programs and programs that
involve minorities and under represented groups. In fact, three of the nine participating
faculty members (Ostrowski, Santiago-Aviles, and Taylor) belong to these groups. The
outreach programs, PRIME, First Robotics, and PennLincs, are directly connected to the
robotics effort and will directly benefit from LURE. They are described in the Appendix.
Dissemination
We will pursue two different ways of disseminating the results of the project. First, we
will present papers at conferences and publish papers in archival journals. In addition, we
will make available all our courseware and tutorials through electronic media including
multi-media CD Roms and through on-line (e.g., [24]) programs.
Summary
The acquisition of the requested equipment will permit us to change to a mode of
teaching that provides analysis, design, and manufacturing skills in a robotics setting - a
technology which is fast becoming the norm throughout the industrial world and our
society. The equipment requested will also permit us to inject engineering content with a
hands-on laboratory component into the curriculum at an early stage (freshman year).
This will serve to provide some perspective and motivation to beginning students, who
currently receive the impression that engineering consists only of theoretical physics and
mathematics. The requested equipment acquisition should help us to attract more liberal
arts students into our robotics minor program. This is one way that Engineering schools
can help their colleagues in the liberal arts achieve their goal of helping college graduates
to "live in the mainstream and participate in the resolution of policy issues."
15
6. References
[1] Engineering Criteria 2000, 2nd Edition, Engineering Accreditation Commission,

Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc, Baltimore, MD, 1997
[2] Joseph Bordogna, Eli Fromm, and Edward Ernst, "Engineering Education:
Innovation Through Integration," Journal of Engineering Education, Vol. 82, No. 1,
pp. 3-8 (1993)
[3] Biswas, A., Bozzo, T., Forry, B., Kinzel, L., Phua, I., Kumar, V., and Wei, C.-S.
“Teaching design optimization of mechanisms,” Proceedings of the 4th National
Applied Mechanisms and Robotics Conference, Cincinnati, OH, Dec 10-13, 1995.
[4] Bloom, B.S. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: The classification of

educational goals/ by a committee of college and university examiners. New York:
D. McKay.
[5] Dorny, C. N., Fegley, K. A., and Krendel, E. S., "Systems Engineering", Section 5
of Electronics Engineers Handbook, D. G. Fink, ed., McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1975.
[6] The Economist, September 28, 1996: page 122.
[7] Engelberger, J. Robotics in Service, M.I.T. Press, Cambridge, 1989.
[8] Erickson, F. (1998). Qualitative research methods for science education. In B.J.
Fraser & K.G. Tobin (Eds.). The International Handbook of Science Education,
(pp. 1155-1173). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Publishing Company.
[9] Stevens, F., Lawrenz, F., and Sharpe, L., User-Friendly Handbook for Project
Evaluation: Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology Education, Ed. J.
Frechtling, NSF Division of Research, Evaluation, and Communications,
Directorate for Education and Human Resources, NSF 93-152, National Science
Foundation, 1993 (reprinted in 1996).
[10] Gee, J. P. (1989). What is literacy? Journal of Education, 171, 18-25.
[11] Guba, E., & Lincoln, Y.S. Fourth generation evaluation. Beverly Hills, CA:
Sage, 1989.
[12] Kinzel, G., Kumar, V. and Wei, S., “An educational experiment in teaching
mechanism design and manufacturing using multi-university teams,” Proceedings
of the 4th National Applied Mechanisms and Robotics Conference, Cincinnati, OH,
Dec 10-13, 1995.
[13] Kumar, V., Kinzel, G., Wei, S., and J. Zhou. “Multi-University Design Projects,”
ASEE Journal of Engineering Education, 1998 (under review).
1
[14] J. E. Marsden and J. P. Ostrowski. Symmetries in motion: Geometric foundations
of motion control. To appear, Nonlinear Science Today , 1998.
[15] R. McKendall and M. Mintz, Data Fusion Techniques Using Robust Statistics,
Data Fusion in Robotics and Machine Intelligence, Edited by M. A. Abidi and R.
C. Gonzalez, Academic Press, pp. 211-243, November 1992.
[16] Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Education for the Next Twenty Five
Years, A Report on a Workshop for U.S. Mechanical Engineering Departments,
M.I.T., Cambridge, MA, Oct. 7-8, 1996.
[17] Engineering Education and Practice in the United States, National Academy
Press, 1985.
[18] Engineering Education: Designing an Adaptive System, Report of the NRC Board
on Engineering Education, National Research Council, 1995.
[19] National science education standards. National Research Council, Washington,

DC: National Academy Press, 1996.
[20] Tobin, K. and Tristano, D. Connecting Communities of Learners, University of

Pennsylvania, http://www.learning.gse.upenn.edu/~ccl/dewpoint.html, 1998.
[21] The Wall Street Journal, February 16, 1996.
[22] Websites http://www.sony.com, http://apps.disney.com/Disney/World.
[23] Wei, C. S., Kumar, V., and Kinzel, G. An educational experiment in teaching
mechanism design and manufacturing using multi-university teams. Proceedings of
the 4th National Applied Mechanisms and Robotics Conference, Cincinnati, Dec
10-13, 1995.
[24] http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~meam100, An on-line program for introducing

mechanical engineers to design and manufacturing, University of Pennsylvania,
1998.
2
7. Biographical Sketches of the Principal Investigators
The two page biographical sketches are provided for each investigator in alphabetical
order.
 Kostas Daniilidis
 Nelson Dorny
 Jean Gallier
 Vijay Kumar
 Dimitris Metaxas
 Max Mintz
 James Ostrowski
 Jorge Santiago-Aviles
 Camillo Taylor
1
Kostas Daniilidis
Computer and Information Science Department
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6228
Education
Dipl Diploma in Electrical Engineering, National Technical University Athens, 1986

Ph.D. Computer Science, University of Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, 1992
Employment
1998 - Assistant Professor at the Department of Computer and Information
Science, University of Pennsylvania.
1993 – 1997 Assistant Professor (non-tenure-track) at the Computer Science Institute,
Kiel University, Germany.
1992 – 1993 Research Associate at the Fraunhofer-Institute, Karlsruhe.
Awards
German Academic Exchange (DAAD) Fellowship 1987 - 1992
Reviewer
 IEEE Trans. Pattern Analysis Machine Intelligence
 IEEE Trans. Robotics and Automation
 Int. Journal of Computer Vision, Computer Vision and Image Understanding
 Journal of Visual Communication and Image Representation
 Real Time Imaging Journal, Neural Networks, Biological
 Cybernetics, Greek Ministry of Education
Member
 Program Committee of the Computer Vision Pattern Recognition (CVPR)
1998
 Program Committee of the Int. Conf. Pattern Recognition (ICPR) 1996
 Program Chair of the Int. Conf. Computer Analysis of Images and Patterns
(CAIP) 1997
Publications related to the project
1. K. Daniilidis. Hand-Eye Calibration Using Dual Quaternions. International Journal of

Robotics Research , 1998, to appear.
2. K. Daniilidis. Dual quaternions for absolute orientation and hand-eye calibration. In

F. Solina et al., editor, Advances in Computer Vision , pp. 231--240. Springer Wien
New York, 1997.
2
3. K. Daniilidis. Fixation simplifies 3D motion estimation. Computer Vision and Image
Understanding , 68:158--169, 1996.
4. K. Daniilidis, Ch. Krauss, M. Hansen, and G. Sommer. Real-Time Tracking of

