IRES: US-Korea Collaborative Software- and Hardware-Design of Humanoids for Real-World tasks in Human-Centered Environments

福岛核灾难是机器人技术的觉醒时刻。尽管经过多年的研究和各种各样的机器人，但像转动阀门和连接软管这样的任务仍然无法完成。如果在事故发生的最初阶段就执行这些任务，那么大部分后果都是可以避免的。事实上，辐射水平过高，迫使救援人员等待，灾难不断扩大。发电厂和工业场所是以人为中心的环境，通常以门、舱口、楼梯和梯子为特征，需要进入或爬上。此外，此类环境还具有需要操作和连接的阀门、软管和开关。然而，机器人还不够成熟，无法在这样的环境中有效地发挥作用。这个为期3年的IRES项目的合作伙伴是美国和韩国的机器人专家，他们分别在类人机器人的软件和硬件设计方面具有专长。目标是协同设计在以人为中心的环境中工作的类人机器人。这既重要又紧迫，既能满足国家需要，也能满足国际需要。机器人的这种服务和缓解要求软件和硬件的耦合开发，机器人在哪里？S的形式必须遵循它的函数。这个项目吗?S的智力价值源于统一算法框架的制定。现在的类人机器人有模仿人的外形吗？但缺乏在以人为中心的环境中发挥作用和操作的软件。通过IRES，至少12名美国学生将在韩国科学技术院Hubo实验室工作6个月。这种伙伴关系使美国软件开发人员能够推动韩国硬件的努力，并共同设计未来版本的KAIST？世界一流的人形机器人。最终的结果将是一个能够在以人为中心的环境中高效运行的机器人，比如发电厂和工业场所，用于协作任务、人道主义援助和灾难响应。该项目广泛影响研究、教育、商业发展和K-12课程：人形设计将推进腿运动、全身运动规划、感知和灵巧操纵的研究；在韩国科学技术院（KAIST） 6个月的经历，培养美国学生的国际研究合作能力；韩国机器人公司的参与帮助美国学生开发产品；与费城一所高中的课后项目将产生基于机器人的教学模块。净效应是一系列更广泛的影响，这些影响由IRES实现，并在项目完成后持续很长时间。

The Fukushima nuclear disaster was an awakening moment for robotics. Despite years of research and a wide range of robots, performing tasks like turning valves and attaching hoses, could not be done. If such tasks were executed in the earliest stages of the accident, much of the aftermath could have been averted. The fact that radiation levels were too high, forced rescue workers to wait and the disaster grew. Power plants and industrial sites are human-centered environments that are often characterized by doors, hatches, stairs and ladders that need to be entered or climbed. Additionally such environments feature valves, hoses and switches that need to be manipulated and connected. Robots however are not mature enough to efficiently function and effectively operate in such environments. This 3-year IRES project partners American and Korean roboticists who respectively have expertise in the software and hardware design of humanoids. The objective is to collaboratively design humanoids to operate in human-centered environments. This is both important and urgent, addressing both national and international needs. Such service and mitigation by robots demands the coupled development of software and hardware where the robot?s form must follow its function. The project?s intellectual merit stems from the formulation of a unified algorithmic framework. Current humanoids have the form to mimic a person?s motions but lack the software to function and operate in human-centered environments. Through the IRES, at least 12 American students will each spend 6-months in Korea working at the KAIST Hubo Lab. This partnership enables the American software developers to drive Korean hardware efforts and together design future versions of KAIST?s world-class humanoid. The net effect will be a robot that can efficiently function and effectively operate in human-centered environments like power plants and industry sites for collaborative tasks, humanitarian assistance and disaster response.The project broadly impacts research, education, business development and K-12 curricula: humanoid design will advance research in legged locomotion, whole-body motion planning, perception and dexterous manipulation; the 6-month experience at KAIST educates US students in international research collaboration; the involvement of Korean robotics companies helps US students develop products; and the after-school programs with a Philadelphia High School will yield robotics-based teaching modules. The net effect is a set of broader impacts which are enabled by the IRES and sustainable well after the project completes.