Moving Objects with an Active Camera. Journal of Real Time Imaging , 4:3-20,
1998.
5. K. Daniilidis and J. Ernst. Active intrinsic calibration using vanishing points. Pattern
Recognition Letters , 17:1179--1189, 1996.
Significant Publications:
1. K. Daniilidis and H.-H. Nagel. Analytical results on error sensitivity of motion

estimation from two views. Image and Vision Computing , 8:297--303, 1990.
2. D. Koller, K. Daniilidis, and H.-H. Nagel. Model-based object tracking in monocular

image sequences of road-traffic scenes. International Journal of Computer Vision ,
10:257--281, 1993.
3. K. Daniilidis. Attentive visual motion processing: computations in the log-polar

plane. Computing , 11:1--20, 1996.
4. K. Daniilidis and M. Spetsakis. Understanding noise sensitivity in structure from

motion. In Y. Aloimonos, editor, Visual Navigation , pp. 61--88. Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates, Hillsdale, NJ, 1996.
5. J. Mendelsohn, K. Daniilidis, and R. Bajcsy. Constrained Self-Calibration for

Augmented Reality. In First Workshop on Augmented Reality, San Francisco, CA,
Nov. 1, 1998.
Collaborators
Drs G. Sommer (Kiel, Germany), Y. Aloimonos (Univ. of Maryland), and all the GRASP
Lab faculty.
3
C. Nelson Dorny
Department of Systems Engineering
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Education
B.E.S., Brigham Young University, 1961
M.S.E.E., Stanford University, 1962
Ph.D., Stanford University, 1965
Professional Experience
1988- Professor of Systems Engineering, University of Pennsylvania
1980-86 Chair of the Systems Engineering Department, University of Pennsylvania
1979-80 Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, School of Engineering and
Applied Science.
1979-95 Founder and board member of Interspec, Inc., a publicly traded company
for development, manufacture and marketing of medical ultrasound
equipment.
1970-79 Associate Professor of Systems Engineering and Associate Director of the
Valley Forge Research Center, Moore School of Electrical Engineering.
1969-70 Special Assistant to the Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Washington, D.C.
1965-69 Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering, The Moore School of
Electrical Engineering.
1960-65 Eighteen months in industrial positions at Westinghouse Research
Laboratories, Lawrence Radiation Laboratory, The Boeing Company, and
Bell Telephone Laboratories.
Awards
National Science Foundation Fellowship (1961-1964)
White House Fellow (1969-1970)
S. Reid Warren, Jr. Award for Distinguished Teaching (1996)
Publications Pertinent to the Proposed Project

Dorny, C. N., Fegley, K. A., and Krendel, E. S., "Systems Engineering", Section 5 of
Electronics Engineers Handbook, D. G. Fink, ed., McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1975.
Dorny, C. N., A Vector Space Approach to Models and Optimization, John Wiley &
Sons, Inc., New York, 1975. Republished by Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company,
Huntington, New York, 1980.
Vernekar, A, Anandalingam, G, and Dorny, C.N., “Optimization of Resource Location
in Hierarchical Computer Networks," Computers and Operations Research, Vol. 17,
No. 4, pp. 375-388, 1990.
4
Fegley, K. A., and Dorny, C. N., "Designing Integrated Manufacturing
Operations,"Factory Automation and Information Management Conf., Limerick,
Ireland, 13-15 March 1991.
Vernekar, A, Anandalingam, G, and Dorny, C.N., “An integrated knowledge-based
system for communication network design,” Information and Decision Technologies,
Vol. 19, pp. 595-612, 1994.
Woo, P. Y. and Dorny, C. N., "Coordinated Control in a Multi-manipulator
Workcell,"Advances In Computing and Control, W. A. Porter, S. C. Kak, J. L.
Aravena (eds.), Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1989, pp. 264-275.
Dorny, C. N., Understanding Dynamic Systems -- Approaches to Modeling, Analysis,
and Design, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1993.
Doctoral Students Supervised

H. Richard Howland (Westinghouse), Richard T. Karon (Ratheon Corp), William A.
Gruver (Simon Fraser University, British Columbia), Gerald N. Klemushin, Victor Pan
(Lucent Technologies), Barry J. Karafin (Lucent Technologies), Chung Hsin Lu, Eu-An
Lee (Hughes Aircraft), Lih-tyng Hwang (Motorola), Tian-Hu Lei (University of
Maryland, Baltimore), Peng Yung Woo (Eastern Michigan University), Mark Robert
Allen (Lockheed Martin), Ralph Edward Gonzales, Scott A. Snyder (Lockheed-Martin
Corp.), Mark R. Wilson (Lucent Technologies), John Zaleski (Lockheed-Martin)
Teaching Experience
Engineering Mathematics
Functional Analysis (Vector Space Methods)
Probability Theory
Optimization Theory
Modeling and Control of Dynamic Systems
Analysis and Design of Manufacturing Systems
Design and Control of Robotic Manipulators
Computer Integration of Systems (multi-disciplinary laboratory course)
System Integration Workshop (Large-group projects)
Leadership Experience
Associate Director, Valley Forge Research Center (University of Pennsylvania)
Undergraduate Dean, School of Engineering and Applied Science (University of
Pennsylvania)
Faculty Council Chair (four times), School of Engineering and Applied Science
Department Chair, Systems Engineering (University of Pennsylvania)
Founder and board member, Interspec, Inc. (publicly traded medical ultrasound company)
Collaborators
Drs. V. Kumar, E. Morlok, G. Anandalingam, K. A. Fegley, I. Zandi, B. D. Steinberg, F.
Haber, R. Berkowitz, E. S. Krendel (University of Pennsylvania), Drs. H. R. Howland
and R. A. Mathias (Westinghouse Research Laboratory, Pittsburgh), Dr. A. Stefanski
(Hewlett Packard), Prof. C. H. Chen (Xidian University, Xian, China)
5
Jean Gallier
Computer and Information Science Department
Education
Dipl. Civil Engineering, Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussees, Paris, 1972
Ph.D. Computer Science, UCLA, 1978
1990 - Professor, Computer and Information Science Department, University of
Pennsylvania. (Secondary appointment in Mathematics Department -1994.)
1984 – 1990 Associate Professor, Computer and Information Science Department,
University of Pennsylvania.
1978 - 1984 Assistant Professor, Computer and Information Science Department,
University of Pennsylvania.
Lecturer and Postdoctoral Research Position, Department of Mathematics and Computer
Science Program, University of California, Santa Barbara.
1974 – 1977 Research Assistant, Systems Science Department, University of
California, Los Angeles.
1973 – 1974 Teaching Assistant, Computer Science Department, University of
California, Los Angeles.
Awards
Lindback Award for distinguished teaching, University of Pennsylvania, 1983.
Membership in Editorial Boards

 Editorial Board, Journal of Symbolic Computation
 Editorial Board, Theoretical Computer Science
 Editorial Board, Journal of Logic Programming
 Editorial Board, RAIRO Informatique Theorique
 Editor of the new series Progress in Theoretical Computer Science and Applied
Logic, Birkhauser Boston Inc., Publishers, since 1988.
Related Publications
1. Topological Evolution of surfaces (with Doug De Carlo). Graphics Interface '96,
Toronto, Canada, May 1996.
2. Drawing Closed Rational Surfaces, 13th Annual ACM Symposium on Computational
Geometry, Nice, France, June 1997.
3. A Simple Method For Drawing a Rational Curve as Two Bezier Segments. Submitted
for publication, March 1998.
6
4. On the Efficiency of Strategies for Subdividing Polynomial Triangular Surface
Patches. (with Doug DeCarlo). Submitted for publication, September 1997.
5. Subdivision Methods for Drawing Closed Rational Surfaces. Submitted for
publication, December 1997.
Significant Publications
1. Fast and Simple Methods for Computing Control Points (ith Doug DeCarlo, Weiqing
Gu, and Shenjun Jiang). Submitted for publication, March 1998.
2. Polymorphic Rewriting Conserves Algebraic confluence (with Val Tannen),
Information and Computation, Vol. 14, No.1, 1-29, (1994).
3. Proving Properties of Typed Lambda-Terms Using Realizability, Covers, and
Sheaves, Theoretical Computer Science 142(2), 299-368 (1995).
4. Kripke Models and the (in)equational logic of the second-order lambda-Calculus,
Annuals of Pure and Applied Logic 84, 257-316 (1997).
5. Typing untyped lambda terms, or Reducibility Strikes Again! Annals of Pure and
Applied Logic 91, 231-270 (1998).

Tom Myers (Infinite Structures in Programming Languages - 1980), Karl Schimpf (A
Parsing method for Context-free Tree Languages - 1982), Fahimeh Jalili (Design of
Incremental Compilers -1982), Will Dowling (Contribution to the Compiler Correctness
Problem – 1984), Majid Naini (Attribute Evaluators and Attribute machines – 1985), Stan
Raatz (Aspects of a Graph-based Proof Procedure for Horn Clauses – 1987), Wayne
Snyder (Complete Sets of Transformations for General Unification – 1988), Tomas
Isakowitz (Theorem Proving methods for Order-Sorted Logic – 1989), Jin Choi (The
Decidability Problem for Rigid E-Unification: A New proof and Extensions – 1993).
Collaborators
N. Badler, D. Metaxas, U. Penn., H. Gluck (Math, Upenn), D. Harbater (Math, Upenn),
Leo Guibas, Stanford.
7
Dimitris N. Metaxas
Department of Computer and Information Science
Education
Dipl. Electrical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 1986
M.Sc. Computer Science, University of Maryland, 1988
Ph.D. Computer Science, University of Toronto, 1992
1998 - Associate Professor, Computer and Information Science Department,
1992.1997 Assistant Professor, Computer and Information Science Department,
Awards
 NSF Initiation Award (1993)
 NSF Career Award (1996)
 ONR Young Investigator Proposal Award (1997)
Membership in Editorial Board

 Associate Editor of GMIP and PAMI
 Medical Imaging
 Co-Editor of the 1997 Special Issue of Computer Vision and Image Understanding on
Physics-Based Modeling and Reasoning
Publications Most Closely Related to the Proposed Project
1. `À 3D Virtual Environment for Modeling Mechanical Cardiopulmonary

Interactions'', J. M. Kaye, F. P. Primiano and D. Metaxas. Medical Image Analysis,
July 1998.
2. `Ànalysis of Left Ventricular Wall Motion Based on Volumetric Deformable Models

and MRI-SPAMM,'' Jinah Park, Dimitri Metaxas and Leon Axel. Medical Image
Analysis Journal, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 53-71, March,1996.
3. ``Segmentation using deformable models with affinity-based localization''. T. Jones

and D. Metaxas. Procs. of the First International Joint Conference - CVRMed -
MRCAS '97, France, March 1997.
4. `Ìmage Segmentation based on the Integration of Pixel Affinity and Deformable

Models'', T. Jones and D. Metaxas. Procs. IEEE Computer Vision and Pattern
Recognition Conference, Santa Barbara, CA, June 1998.
8
5. `Àutomated 3D segmentation using deformable models and fuzzy affinity''. T. Jones
and D. Metaxas. In Proceedings of the XVth International Conference on Image
Processing in Medical Imaging, June1997.
Five other significant publications
1. `ÀSL recognition based on a coupling between HMMs and 3D motion analysis''. C.

Vogler and D. Metaxas. Procs 6 th International Conference on Computer Vision,
India, January 1998.
2. `Àdapting Hidden Markov Models for ASL recognition by using three-dimensional

computer vision methods''. C. Vogler and D. Metaxas. Procs. IEEE International
Conference on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, October 1997.
3. `Àn Efficient Dynamic Constraint Formulation for Animating and Controlling

Articulated Figures'', E. Kokkevis and D. Metaxas. Accepted to Multibody System
Dynamics.
4. ``Deformable Models with Parameter Functions for Cardiac Motion Analysis from
Tagged MRI Data''. J. Park, D. Metaxas, A. A. Young and L. Axel. IEEE Transactions
on Medical Image Processing, June 1996.
5. ``Multi-level Shape Representation Using Global Deformations and Locally Adaptive

Finite Elements''. D. Metaxas, E. Koh and N. Badler. International Journal of
Computer Vision, 25(1), pp. 46-62, October 1997.

D. DeCarlo (August 1998, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science, Rutgers
University, September 1998 to present); N. Foster (Sept. 1997, Pacific Data Images); I.
Kakadiaris (Oct. 1996, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science, University
of Houston, September 1997 to present); J. Kaye (Sept. 1996, VHA Medical Informatics
post-doctoral fellow); J. Park (June 1996, Post-doctoral Fellow, Univ. of Pennsylvania);
M. Chan (Oct. 1995, Rockwell Company).
Collaborators
N. Badler, R. Bajcsy, B. Webber, U. Penn; S. Dickinson, Rutgers Univ.; D. Terzopoulos,
U. of Toronto; A. Pentland, MIT; L. Guibas, Stanford U.; E. Simoncelli, Univ. of
Pennsylvania; J. C. Latombe, Stanford Univ.; J. Gallier, Univ. of Pennsylvania, N.
Patrikalakis, MIT.
9
Max Mintz
Education
BEE (cum laude) Electrical Engineering, Cornell University, 1965
MS Electrical Engineering, Cornell University, 1966
PhD Electrical Engineering, Cornell University, 1968
1998- Professor, Department of Computer and Information Science, University
of Pennsylvania
1986-1998 Associate Professor, Department of Computer and Information Science,
1976-86 Associate Professor, Department of System Engineering, University of
Pennsylvania
1974-76 Assistant Professor, Department of Systems Engineering, University of
Pennsylvania
1972-74 Visiting Assistant Professor, Coordinated Science Laboratory and
Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana
1969-72 Assistant Professor, Department of Engineering and Applied Science, Yale
University
1968.69 Lecturer, Department of Engineering and Applied Science, Yale
University
Honors and Awards

 The S.~Reid Warren, Jr.~Award for Distinguished Teaching, 1990
 National Research Council Senior Resident Associateship, 1982
 Air Force Office of Scientific Research Faculty Fellowship, 1976 and 1980
 Alfred G.~and Meta A.~Ennis Chaired Professor, 1976
 National Science Foundation Faculty Fellowship, 1975
 National Science Foundation Graduate Traineeship, Cornell University, 1964-68
 Ford Foundation Graduate Fellowship, Cornell University, 1964-65)
Honorary Society Memberships

Eta Kappa Nu, Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Xi. Tau Beta Pi

1. Decision-Theoretic Approach to Robust Fusion of Location Data. Journal of the
Franklin Institute. Invited paper for a special issue on sensor fusion. (Co-authors:
G. Kamberova, R. Mandelbaum, and R. Bajcsy). To appear 1999.
10
2. Stereo Depth Estimation: A Confidence Interval Approach. The Proc. of the 1998
International Conference on Computer Vision. (Co-authors: R. Mandelbaum and
G.Kamberova).
3. Statistical Decision Theory for Mobile Robotics: Theory and Application. Invited
presentation at the special session on the theoretical basis of multisensor fusion and
integration at the 1996 International Conference on Multisensor Fusion and
Integration for Intelligent Systems}, 9 December 1996, Washington DC. (Co-
authors: G. Kamberova, R. Mandelbaum).
4. A Confidence Set Approach to Mobile Robot Localization. Presented at the

International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems}, 4-8 November 1996,
Osaka, Japan. (Co-author: R. Mandelbaum).
5. Data Fusion Techniques Using Robust Statistics, Data Fusion in Robotics and
Machine Intelligence, Edited by M. A. Abidi and R. C. Gonzalez, Academic Press,
pp. 211-243, November 1992. (Co-author: R. McKendall).
Other Selected Publications

1. Minimax Rules Under Zero-One Loss for a Restricted Location Parameter. The
Journal of Statistical Planning and Inference. (Co-author: G. Kamberova). To
appear.
2. Computational Methods for Task-Directed Sensor Data Fusion and Sensor Planning,
The International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 285-313, August
1991. (Co-author: G. Hager).
3. Robust Fixed Size Confidence Procedures for a Restricted Parameter Space, The
Annals of Statistics}, Vol. 16, No. 3, pp. 1241-1253, September 1988. (Co-author:
M. Zeytinoglu).
Recent Doctoral Students

Robert Mandelbaum (1995, SRI Sarnoff), Kevin Atteson (1995, Yale University), Robert
Kennedy (1993, Chase Manhattan Bank), Gerda Kamberova (1992, Washington
University), Raymond A. McKendall (1990), Gregory D. Hager, 1988, Yale University.
Current Collaborators
R. Bajcsy (University of Pennsylvania), G. Kamberova (Washington University), R.
Mandelbaum (SRI Sarnoff)
11
Vijay Kumar
Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Education
B. Tech. Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, 1983
M.Sc. Mechanical Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, 1985
Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, 1987
1998- Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics,
University of Pennsylvania. (Secondary appointment in Department of
Computer and Information Science.)
1993-98 Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied
Mechanics, Secondary appointment in Department of Computer and
Information Science and in Department of Systems Engineering.
1987-93 Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied
Mechanics, Secondary appointment in Department of Computer and
Information Science.
1985-87 Research Assistant and Research Fellow, The Ohio State University
1983-85 Research Assistant, The Ohio State University
Awards
 The Ohio State University Presidential Fellowship (1986)
 NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award (1991-1996)
 Lindback Award for distinguished teaching, University of Pennsylvania, 1996.
 Ferdinand Freudenstien Award for significant accomplishements in robotics and
mechanisms, 5th National Conference on Mechanisms and Robotics, 1997.
Membership in Editorial Boards

 Associate Editor, IEEE Transactions on Robotics and Automation
 Editorial Board, Journal of the Franklin Institute
 Associate Editor, ASME Transactions, Journal of Mechanical Design

1. Kumar, V. and Waldron, K.J., "Actively Coordinated Mobility Systems," ASME
Journal of Mechanisms, Transmissions and Automation in Design, Vol. 111, No. 2,
1989, pp. 223-231.
2. Kumar, V., Bajcsy, R., Harwin, W. and Harker, P., “Rapid Design and Prototyping of
Customized Rehabilitation Aids,” Special Section on Computers in Manufacturing,
Communications of the ACM, Vol. 39, No. 2., February, 1996: 55-61.
12
3. Wellman, P., Krovi, V., Kumar, V. and Harwin, W. “A Wheelchair with Legs for
People with Motor Disabilities,” IEEE Transactions on Rehabilitation Engineering,
1995.
4. Kumar, V., Kinzel, G., Wei, S., and J. Zhou. “Multi-University Design Projects,”
ASEE Journal of Engineering Education, 1998 (under review).
5 Kinzel, G., Kumar, V. and Wei, S., “An educational experiment in teaching
mechanism design and manufacturing using multi-university teams,” Proceedings of
the 4th National Applied Mechanisms and Robotics Conference, Cincinnati, OH, Dec
10-13, 1995.
Significant Publications
1. Kumar, V., "Characterization of Workspaces of Parallel Manipulators," ASME
Journal of Mechanical Design, Vol. 114, No. 3, 1992, pp. 368-375.
2. Howard, W. S. and Kumar, V., "On the Stability of Grasped Objects 7,'' IEEE
Transactions on Robotics and Automation, Vo. 12, No. 6, December 1996: 904-917.
3. Kumar, V., Zefran, M., and Ostrowski, J., “Motion Planning in Humans and Robots,”
Proceedings of the 8th International Symposium on Robotics Research, Springer
Verlag, Kanagawa, Japan, October 3-7, 1997 (to be published).
4. Zefran, M., Kumar, V. and Croke, C., “Metrics and Connections for Rigid Body
Kinematics,” International Journal of Robotics Research, 1998 (in press).
5. Zefran, M., and Kumar, V., "Rigid Body Motion Interpolation," Computer Aided
Design, Vol. 30, Issue 3, 1998: 179-189.

Dr. Nathan Ulrich (Woods Hole Oceanographics Institute, Woods Hole), Dr. Jung-ha Kim
(Pohang Research, Korea), Dr. Yin-Tien Wang (Tamkang University, Taiwan), Dr.
Nilanjan Sarkar (University of Hawaii), Dr. Mohamed Ouerfelli (King Fahd University,
Saudi Arabia), Dr. Chau-Chang Wang (National Taiwan University), Dr. Stamps Howard
(Woodman Corporation), Dr. Milos Zefran (California Institute of Technology), Dr.
Venkat Krovi (McGill University), and Dr. Jaydev Desai (Harvard University).
Collaborators
Drs. G. K. Ananthasuresh, R. Bajcsy, D. Bogen, P. Harker, J. Ostrowski (University of
Pennsylvania), Drs. Kenneth J. Waldron and Gary L. Kinzel (Ohio State University), Dr.
Herman Bruynincx (Katholik University, Belgium), and Dr. Xiaoping Yun (Naval
Postgraduate School, Monterey)
7
This paper was one of five nominations for the best paper award for the IEEE Transactions on Robotics
and Automation in 1996.
13
James P. Ostrowski
Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Education
Sc.B Electrical Engineering, Brown University, 1990
M.S. Mechanical Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1991
Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1995
1996 - Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied
Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania. (Secondary appointment in
Department of Computer and Information Science.)
1992-96 Graduate Research Assistant, Caltech
1994 Visiting Researcher, National Science Foundation , Summer Institute in Japan
Honors and Awards

 NSF Summer Institute in Japan, 1994
 NSF Fellowship for Minority Students, 1991-94
 Member of Tau Beta Pi and Sigma Xi Honor Societies, 1990
 National Merit Scholarship Finalist, 1986
 American Academy of Achievement's Atlanta ``Teenager of the Year,'' 1986
Other Professional Activities

Invited talks:
 “Nonholonomic Mechanics and Locomotion: the Snakeboard Example,” Kyoto
University, Kyoto, Japan, July, 1994; Hosei University, Japan, July, 1994.
 “The Mechanics and Control of Locomotion,” University of Tsukuba, Japan, August,
1994; Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, August, 1994.
 “The Mechanics and Control of Locomotion for Nonholonomic Mechanical
Systems,” University of Turabo, Gurabo, Puerto Rico, March, 1995.
 “The Mechanics and Control of Locomotion for Nonholonomic Mechanical
Systems,” University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 1995.
Technical Reviews
Reviewer for Trans. on Robotics and Automation, Journal of Robotic Systems,
International Journal of Robotics Research , ASME Journal of Machine Design
IEEE Conference on Robotics and Automation, IFAC Symposium on Robot Control
IEEE Conference on Decision and Control, and Springer-Verlag.
14
Five Publications Most Related to the Project
1. J. P. Ostrowski. The Mechanics and Control of Undulatory Robotic Locomotion.
Ph.D. thesis, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 1995.
2. J. P. Ostrowski and J. W. Burdick. Controllability tests for mechanical systems with

symmetries and constraints. J. App. Mathematics and Comp. Sci. , 7(2):101--127,
June 1997.
3. J. P. Ostrowski. Reduced equations for nonholonomic mechanical systems with

dissipation. Reports on Mathematical Physics, 42(1/2), pp. 185-209, 1998.
4. J. E. Marsden and J. P. Ostrowski. Symmetries in motion: Geometric foundations of

motion control. To appear, Nonlinear Science Today , 1998.
5. J. P. Ostrowski, J. P. Desai, and V. Kumar. Optimal gait selection for nonholonomic

locomotion systems. Submitted to International Journal of Robotics Research , 1998.
Most Significant Publications

1. J. P. Ostrowski, A. D. Lewis, R. M. Murray, and J. W. Burdick. Nonholonomic
mechanics and locomotion: The snakeboard example. In Proc.~IEEE Int. Conf.
Robotics and Automation , pages 2391--7, San Diego, CA, May 1994.
2. J. P. Ostrowski and J. W. Burdick. The geometric mechanics of undulatory robotic

locomotion. International Journal of Robotics Research, 17(7) , pp. 683-701, July
1998.
3. M. Zefran, V. Kumar, and J. P. Ostrowski. Motion Planning and Control of Robots. To

appear, Handbook of Industrial Robotics, J. Wiley Sons, 1998.
4. J. P. Ostrowski and J. W. Burdick. Computing reduced equations for nonholonomic

mechanical systems with symmetries. To appear, IEEE Trans. on Robot. and Aut.,
1998.
5. J.P. Ostrowski. Steering for a class of dynamic nonholonomic systems. Submitted to

IEEE Trans. on Automatic Control , Special issue on Control of Mechanical Systems,
1998.

Betsy Edgar (M.S. only); Jonathan Briggs; Ken McIsaac; Jaydev Desai, Hong Zhang (co-
supervised with Dr. Vijay Kumar); Xiaoye Wang (w/ Dr. Ananthasuresh).
Collaborators
G. K. Ananthasuresh (UPenn); Ruzena Bajcsy (UPenn); Greg Chirikjian (Johns
Hopkins); Howie Choset (CMU); Vijay Kumar (UPenn); Chris Massey (UPenn); C.J.
Taylor (UPenn).
15
Jorge Juan Santiago-Aviles
Center for Sensor Technologies
Department of Electrical Engineering
POSITION: Associate Professor
PLACE AND San Juan, Puerto Rico
DATE OF BIRTH: December 1, 1944
EDUCATION:
1962 - 1966
Bachelor of Science in Physics and Mathematics with Distinctions, University of
Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico
1966 - 1971
Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Science, Pennsylvania State University, University
Park, Pennsylvania
Dissertation Title: "Effect of Gasification on the Diamagnetism of Graphite and
Graphitic Carbons"
PRINCIPAL RESEARCH INTEREST
Synthesis, processing and characterization of materials for micro,and meso-scale device

fabrication, sensor and actuator devices.
PROFESSIONAL AND SOCIETY MEMBERSHIPS

- Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
- Materials Research Society
- American Ceramic Society
- American Physical Society
- Association of Puerto Ricans in Science and Engineering
- Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers
Five Relevant Publications:
1. “The Utilization of Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramics for Meso-scale EMS, A

Simple Thermistor Based Flow Sensor” M. Gongora-Rubio, L. Sola and J.J.
Santiago-Avilés” accepted for Publication, Sensors and Actuators, (1998).
16
2. “The Utilization of LTCC Tapes for 3-D Meso-Scale Fabrication” J.J. Santiago-
Aviles, J. Park, P. Espinoza-Vallejos, and L. Sola-Laguna. Proceedings of
IBERSENSOR’98, Havana, Cuba (1998).
3. “The Measurement and Control of Sagging in Meso (intermediate scale)
electromechanical LTCC Structures and Systems” by P. Espinoza-Vallejos, J. Zhong,
M. Gongora-Rubio, L. Sola-Laguna and J.J. Santiago-Aviles. MRS Conference
Proceedings Vol 518, (1998).
4. “Batch Chemical Machining of Partially Sintered Low Temperature Co- Fired
Ceramics”. by J. Park, P. Espinoza-Vallejos, L. Sola-Laguna, and J. J. Santiago-Aviles
Proceedings of International Microelectronics and Packaging Society (IMAPS) 98
fall meeting.
5. “Ceramic Tape Based Meso Systems Technology” by H. Bau, S.Ananthasuresh, J.
Santiago-Aviles, J.Zhong, M. Kim, M. Yi , P. Espinoza-Vallejos, and L. Sola-Laguna,
Proceedings of the ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and
Exposition, Anahaim, CA (1998).
Five Other Publications:
1. “The Formation of Cobalt Silicide in Two Thermal Stages” E.W. Simoes, R. Furlan
and J.J. Santiago-Aviles Proceedings of the VLSI Multilevel Interconnection Conf.
Santa Clara, CA (1997)
2. “Dopant Redistribution During the Formation of Cobalt Silicide Using Two Thermal
Stages” E.W. Simoes, R. Furlan and J.J. Santiago-Aviles Proceedings of the VLSI
Multilevel Interconnection Conf. Santa Clara, CA (1997).
3. “The Influence of Ionic Activity on the Electrical Properties of PECVD
(TEOS)Silicon Dioxide” A. Romanelli- Cardoso, M. Pereira da Silva and J. J.
Santiago-Aviles MRS Conference Proceedings Vol, (1998).
4. “Analyisis of TEOS Silicon Dioxide: The Identification of Carbonatious
Contaminants” A. Romanelli- Cardoso, M. Pereira da Silva and J. J. Santiago-Aviles
MRS Conference Proceedings Vol, (1998).
5. “Chemical Exfoliation of Sintered Low Temperature Co-Fired Ceramics”. by J. Park,
P. Espinoza-Vallejos, L. Sola-Laguna, and J.J.Santiago-Aviles.- Proceedings of
International Microelectronics and Packaging Society (IMAPS)98 fall meeting.
17
Camillo Jose Taylor
GRASP Laboratory
Education
Ph.D. Electrical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven CT, 1994
M.S. M.S. in Computer Engineering, Yale University, New Haven CT, 1990
A.B. Electrical Computer and Systems Engineering, Harvard College, Cambridge
MA, 1988
1997- Assistant Professor, Department of Computer and Information Science,
1994.97 Postdoctoral researcher/lecturer University of California, Berkeley
Awards
 Phi Beta Kappa: Member of the Harvard Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
 1988 Dudley House Book Prize: Awarded to the graduating senior in Dudley House
with the most outstanding scholastic record.
 Harvard College Scholarship: 1986-87, 1987-88.
 1984 Jamaica Scholar: This scholarship is awarded annually to the student with the
best results in the G.C.E Advanced Level Examinations in the country.
Five related publications

 C.J. Taylor and D. Kriegman “Structure and motion from line segments in multiple
images”, IEEE Trans. On Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, Vol. 17 No. 11
November 1995
 C.J. Taylor and Paul E. Debevec and Jitendra Malik. “Reconstructing Polyhedral
Models of Architectural Scenes from Photographs” Proceeding of the European
Conference on Computer Vision May 1996
 C.J. Taylor and D. Kriegman “Vision-Based Motion Planning and Exploration
Algorithms for Mobile Robots”, IEEE Trans. On Robotics and Automation, Vol. 14
No. 3 June 1998
 Paul E. Debevec and C.J.Taylor and Jitendra Malik. “Modeling and Rendering
Architecture from Photographs:A hybrid geometry-and image-based approach”.
SIGGRAPH 1996
 C. Taylor, D. Kriegman, and P. Anandan. “Structure and motion in two dimensions
from multiple images: A least squares approach.” Workshop on Visual Motion,
October 1991.
18
Five other publications
 C.J. Taylor and Jitendra Malik and Joseph Weber. “A Real-Time Approach to
Stereopsis and Lane-Finding.” Intelligent Vehicles 1996
 J. Kosecka, R. Blasi, C.J. Taylor and Jitendra Malik “Vision-Based Lateral Control of
Vehicles.” Intelligent Transportation Systems 1997
 J. Kosecka, R. Blasi, C. Taylor and J. Malik. “A Comparative Study of Vision-Based
Lateral Control Strategies for Autonomous Highway Driving”. IEEE Int. Conf. on
Robotics and Automation, May 1998.
 C.J. Taylor and D. Kriegman. “Vision-Based Motion Planning and Exploration
Algoithms for Mobile Robots” Workshop on the Algorithmic Foundations of
Robotics, February 1994
 C.J.Taylor. “Building representations for the environment of a mobile robot from
image data.” Proc. SPIE Symp. on Intelligent Robotic Systems, Sensor fusion IV,
1991.
Teaching Experience
 CSE 371: Digital Systems Organization and Design, Spring 1998 University of
Pennsylvania
 CIS 580: Machine Perception, Fall 1997 University of Pennsylvania
 EE125: Introduction to Robotics, Fall 1994 and Spring 1996 U.C. Berkeley
 EE298-34: Mobile Robots, Spring 1995 and Spring 1996 U.C. Berkeley
Collaborators
Robert Blasi, (U.C. Berkeley), Paul Debevec, (U.C. Berkeley), Jana Kosecka, (U.C.
Berkeley), David Kriegman, (Yale University / University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
– Thesis Advisor), Jitendra Malik, (U.C. Berkeley), Joseph Weber, (U.C. Berkeley)
Advisors
David Kriegman (Yale University / University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign – Thesis
Advisor), Jitendra Malik (U.C. Berkeley – Postdoctoral Sponsor)
Students and Postdoctoral Researchers

Robert Blasi (M.S. Student U.C.Berkeley), David Jelinek, Sang-Hack Jung (Current
graduate students at UPenn.)
Dissertations/Theses supervised
“ A Study of Lateral Controllers for the Stereo Drive Project” Robert. S. Blasi Jr.,
M.S. Thesis EECS Department U.C. Berkeley May 1997
Professional Societies
Member IEEE
Member ACM
19
8. Budget
The equipment request
The main items of equipment are summarized in the table below. Following the table is
an item by item justification of the budget.
Item Description Manufacturer Vendor Qty. UnitPrice Total Cost
1 Dell Optiplex GX1, Pentium II 440BX chipset, Dell Computers Dell 20 $2,051 $41,020
100MHz bus, integrated 2X AGP graphics Computers
controller, 4/8 SGRAM, 19" monitor, int. audio.
2 Item 1 w/ 64 MB memory upgrade, 10 GB Dell Computers Dell 5 $3,356 $16,780
HD, 21" monitor, 2X AGP graphics controller. Computers
3 Laser printers (Black and White), 4000 N with Hewlett Computer 2 $2,100 $4,200
ethernet network cards Packard Connection
4 Data acquistion and control cards: CIO- Computer Computer 25 $768 $19,200
DAS1601/12 (16 channel 160 kHz, 12 bit), Boards, Inc. Boards, Inc.
C37FF-2 terminal board, BP-37 backplate and
cable, CIO-MINI37 Universal Terminal Board
5 The Handy Board , a 6811 based micro Gleeson Gleeson 30 $320 $9,600
controller, programmable in interactive C Research Research
6 Lego Mindstorm Robot Kits Lego Lego 20 $195 $3,900
7 Robix Robot Arms Advanced Advanced 20 $500 $10,000
Design, Inc. Design, Inc.
8 Tektronix TDS 210 oscilloscope, Digital scope Tektronix Future Active 5 $995 $4,975
9 Function generator, 15 MHz function/arbirtrary Hewlett Future Active 3 $1,795 $5,385
waveform generator, HP 33120A Packard
10 Mechatronics Kits with motors, sensors, Howard Howard 15 $529 $7,930
instrumentation
11 ER V+ Robotic Arm Package: robotic arm, Esched Esched 4 $11,300 $45,200
controller, software, cabling, teach pendant. Robotec Robotec
12 PMAC, Multi Axis Control Cards for the PC Delta Tau Data Delta Tau Data 4 $4,100 $16,400
Systems Systems
13 Nomadics Super Scouts with vision and Nomadics Nomadics 2 $8,895 $17,790
wireless ethernet
14 Camera, 8mm, F1.4 CCD Lens, camera Cosmicar Phase 1 4 $1,423 $5,692
module XC-77, 12 V power supply and cabling Technology
15 Meteor 2 PCI frame grabber card Matrox MicroDisk Inc 4 $595 $2,380
16 Matrox Image Processing Library Matrox MicroDisk Inc 1 $2,000 $2,000
TOTAL $212,452
Budget justification
Item 1. We have found Dell Computers to be the best PC in terms of reliability,
ease of support, networkability, and CETS has many years of experience
providing support for these machines. The 20 Pentium II machines will
provide the basic computing environment for all LURE carrels. They can
be used for robotics experiments as well as for general purpose computing.
Item 2. This is the an upgrade over Item 1 and it is suitable for image processing
software and hardware and high resolution graphics. These machines will
1
be installed with the frame grabber cards (Item 15) and the image
processing software (Item 16).
Item 3. Based on our experience, the reliability, and ease of support for the printer,
we have found these HP Laser Printers to be the best. Once again CETS is
already using this machine in its other computing labs.
Item 4. All computers will be equipped with the Computer Boards Incorporated
CIO-DAS1601/12 board. It is a 16 channel, 160 kHz, 12 bit board. It is
relatively inexpensive and our previous experience shows its reliability in
digital to analog conversion and in digital input/output.
Item 5. A detailed justification for using Handy Boards is provided in the course
description for CSE 240. This is the only such computer and it lends itself
to teaching an introductory course in computer architecture.
Item 6. The Lego Mindstorm kits are kits that are ideal for teaching robotics at the
freshman and sophomore level where the students are not very
sophisticated. These kits are the only ones in this class.
Item 7. Robix robot arms are ready to use robot arms that can be driven from a
serial port of any IBM compatible. They lend themselves to teaching
kinematics. Once again, these are the only ones in this class.
Item 8. This falls into the class of general purpose instrumentation that is required
to debug any electrical system. We envision three wheeled carts with
multimeters, oscilloscopes and function generators for the LURE facility.
Students will be able to wheel the carts to their workstations and share
these instruments.
Item 9. See justification for Item 8.
Item 10.The mechatronics kit by Howard Inc. consisting of actuators, sensors,
couplings, gears, shafts, and links. It is ideal for “plug and play”
prototyping. This allows students to focus on integrating systems together
and studying the system without getting bogged down with the details of
fabricating compatible subsystems.
Item 11.The Scorbot ER V+ is a scaled down model of an industrial robot used for
experiments and demonstrations. This robot and its predecessors have
2
been used in many undergraduate facilities (e.g., Michigan State, Drexel,
University of California) and are known to tolerate abuse. They are also
very safe and reliable.
Item 12.The PMAC control cards allow students to control multiaxis machines by
programming in high level languages like C or Java. They will be used to
teach the students real-time systems, programming, systems integration,
and industrial robotics. The PMAC control cards are very competitive in a
market in which the costs of the cards are fast coming down.
Item 13.This is a mobile robot with a Pentium II control computer equipped with a
camera. It is ideal for teaching vision, navigation, path planning, and
control. This is the only robot of its kind.
Item 14.Items 14-16 will be used to teach image processing and computer vision.
They will give the students a system that is capable of crunching through
algorithms at a reasonably fast frame rate, ideal for industrial
applications. They will allow students to focus on the scientific aspects of
different image processing and vision algorithms without getting bogged
down with writing code.
3
9. Current and Pending Support
(NSF Form 1239)
1
10. Appendices
Letter from Professor John Vohs, the Associate Dean, School of
Engineering and Applied Science
Please see next page.
1
Insert letter from John Vohs here.
2
Computing and Educational Technology Services (CETS)
CETS provides computing support and related educational services to the students,
faculty, and staff of the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of
Pennsylvania.
CETS services include several PC, Mac, and X-terminal computer labs; many
multimedia classroom systems; and both online and walk-in consulting support.
Additionally, CETS provides computer facilities management for other SEAS
departments. CETS draws most of its computing power from Eniac which is a group of
UNIX machines (roughly 50 Sun computers and X-terminals) used to support
coursework, electronic mail, netnews, and many other services such as the World Wide
Web. Accounts on this system are available to all SEAS students, faculty, staff, and
students taking SEAS courses.
Current facilities
GRASP Laboratory
GRASP Laboratory: The General Robotics Automation Sensing and Perception
Laboratory (GRASP) is an interdisciplinary laboratory dedicated to research and
education in robotics, control, sensing and perception. It is equipped with numerous Sun
Sparc and Silicon Graphics workstations, three industrial robot manipulators, five mobile
platforms, sensors such as force/torque sensors, tactile arrays, cameras, and range
imaging systems. The GRASP laboratory is equipped with a three-dimensional studio and
an imaging system that can be used for geometric and kinematic measurements of
humans.
RCA Laboratory
RCA Lab is equipped with 24 workbays each consisting of a Pentium class PC,
oscilloscope, waveform generator, power supply and digital multimeter. 12 PCs also
have data acquisition capabilities using LabView software. All PCs have GPIB (General
Purpose Instrumentation Bus) capability and instrument connectivity. In addition to the
instruments on each bay, spectrum analyzer, transistor curve tracer and impedance
3
measuring instruments are also available. All PCs are connected by 100MB/s local
network and two laser printers. The software available for use by all students in the lab
includes, LabVIEW (data acquisition and control), Electronics Workbench (circuit
simulation), Benchlink (GPIB connectivity with all HP instruments), Xilinx (FPGA
development system), PC bug11 (6811 microcontroller assembler) and browsers and FTP
utilities. The students have an access to large inventory of commonly used parts and
technical expertise with a full time engineer and a part time engineer. The lab maintains a
regularly updated web page allowing students to search for parts, courses and tutorials at
http://www.ee.upenn.edu/rca.
Manufacturing Technologies Laboratory (MTL)

Manufacturing Technologies Laboratory (MTL): This newly renovated 6,000 square ft.
facility is equipped with 10 Intel 486, and Pentium based CAD workstations, a Sparc
workstation, two SGI Impact workstations, several desktop NC milling machines and
lathes, a four axis CNC machining center, and a desktop injection molding and vacuum
forming machines. In addition, there is manually operated equipment including lathes,
mills, drill presses, and furnaces. The laboratory is linked with other facilities through
high-speed networking.
The General Motors Undergraduate Laboratory (MTL)

This undergraduate laboratory, built on space that was renovated in 1987, is used for
experiments in which students study different physical phenomena in mechanical
engineering. The experiments span the areas of solid mechanics, fluid mechanics,
thermodynamics, controls, and vibration. Each experiment is controlled with a PC with
data acquisition cards. The lab is equipped with a supply of electricity (110V and 230V),
water, and compressed air and is networked to other campus computers.
Description of relevant courses
Existing courses affected by the proposed project

We first describe the current courses that will directly benefit from the construction of
LURE and from the requested equipment.
4
MEAM 100 Introduction to Mechanical Engineering (Kumar)
This freshman level course introduces students in engineering and non engineering
disciplines to the basics of design and manufacturing. The lectures cover topics in
engineering analysis, computer aided design (CAD), design, materials, computer aided
manufacturing (CAM), automotive engineering, and robotics. In the laboratory
component of the course, students will learn to use ProEngineer (a solid modeling
package) and MATLAB (a software package for engineering analysis). In addition, they
will be exposed to machining processes and techniques to automatically manufacture
three-dimensional components on numerically controlled machine tools.
CSE 240: Introduction to Computer Architecture (Daniilidis)

This course presents the architecture of a modern digital computer. It introduces the
principles of binary numbers systems and arithmetic and focuses on the SPARC assembly
language. The students learn to explain the hardware interpretation of C-language
commands, and the anatomy and functionality of a RISC architecture.
CSE 390 Robotics and computer vision (Metaxas)

This course introduces the student to the basic principles of robotics and computer vision.
The course contains two major parts: manipulation and machine perception. Topics
covered in manipulation are manipulator kinematics, inverse kinematics and trajectory
generation. Topics in machine perception include sensory devices, the processing of
sensor signals to obtain edges and regions, the detection of geometric properties, depth
measurement and object modeling.
SYS 305 Feedback Control Systems (Dorny)

This course presents basic methods for analysis and design of feedback control systems at
a level appropriate for Juniors and Seniors. Methods presented include the root locus
method for control of time response, the frequency response approach, and the pole-
placement approach. The course includes a project in which the principles of modeling,
5
analysis, and design are applied to control of an actual physical system. The facilities for
students to actually implement their designs are not available at the present time.
SYS 390. Computer Integration of Systems (Dorny)

This is a lab course focused on the use of computer technology as an integrating
mechanism in systems. It includes three classroom sessions per week plus an open
laboratory. Laboratory work includes data acquisition, A/D and D/A conversion, control
of dc motors and stepper motors, programmable logic controllers, microcontrollers, and
interfacing of computers and devices. Both high level and assembly languages are used.
Student teams then design and fabricate a microprocessor-based system.
MEAM 410/510 Mechatronics (Ostrowski)

This senior level undergraduate course explores two primary components in mechanical
and electro-mechanical design. The first part of the course focuses on electro-mechanical
design and the use of microprocessors. Topics covered include: instrumentation, sensing,
and measurements; actuation and actuator dynamics; analog and digital interfacing;
micro-processor technology and programming; basic control theory, including
linearization and stability; and advanced materials. The second part of the course
introduces students to topics in conceptual design, as well as to tools of optimization and
the use of statistical descriptions of safety. The work in this course consists largely of
team-based assignments, culminating in the completion of a team-based project, which is
tested in an in-class presentation and competition during the final week of the course.
MEAM 420/520 Robotics and Automation (Kumar)

This senior and first year graduate level course exposes students to the kinematics and
dynamics of robots, the basics of robot control, and the state of the art in robotics and
automation. The course is divided into lectures and laboratory. The lectures are
accessible to students with a basic understanding of dynamics, ordinary differential
equations, and matrix algebra. The laboratories introduce students to the basics of
electromechanical systems and computer interfacing, sensors and actuators, robot
6
programming, robotic assembly, and robot design. This laboratory part of the course is
accessible to any junior or senior engineering student.
MEAM 513 Modeling and Control of Mechanical Systems (Ostrowski)

This senior and first year graduate level course (which mostly contains undergraduate
seniors) teaches methods of modeling, simulation, and control of physical systems. The
students use software packages (MATLAB and SIMULINK) in the study of both classical
and modern approaches to linear control theory, with an emphasis on state-space
techniques. In the frequency domain, topics covered include stability and performance
criteria based on the Nyquist criteria, Bode plots, and root-locus methods, as well as
frequency response, impulse response, and transform methods. In the time domain,
students study issues of controllability and observability, optimal controller design, and
loop-shaping techniques used for performance and robustness. Basic techniques for
nonlinear systems are also introduced. The course emphasizes examples taken from
robotics and vehicle dynamics.
MEAM 580 Machine Perception (Taylor)

This senior and first year graduate level course exposes students to the fundamentals of
computer vision and gives students an appreciation of the basic algorithms and their
applications in actual tasks.
Existing courses that are related to the proposed project

CSE 110 Introduction to Programming
This is an introductory course on computer programming at the freshman level designed
for non-CSE majors. No prior programming experience is assumed. This course covers
basic programming concepts, structures, and algorithms, along with the use of the C
programming language. Students apply these principles through a series of programming
labs and experiments.
7
CSE 115 Introduction to Computer Programming
CSE 115 is an introductory course on computer programming intended for engineering,
non-computer science, majors. No prior programming experience is assumed. This fast-
paced course first covers basic computer architecture and assembly language
programming; the course then introduces the C programming language which is covered
in detail; finally, JAVA is studied to introduce modern object oriented programming
concepts. Emphasis is put on the mastery of programming concepts and the acquisition of
fluency in programming in C and JAVA.
Calculus for the Natural Sciences, Part I

Review of functions, limits, continuity. Differentiation: extremum problems,
curve-sketching, differentials, related rates. Definite and indefinite integrals: Riemann
sums, initial-value problems, fundamental theorem, techniques of integration. Applicatio
ns of differentiation and integration to physical problems. Use of symbolic manipulation
and graphics software in Calculus. Note: This course uses Maple.
Calculus for the Natural Sciences, Part II

Infinite series, Taylor's theorem, parametric and polar equations, vector-valued functions,
partial derivatives and applictaions, double and triple integrals, and ordinary differential
equations. Applications to physical sciences. Use of symbolic manipulation and graphics
software in Calculus Note:: This course uses Maple.
Math 150 Calculus for the Social and Biological Sciences, Part 1
Review of functions, limits, continuity. Differentiation: extremum problems, curve-
sketching, differentials, related rates. Definite and indefinite integrals: Riemann sums,
initial-value problems, fundamental theorem, techniques of integration. Applications of
differentiation and integration to problems in economics and other social and biological
sciences. Use of symbolic manipulation and graphics software in Calculus.
8
Math 151 Calculus for the Social and Biological Sciences, Part II
Functions of several variables, partial derivatives, multiple integrals, differential
equations; infinite series and Taylor's theorem, introduction to linear algebra and matrices
with applications to linear programming and Markov processes. Elements of probability
and statistics. Applications to social and biological sciences. Use of symbolic
manipulation and graphics software in Calculus. Note: This course uses Maple.
Outreach programs in robotics
PRIME
The PRIME program which is a joint effort between industry, governmental and
academic institutions to encourage minority participation in science-based professions.
This program is targeted at high school students in grades 7-12 and involves over 40 high
schools in the Philadelphia regional area. This laboratory will allow us to support this
activity by providing the space and the resources for undergraduates from Upenn to
undertake joint projects with the high school students that they are mentoring.
FIRST Robotics Competition

The FIRST Robotics Competition is a national engineering contest which immerses high
school students in the exciting world of engineering. Teaming up with engineers from
businesses and universities, students get a hands-on, inside look at the engineering
profession. In six intense weeks, students and engineers work together to brainstorm,
design, construct and test their "champion robot". With only six weeks, all jobs are
critical path. The University of Pennsylvania Robotics Club students and faculty have
teamed up with a corporate sponsor, Johnson and Johnson (McNeill Inc.) and two local
area high schools. The LURE laboratory will be used as a resource for developing initial
prototypes, bread boarded designs, and for developing software.
PENNLincs
The mission of PENNlincs is to link the cognitive science research community with
schools and other educational institutions in order to support lively, mutual, productive
collaborations between research and practice centering on questions of teaching and
learning. One of the significant programs run by PENNlincs is the robotics mentoring
9
programs linking students in inner-city schools with University students and faculty. This
program brings in students from local area middle and high schools each week to learn
about computer programming and robotics. The LURE facility will be used to teach
students how to program in C and HTML, and use robotic kits to do robot programming.
10

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Robotics Laboratory and Curriculum Development

A Proposal Submitted to NSF ILI Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE)

Principal Investigator: Vijay Kumar

Names appearing on the NSF cover sheet

1. Cover Sheet (NSF Form 1207, Rev. 10/97)

2. Information about Principal Investigators (NSF Form 1225)

3. Project Data Form (NSF Form 1295)

1. Cover Sheet (NSF Form 1207, Rev. 10/97)_________________________________i

2. Information about Principal Investigators (NSF Form 1225)__________________i

3. Project Data Form (NSF Form 1295)_____________________________________i

The Current Situation_________________________________________________________2

Plan for Curriculum Development______________________________________________4

Plan for Laboratory Development_______________________________________________9

7. Biographical Sketches of the Principal Investigators________________________1

Jorge Juan Santiago-Aviles________________________________________________16

Camillo Jose Taylor______________________________________________________18

The equipment request________________________________________________________1

9. Current and Pending Support___________________________________________1

Computing and Educational Technology Services (CETS)___________________________3

Description of relevant courses_________________________________________________4

Outreach programs in robotics_________________________________________________9

The Current Situation

Plan for Curriculum Development

Changes in existing courses2

The robotics minor

Plan for Laboratory Development

Figure 1 A typical example of a Figure 2 The proposed carrel for

5 FOOT HIGH WALLS

Figure 3 The layout for the proposed LURE laboratory

Table 2 The Equipment Request

Table 3The main tasks and timeline (July 99 - June 02)

[1] Engineering Criteria 2000, 2nd Edition, Engineering Accreditation Commission,

[4] Bloom, B.S. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: The classification of

[6] The Economist, September 28, 1996: page 122.

[7] Engelberger, J. Robotics in Service, M.I.T. Press, Cambridge, 1989.

[10] Gee, J. P. (1989). What is literacy? Journal of Education, 171, 18-25.

[19] National science education standards. National Research Council, Washington,

[20] Tobin, K. and Tristano, D. Connecting Communities of Learners, University of

[21] The Wall Street Journal, February 16, 1996.

[22] Websites http://www.sony.com, http://apps.disney.com/Disney/World.

[24] http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~meam100, An on-line program for introducing

Dipl Diploma in Electrical Engineering, National Technical University Athens, 1986

Publications related to the project

1. K. Daniilidis. Hand-Eye Calibration Using Dual Quaternions. International Journal of

2. K. Daniilidis. Dual quaternions for absolute orientation and hand-eye calibration. In

4. K. Daniilidis, Ch. Krauss, M. Hansen, and G. Sommer. Real-Time Tracking of

1. K. Daniilidis and H.-H. Nagel. Analytical results on error sensitivity of motion

2. D. Koller, K. Daniilidis, and H.-H. Nagel. Model-based object tracking in monocular

3. K. Daniilidis. Attentive visual motion processing: computations in the log-polar

4. K. Daniilidis and M. Spetsakis. Understanding noise sensitivity in structure from

5. J. Mendelsohn, K. Daniilidis, and R. Bajcsy. Constrained Self-Calibration for

Publications Pertinent to the Proposed Project

Doctoral Students Supervised

Membership in Editorial Boards

Doctoral Students Supervised

Membership in Editorial Board

Publications Most Closely Related to the Proposed Project

1. ``A 3D Virtual Environment for Modeling Mechanical Cardiopulmonary

2. ``Analysis of Left Ventricular Wall Motion Based on Volumetric Deformable Models

3. ``Segmentation using deformable models with affinity-based localization''. T. Jones

4. ``Image Segmentation based on the Integration of Pixel Affinity and Deformable

Five other significant publications

1. ``ASL recognition based on a coupling between HMMs and 3D motion analysis''. C.

2. ``Adapting Hidden Markov Models for ASL recognition by using three-dimensional